From July 2014-June 2015, Greensboro's Billy Tesh traveled across the U.S. as president of the National Pest Management Association. He spent the year meeting with NPMA members and lawmakers on behalf of the pest management industry.

Throughout his term, Billy realized that pest management professionals nationwide share a common concern; they care about people.

"We are here to serve our customers and to provide solutions. We are an industry that provides solutions," Billy said. "The unique thing about our industry is most owners are philanthropic. They see people in need, and they help. They see that need in their community, and they feel that responsibility, and they help."

His term as president also helped him realize how active NPMA is in promoting the pest management industry on a national and local level.

"Until you're president, you never know how many moving parts there are for the industry that the association does to protect the integrity of our business," he said.

His year as NPMA president also gave him a renewed focus for his own business, Greensboro-based Pest Management Systems, Inc.  He is incorporating things he learned from colleagues nationwide as well as making his business more efficient through systems he incorporated to monitor business activity while traveling.

Billy has more than 40 years of pest management industry experience and has been an active member of NPMA and NCPMA for many years.  In addition, he served as NCPMA president in 1987.