David Wallach was one of the organized trade industry’s finest leaders and visionaries. David Wallach served as IRTA’s President from September 2007 until March of 2011 when the IRTA Global Board of Directors unanimously named him the first President Emeritus of IRTA. David’s contributions to the barter industry and IRTA spanned some thirty plus years.
David Wallach’s passion and love for the barter industry was unprecedented. He selflessly spent thousands of hours every year building the barter industry because he truly believed that the benefits of barter could improve the standard of living of everyone throughout the world.
Prior to Dave’s barter career he served eight years in the U.S. Air Force, and as a private investigator for Marin County, CA. He later jumped into entrepreneurship by launching a chain of vacuum cleaning stores. In 1979 he formed the American Trade Association and grew it to become one of the largest and most successful barter exchanges in the U.S. After Dave sold his trade exchange, rather kicking back and enjoying the fruits of his labors, Dave re-dedicated himself to the organized trade industry by getting heavily involved in IRTA, and he maintained that level of commitment to IRTA to his last day.
Dave also loved fishing in Montana, golf, collecting, travel and a good poker game and a great joke. David Wallach loved life to its fullest, he touched the lives of many people in a truly meaningful way and he was a treasure to all who knew him.
IRTA’s David Wallach Outstanding Achievement Award recognizes rare, unselfish and passionate commitment to the organized trade industry. The kind of selfless commitment that David Wallach exhibited everyday.
Dale Mardak, President, and CFO of IMS has been in the barter business for twenty-nine years. He joined Continental Trade Exchange (now IMS Barter), as a trade broker in 1993. By 1997, he was appointed as a director on the board as well as Treasurer of both Continental Trade Exchange, Ltd and IMS. In 1999, Dale received the designation of CTB. Dale has negotiated and been involved with the integration of thirty-eight trade exchanges into the IMS Barter Network over the last twenty-nine years of his barter career.
With the expansion of IMS, Dale oversees the Northeast markets in New York, Connecticut, Virginia, and Massachusetts as well as Illinois, Ohio, Tennessee & Kentucky. He has been on the IRTA Board as Secretary since 2017. He has also served on the board of directors of NATE for multiple terms, holding the position of Secretary for several years.
Dale is also a Legend of Barter, has earned multiple outstanding achievement awards and served on numerous IRTA convention panels and seminars. He is a community driven individual who serves on various boards and is involved with several fundraising organizations in his local area.
Dale’s extreme patience at the office may have something to do with his love for golf. After you hit the ball, find the ball, and repeat enough times, you must learn humility and patience! Dale and his high school sweetheart Lisa have been married for 43 years. If you don’t find him on the links, the next best bet is enjoying the sunshine on one of his boats with Lisa!
IRTA thanks Dale for his twenty-nine years of service to improve the barter industry and congratulates him for being this year’s 2022 David Wallach Outstanding Achievement Award recipient!
Kim is an integral part of IMS via her role as Vice President of International Monetary Systems. She has been employed with IMS since 1993. She has focused on several areas of the company including the broker department, the travel division, increasing interoffice velocity and the reciprocal division.
Kim has been the heart and soul of the Certified Trade Broker (CTB) program for over two decades. Kim currently is our CTB Committee Chairperson – she coordinates the CTB coursework and administers the exam for IRTA every year at our conventions. She has dedicated hundreds of hours towards educating the barter industry and has been a standout member of the IRTA & UC team. In 1997 Kim received the designation of Certified Trade Broker(CTB), in 2003 she has been voted “Broker of the Year.” Kim’s teaching background prior to IMS has carried over to the barter industry being a moderator or panelist at over 20 trade convention seminars. Additionally, she is a vital member IRTA’s UC Committee and has been largely responsible for IMS’s tremendous success in UC.
Kim is a huge asset to the barter industry, a wonderful human and a most worthy recipient of the 2020 David Wallach Outstanding Achievement Award.
John E. Strabley is the Chief Executive Officer of International Monetary Systems and has been with IMS since 1991. Over the last 27 years John has served in all facets of the barter industry, anging from retail and corporate trade to taking IMS through a registered IPO and 34 acquisitions. IMS is a publicly traded company and is a premier North American barter company, having 18 years of udited statements with the Securities and Exchange Commission, serving 16,000 businesses, 23,000 cardholders, 125 employees and 5 franchisees. Over $220,000,000 in barter transactions will be processed in 2017 throughout North America in IMS offices and franchise locations.
John has been on the Global Board for IRTA the past six years and is currently the Chairman of the Board. He also has received the Paul St. Martin Distinguished Service Award, several Outstanding Achievement Awards as well as the Legend of Barter. He has been a lead contributor on many IRTA convention panels/seminars and played in instrumental role in drafting many of IRTA’s important advisory memos of the last five years.
IRTA congratulates John for his much-deserved award and thanks him for his selfless
contributions to IRTA, UC and the barter industry at large.
Scott has been a member of IRTA since 1982. He served on the IRTA Global Board of Directors for more than 20 years, was IRTA President for two terms and held all other Board officer positions for a least one term.
Scott has been honored on three occasions with the highest award IRTA offers; the Paul St. Martin Distinguished Service Award. He has also received several IRTA Outstanding Achievement and Ambassador Awards as well as numerous awards from NATE. Always willing to share his expertise with others in the industry, Scott has led numerous Seminars and Discussion Groups during industry Conventions.
He presently serves as the Chairperson of the Universal Currency Committee and in September of 2016 Scott was elected Co-Vice Chairman of the IRTA Global Board.
Scott graduated from Georgia Tech in 1977 where he attended on a football scholarship and received his BA in Industrial Management.
