A beloved and respected member of the precast/prestressed foundation passed away on February 7, 2014. Mario J. Bertolini, 79, founder, president and CEO Blakeslee Prestress Inc. in Branford, CT. His commitment to the precast industry was enormous. Over the many years he was involved with PCI he was extremely active -- not only in visible ways such as winning the PCI Medal of Honor, being recognizes as a PCI Titan during the PCI 50th anniversary year, serving as chairman, and being named a PCI Fellow. His work could be felt throughout the industry as an active participant in more than 3 dozen committees over the years.
In addition to his work at Blakeslee, he was part of the AltusGroup since 2005. The AltusGroup is company that has developed, manufactured, and marketing precast concrete innovations such as the CarbonCast line of products.
To honor his work in the industry the PCI, the AltusGroup made a donation to the PCI Foundation in Mario's memory. The gift was presented to Bertolini's son, Peter Bertolini, at the AltusGroup Annual General Meeting, April 23, 2014 in Chicago. Peter later delivered the check to Jim Voss, treasurer of the PCI Education Foundation during PCI Committee Days.
Making a donation in memory of someone provides an opportunity to celebrate the accomplishments of the life of a loved one or colleague while supporting his life's work. "Mario was such an influential force in our industry," said John Carson, Executive Director of AltusGroup. "He was a man of great passion and honor, so it was only appropiriate that we marked his passing with appreciation for his integrity and humility."
I would like to provide my personal thanks to Mario's family and the AltusGroup for making this donation in his honor.