Dining in the Dark Co-Chairs

Scott & Kathy Bieler West Herr Automotive

A native of Orchard Park, Scott Bieler, President & CEO of the West Herr Automotive Group, began his career at West Herr in 1975 as a salesman, was promoted to Sales management in 1979, General Manager in 1981, became President in 1997, and has been majority owner since 2000, along with his partners; Brad Hafner, John Wabick and Bill Loecher. Employing over 2,500 people, he has helped grow the company to become the largest automotive group in New York State and the 17th-largest auto group in the country.

Scott’s community involvement has been extensive through the years. He is the Vice Chair of the Roswell Park Alliance Foundation Board and co-chaired their capital campaign to build the new Bieler Clinical Sciences Center, Board of Director for Visit Buffalo Niagara, Invest Buffalo Niagara and Daemen College, and a member of the Greater Buffalo Racial Equity Roundtable. Scott served on the Upstate New York Federal Reserve Regional Advisory Board for 5 years and has served on the Boards of the Buffalo Zoo, Buffalo Niagara Partnership, and Hilbert College. Kathy has been active for three terms in the environmental arena serving in leadership positions with the Western New York Land Conservancy, and currently is the Board President. A CPA, Kathy served as Finance and Operations Director for more than 20 years with a prominent local financial group.

Through the Scott Bieler Family Foundation, Scott and Kathy have made leadership gifts to Mercy Hospital in South Buffalo for the renovation of the Emergency Room, the Rural Outreach Center in East Aurora for the construction of the new Scott Bieler Foundation building, and the Jericho Road Community Health Center/Vive for the purchase of the Scott Bieler Family Foundation building at their new location at 1500 Main Street in Buffalo.

West Herr, which was founded in 1950, started as a single point Ford Dealership in Hamburg, New York, and is the largest automotive group in New York State. Since 1950, West Herr has sold over 1,200,000 vehicles. With 35 locations in Erie, Niagara, Monroe and Ontario counties representing 23 franchises and over 2,500 employees. In 2021, West Herr sold nearly 60,000 vehicles and serviced more than 470,000 vehicles. West Herr has received Business First of Buffalo’s “Best Places to Work in WNY” award for 18 consecutive years and the Better Business Bureau “Torch Award for Marketplace Ethics” 8 times. The West Herr Automotive Group is dedicated to absolute excellence in customer service provided by honest, responsible, and respectful people. West Herr supports individual pride, company spirit, and community involvement.