By Michelle Pafford Helms Special Writer

John Rotche, president of the Belfor Franchise Group headquartered in Ann Arbor, has been named 2012 Entrepreneur of the Year by the International Franchise Association.

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John Rotche, president of the Belfor Franchise Group headquartered in Ann Arbor, believes that life is made up of a series of building blocks, which, in his case, raised him to the level of being named the 2012 Entrepreneur of the Year by the International Franchise Association.

Before reaching that distinction, Rotche's days involved some heavy lifting that spanned from recovering fully from an injury that left him a quadriplegic at the age of 18, to establishing two successful national franchises from a business that began out of his daughter's bedroom.

"It's the highest honor in franchising. What I'm probably most proud of is the class that I'm with -- Fred De Luca, founder of Subway; Tom Monaghan, founder of Domino's; Bill Marriott," Rotche said. "The tough thing is that only my name is on the trophy. We have over 200 franchisees' names that should be on that. We have the corporate staff whose names should be on that. So, I accepted the award on behalf of them."

One reason Rotche believes that he and his team won the award is for the success of his two franchises: DUCTZ, the nation's largest air duct cleaning and indoor air quality company with more than 175 locations, and a national service team of world traveling contractors to clean mechanical systems, particularly after major disasters; and HOODZ Kitchen Exhaust Cleaning, which began in 2009 and now has more than 150 locations.

Another reason Rotche believes he was recognized is for starting "Franship"-a mentorship program for the IFA to assist people working in the field of franchising.

The Ann Arbor resident's ability to overcome adversity was tested early in life when a football injury left him unable to walk and accept the spot he had earned on the University of Michigan's football team. However, Rotche said that experience opened up an opportunity for him to be part of the coaching staff under the late Bo Schembechler.

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ANN ARBOR: Life experience laid groundwork for Entrepreneur of the Year (with video)