ISRI to honor 2 veteran recyclers at 2024 convention

The Washington-based Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI) will honor Joel Denbo and Mel Wright with Lifetime Achievement Awards. The awards will be presented at the ISRI2024 convention in Las Vegas in April.

The organization says the award to Wright is being given in recognition of his “dedication to advancing the recycled materials industry as well as his lifelong commitment, leadership and service to the industry.”

“Mel is an amazing leader within the recycled materials industry and his significant contributions to the industry demonstrate the qualities of a lifetime of service,” ISRI President Robin Wiener says. “Mel has always shown great commitment to the recycled materials industry, his co-workers, family and community. By honoring Mel with the Lifetime Achievement Award, it serves to solidify his legacy of leadership.”

Wright has participated in the recycled materials industry for more than 40 years and has shown commitment and leadership that has helped the recycling sector become “the dynamic industry it is today," ISRI says.

“It is truly an honor to receive the ISRI Lifetime Achievement Award,” Wright says. “Taking on my role as a second-generation member of the recycled materials industry has been incredibly rewarding and provided a foundation for a rewarding career and life. My family has been a rock of support and encouragement throughout my career and I am forever grateful for the opportunity to be part of such a dynamic industry.”

Wright started his career in high school at his family’s recycling facility in Beaumont, Texas, currently operating as Wright’s Scrap Metals Inc.

He continued working full-time alongside his father while studying business at Lamar University in Beaumont. After graduating from Lamar, Wright was named vice president and currently serves as president of Wright’s Scrap Metals.

He has been active in the ISRI Gulf Coast Chapter, serving on the board and as its president, as well as numerous national leadership and committee roles, including two terms as chair of ISRI’s political action committee.

“Mel’s leadership within the recycled materials industry has helped transform the industry into the sustainable and evolved industry it is today,” ISRI Chair Brian Henesey says. “I’ve watched Mel make a lasting impact that will continue on within ISRI and in the recycled materials industry of tomorrow.”

Denbo is being honored for “his inspirational leadership, priority on safety and his lifelong commitment and service to the recycled materials industry,” ISRI says.

“I’m so excited that ISRI has chosen to honor Joel for his life-long contributions to the recycled materials industry through this award,” Wiener says. “Joel has provided dynamic vision and dedicated leadership to the industry and to ISRI specifically. It was Joel’s vision that transformed ISRI’s focus on safety and risk management, creating ISRI’s safety outreach program that helped transform the safety record of the industry as a whole. His service and commitment to the industry and its workers are a testament to the impact leadership can have.”

Denbo has been part of the scrap industry for more than 40 years, formerly serving as chief executive of Tennessee Valley Recycling LLC in Decatur, Alabama. After that firm was acquired by SA Recycling, Denbo began serving as director of special projects in the Georgia Region for SA. Denbo also serves as president of Denbo Iron & Metal Co. Inc. in Decatur as well as managing member of Denbo Metal Recovery LLC in Pulaski, Tennessee.

“Receiving the ISRI Lifetime Achievement Award is an incredible honor that I’m humbled by,” Denbo says. “I’ve been fortunate to be part of so many of ISRI’s initiatives and to work with the most incredible leaders. Together, I’m proud to have helped ISRI become such a driving force in championing the recycled materials industry on the important issues of our time.”

On the ISRI front, Denbo is a former chair of the ISRI national board of directors and is a current board member and chair of the ISRI Resources Committee. He has served ISRI’s Southeastern Chapter as president, vice president, treasurer, and secretary and held what ISRI calls numerous committee chair and member positions.

“Joel’s unique leadership in the recycled materials industry is inspirational,” Henesey says. “Through the years, he’s been instrumental in helping guide our industry through innovation and positive transformation, especially in ISRI’s priority of safety.”

The Lifetime Achievement Award is presented annually by ISRI to honor upon people in the recycled materials industry whose name and deeds are synonymous with integrity and the pursuit of excellence and who have made significant contributions over their lifetime to the industry, according to the trade group.