tRibute

Most people in the transport sector find a niche for themselves, but not Jerry Kiersey, a leading figure in the industry, who passed away suddenly on 4 May.

Jerry was a road transport operator, industry advocate and representative, a commentator, political activist and a volunteer for many charities and good causes. Up to the time he died, he was still active in all of these sectors. Bet that during his last swim - a passion of his - he would have been planning and organising the next move for his many projects.

He was very good at compartmentalising his life, however, one thing did not always follow another. In spite of all this work and commitment, Jerry’s family trumped everything and were the most important part of his life – his wife Helen and children Ben, Nick and Rachel. At her father’s funeral service Rachel said: “when writing this piece the hardest thing to think of was where to start, as describing Jerry’s life would take forever”- an understatement for sure.

Jerrys life began in Enniskillen, in close proximity to the railway station, where he gained his first interest in transport. Although he left school at the age of fourteen, he never lost his appetite to learn, and was always embracing new challenges. Having spent a number of years at sea, he returned to live and work in Dublin. In a piece he wrote some years ago, Jerry described the next stage of his life as becoming ‘a man with a van’. That was 1973, and soon his new firm was expanding, moving to a warehouse on the Naas Road, operating three trucks.

Not long afterwards he formed the now legendary Blueflite Nationwide Distribution business. Having always focused on personal relationships, ‘marketing’ was one of the keys to his success - even if, according to himself, he did not have a name for it at the time. When Blueflite was formed, there were no overnight distribution companies operating in Ireland. One of his first customers was Lego, with Arnotts the largest retailer of the Danish toy company back then.

It was around this time that his close working and personal friendship began with David Delaney - described by Jerry’s son Ben “as beyond flesh and blood”. In a few short years Blueflite went from being a transport company doing set routes around Ireland to specialising in overnight distribution. Never standing still, Blueflite mainly focused on car parts delivery, and by 1990 was operating over 40 trucks, had a network of regional agents and delivered over 60% of automotive spare parts nationwide.

There were many aspects to the Blueflite operation that were innovative and original. One was the introduction of draw-bar trailers. It allowed a rigid truck to become a trunk vehicle at night. In addition, Blueflite was also one of the first transport companies to achieve the

Staff at Green Tiger Express wishing Jerry a Happy Birthday in April of this year

ISO 9002 standard.

Jerry then sold the company to Danish forwarder, DFDS, where he assumed the role of CEO. While very excited about where the new operation would go, he was also anxious, noting at the time: “DFDS is a magnificent operation, but in reality, I find the restraint of a management structure a bit restrictive.” Not too many people were surprised therefore when Jerry moved on and started to plan his next landmark business. In a few short years he had gathered his loyal team together and established Green Tiger Express, a leading automotive logistics service provider active in both Ireland and Britain.

While Blueflite was growing Jerry was also involved in other projects, including what was then called the ‘Homework Club’ in Ballyfermot, and is now known as St. Ultans Childcare Project. He often said that the hours spent with the children there was his favourite way to deal with stress. He always encouraged learning and personal development for the kids. His charity work was also evident during the Romanian crisis in the early 1990s, as the Blueflite warehouse became the holding centre for all the aid that was gathered and sent out. In a cruel repeat of history thirty years later, a similar crisis has unfolded in the Ukraine and Jerry made a significant contribution to the ongoing aid effort in the weeks leading up to his death. His desire to help and assist those in need was admirable, but his ability to recruit others and get them involved was remarkable.

In the early days of Blueflite Jerry became involved in the Dublin Branch of the Irish Road Haulage Association (IRHA). He went on to become a member of the Management Team and also served a tenure as President. He was often the Association’s biggest critic on the inside, but outside he would defend hauliers and the road transport industry in every forum. His representation of the industry went beyond the IRHA, and with others he formed the Irish Transporters Consociate, a loose alignment of trade associations which had common goals that were involved in road, freight and passenger transport. He was also involved in the establishment of the Transport Users Group (TUG) to improve operating conditions for those entering and exiting Dublin Port. After the dispute that led to the blockade of Dublin Port in 1994, the then Minister Alan Dukes set up a review of the transport industry. Jerry represented the IoFF (Institute of Freight Forwarders) at this forum, which delivered a report that had some positive impact on the Industry and became the template for future transport policy.

Over the past decade, Jerry returned to the Management Team at the IRHA, turning his attention and focus on Europe, getting involved in many campaigns in Brussels at EU level. He was instrumental in pushing for some notable successes, such as the harmonising of driver’s licences, protecting drivers from delays, safe and secure parking facilities to mention just a few. Indeed, he was instrumental in shaping policy for the future.

For a period Jerry became a political activist, as a member of the Progressive Democrats (PD). At one memorable policy meeting and briefing about the Dublin Port Tunnel, Jerry was particularly outspoken. Nobody in the Parliamentary Party ever got as tough a grilling in the media as they got from Jerry that day!

His relationship with politics eased with the demise of the PDs, but soon he turned his focus to the media as a way to help influence policy. An avid reader and supporter of ‘Fleet’, he keenly backed the resurgence of the title in the early noughties. His regular columns were often controversial, and thought provoking, but always entertaining.

For those who were lucky to have enjoyed a friendship with Jerry, he was like a personal trainer. He challenged your thoughts, sometimes to the point of irritation, but always forcing to keep the thought process agile. He always thought outside the box, but was never happy until those around him did also. If he challenged your thoughts, he wanted you to do the same to him. As strong as his opinion would be, he was open to having it changed or maybe modified, and would be very magnanimous in suggesting that you had educated him, or possibly proved him wrong. In company, he always noticed who and what was around him, and on occasions felt it could be helpful to criticise or compliment, always meant with sincerity. Jerry was always respectful of the natural environment and ironically he died in the natural surroundings of the sea and the arms of nature. Twenty years ago he invested heavily in converting trucks to run on fuel distilled from Rapeseed, a project he was bitterly disappointed about when the political support

weakened for it. In spite of this he always ran trucks to highest emission standards and was constantly looking at alternative fuel options. His granddaughter Niamh said of him “I don’t think there’s anyone on earth who loves nature and all living things as much as he did. He loved his garden, birds and stray dogs.”

People will remember Jerry for different reasons, but if his legacy will be different for everybody, his loss will be similar to all, especially his family. If Jerry was asked what his legacy would likely be, he would likely say: “I am not finished yet.”

Jerry has left a few gaps in people’s lives. He is perhaps best remembered in the words of his son Nick: “While Jerry has left us physically, his energy is still undiminished and all around us.” Rest in Peace. Sean Murtagh