Nashville, TN – Mr. Tommy McEwen, Nashville, Tennessee, was named by the Printing Industry Association of the South, Inc. (PIAS) as their Person of the Year. This honor was bestowed at a banquet held on June 22, 2010 during the PIAS Annual Convention at the Hilton Clearwater Resort in Clearwater, Florida.

Tommy McEwen grew up in East Nashville, Tennessee. He graduated from Hume Fogg High School in downtown Nashville.

Out of High School, Tommy went to work for Nicholstone running their finishing machines. As the years went by, he saw a bigger need for graphic finishing in Nashville, so he left Nicholstone to start a new company. McGraphics, Inc. was started from scratch with just one ancient hand-fed foil stamping machine. This "museum piece" can still be seen on display in the company's lobby.

In the first ten years of McGraphics, Tommy grew the company to $2.5 million in sales. Within those ten years, he proceeded to install the best finishing equipment in the city. Today, he still serves as President. The company is now a family business, employing both of his sons and a nephew, who one day plan to keep the finishing business thriving when he retires.  Tommy McEwen has served on several Board of Directors, both serving his industry as well as his community. He has served with the Foil and Specialty Effects Association and Big Brothers of Nashville. He has served on both the PIAS Board of Directors and the PIAS Credit Union Board of Directors since 2003. He today, serves as Membership Committee Chairperson for PIAS. He is a big proponent of helping future industry students by promoting graphic arts educations, internships and scholarships. He currently serves as Chairman of the PIAS Scholarship Golf Tournament, which raises scholarship money for students studying the graphic arts trade.

Tommy began serving on the PIAS Credit Union Board of Directors as Second Vice President/Director, was then elected as Vice Chairman in 2005. For the last 4 years, he has served as the Credit Union's Chairman of the Board. He will continue to serve as a Director until his term expires in 2013.  Tommy McEwen is a Master Mason and a member of the Scottish Rite. He is currently a Committee Member of the Arthritis Foundation and L Eté du Vin (a Nashville-based yearly wine auction that helps raise money for cancer research.)

In 2004, Tommy was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis. Not one to be crippled or defined by his diagnosis, he decided in May of 2005 to complete a 72 mile walk over four days from Fort William to Inverness Scotland.  Tommy McEwen resides in Nashville, Tennessee with his wife Catherine.

The PIAS Person of the Year is chosen for service to the printing industry, community and betterment of the graphic arts industry as a whole.

PIAS is a graphic arts trade association representing more than 500 member companies in their seven state region: Arkansas, Alabama, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, and West Virginia.