HOUSTON, July 21, 2006 (PRIMEZONE) -- SYSCO Corporation (NYSE:SYY) today announced that Michael C. Nichols has been named Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary. Mr. Nichols, who currently serves as Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary, will assume his new position effective immediately. In his new position he will continue his leadership role overseeing the management of SYSCO's legal risks, supporting and providing counsel to SYSCO Corporation and its operating companies, including mergers and acquisitions, securities, contractual issues, and supporting the corporate governance responsibilities of SYSCO's Board of Directors.
Mr. Nichols, 54, began his SYSCO career in 1981 as General Counsel at the company's corporate office in Houston, a position he held through 1988. In 1991 he rejoined SYSCO Corporation as Vice President of management development and human resources and in 1998 he advanced to his current position.
Mr. Nichols was born and raised in Birmingham, Alabama. He is a graduate of Brown University, where he earned a bachelor of arts degree in history in 1974. He then earned his law degree from Emory University in Atlanta in 1977. Mr. Nichols served two terms in the Georgia State House of Representatives from 1977 to 1981. In Houston, Mr. Nichols' volunteer efforts have included serving as a board member and chairman of the Houston Food Bank and serving as a Trustee on the Houston Police Officers Pension Plan. He currently serves as Chairman of the City of Houston's Civil Service Commission. Mr. Nichols is a member of the state bars of Texas, Georgia, and the District of Columbia. He and his wife, Marcia, have four children and reside in Houston.
SYSCO is the global leader in selling, marketing and distributing food products to restaurants, healthcare and educational facilities, lodging establishments and other customers who prepare meals away from home. Its family of products also includes equipment and supplies for the foodservice and hospitality industries. For calendar year 2005, the company generated $31.4 billion in sales. For more information about SYSCO visit the company's Internet home page at www.sysco.com.
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