Church bookstore manager George Thomsen is to be the next chairman of CBA. He will become chairman-elect in October, taking on leadership of the retail trade association's board when current chairman Jim Whitaker's term expires in October 2010.

Thomsen, the 55-year-old director of the Harvest Store at Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside, Calif., was voted into the position during CBA's board meeting prior to ICRS. A formal announcement is expected to be made later in the year.

Thomsen, who has been on the CBA board for two years, said he was honored by the appointment. "I feel very blessed to be on a board that I feel is so strong, and has a lot of talent and gifting from the Lord," he told Christian Retailing. The board "knows its role in the industry and in CBA, and is willing to roll up its sleeves and do the hard work for the good of the association, and the good of the industry."

Thomsen's store was named a Jim Carlson CBA Store of the Year Impact Award in 2007 and was also awarded the Large Church Bookstore of the Year trophy by The Church Bookstore magazine in 2008.

Married with two children and one grandchild, Thomsen also serves as a consultant to other stores, and is a former director of planning and development for the Professional Golf Association (PGA). He was also executive director of the PGA's California branch.

"I would like to continue to see our industry pull together as brothers and sisters in Christ, and the work is already starting," he said. "We shouldn't have any kind of division. We should not be working at odds. The reality is that we are competitors, in a way, but we are all together in doing the work of the kingdom."

Thomsen added: "Our board feels strongly, and I personally feel strongly, that it's very important for people to understand the importance of the Christian retailer in the local community. We need healthy Christian retailers."