CITGO Retailer Murray's Tire & Auto Service Station Wins "Best Customer Service" Honor at WMDA Convention

WILLIAMSPORT, Md., Oct. 25, 2013 /3BL Media /PRNewswire/ -- On Saturday, Sept. 28, Murray's Tire & Auto CITGO station was awarded the "Best Customer Service" honor at the annual Washington, Maryland, Delaware Service Station and Automotive Repair Association (WMDA) convention in Ocean City, Md. The WMDA provides automotive and management educational training programs for owners, managers and technicians with the primary objective of innovating and educating. Murray's CITGO station has been a part of the Williamsport, Md. area and surrounding communities since 1942, and has consistently provided its customers with full service gasoline, complete automotive repairs with state of the art equipment and convenience store essentials.

Maryland-based CITGO Marketer Ocean Petroleum, L.L.C. has supplied gasoline stations in the Northeast for more than 35 years, including Murray's CITGO. The enduring presence of the local Murray's CITGO station stands out as an example of commitment to award-winning customer service and family values among the hundreds of gas stations supplied by Ocean Petroleum across Washington, D.C., Maryland and Delaware.

"My family loves this city. It is hard to believe we first opened for business in Williamsport in 1942. When I think back on how much we have grown along with the economy and culture of Williamsport, I'm blessed because there are not many family-run service stations left," said Phil Murray, third-generation family member of Murray's CITGO. "We are honored to have been a part of this community for so many years, and we plan to offer even better products and services to our customers in the years to come. This WMDA award is a wonderful recognition, and we could not be more proud of achieving our mission. Our customers are like family, and family is our business."

The strategic waterfront location of Williamsport made the town a hub for pioneer families. Today, Murray's CITGO refuels drivers from Interstate 81, which connects West Virginia and Maryland where an 18^th century ferry once carried travelers across the Potomac River.

Murray's CITGO is a landmark business that local families have come to rely on during its more than seven decades at the corner of S. Artizan St. and E. Sunset Ave. Throughout the more than 70-year history of Murray's CITGO service station, the Murray family has pursued the goal of delivering the most complete range of services and trusted automotive repair for the local community. The time and effort the Murray family has put into their Williamsport station has not gone unnoticed. Steve Ladd of Ocean Petroleum said, "Murray's CITGO provides the kind of customer service we don't see often enough in convenience stores. As a CITGO supplier, it's a pleasure to have the kind of relationship we value with Phil and his family."

Ocean Petroleum is a distributor/wholesaler of branded and unbranded motor fuels. Since 1976 the company has prided itself in customer service. Through a vast system of terminal supply points, Ocean Petroleum is able to supply branded and unbranded gasoline stations with motor fuel in Virginia, Washington D.C., Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey. Ocean Petroleum has been a CITGO brand distributor since 1999.

CITGO is committed to giving back to the local communities it serves through its network of locally owned CITGO locations. Independent CITGO Marketers, such as Ocean Petroleum, own and operate more than 100 CITGO locations in Maryland and are proud to support their neighborhoods.

CITGO, based in Houston, is a refiner, transporter, and marketer of transportation fuels, lubricants, petrochemicals and other industrial products. The company is owned by PDV America, Inc., an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A., the national oil company of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. For more information visit www.CITGO.com.