|
|
|
Fred Sotoodeh |
Ray Takeda |
Jerry Stahl
I attended school in England at the age of 11. I spent four years in London at Aldenham School
where I was able to successfully pass the O'Level examinations. My parents wanted me to be fluent
in several languages so they sent me to summer school in Switzerland for about five years where I learned to speak french. At the age of 15 I returned to the U.S. at which time I was accepted at Cal State Fullerton. However, they told me I was too young to attend college. I went to Tustin High School for one year and then went back to CSUF. There I received my B.A. in Economics after which I attended Cal State Long Beach where I received my M.B.A.
I was interested in the transportation industry and wanted to go to work for Gus right after college, but was told I needed to get some experience in the real world. (Bartending didn't count). So I went to work for Food Partnership, a non-profit company that utilized trucks in the CTA (California Trucking Association) to transport donated food into local food banks.
I started work at Osterkamp Trucking in December of 1989. I dispatched for a few months after which I joined the safety department. After about two years with the company, Gus promoted me to Operations Manager where I oversaw our day to day operations.
I am now and have been for about 6 years, the V.P./G.M. of OTI. In this position I am responsible for all aspects of the business from customer relations to purchasing of equipment. I have been very lucky in the fact that I've worked very closely with Gus Osterkamp and I've learned a tremendous amount from him. I am looking forward to working with Hank Osterkamp in the years to come.
I am thankful for my wonderful family, my wife Holly, my son Sam, and my daughters Josephine and Lilly. I currently live in Anaheim Hills, California and work out of Osterkamp's Pomona terminal.
I was born in Boulder, Colorado
and my family moved to Los Angeles when I was
2 years old. I grew up in south central Los Angeles
where my parents owned a small “mom and pop” grocery
store. We lived in the rear of the store until
I was 13 when we were able to move into our own
home. Our store was open seven days a week and
we all had to work hard to make a living there.
Since this was a rough neighborhood, my brother
and I were sent to learn Judo as a means of self-defense.
I was able to attain my black belt just after
turning 16.
I began my career in transportation as a vacation
replacement driver at a small LTL union company
in Vernon, California. After 6 months, I was given
the opportunity to go to night school to learn
Motor and Air Cargo Rates. When I received my
certificates, I began working at nights, billing
and rating, after finishing my regular daytime
duties as a driver. Shortly thereafter, I was
promoted to Dispatcher and 6 months later I became
the Operations Manager.
I left the company after 3 years as their Operations
Manager to form a company called Freight Train
Trucking. Starting with two trucks, my partner,
Harley Hice and I operated the company together
until 1991. By that time, the company had grown
to a fleet of over 130 trucks at two terminal
locations. I left Freight Train to become a real
estate appraiser but was asked by my partner to
come back in 1995 to help him as he had become
terminally ill with cancer.
We were able to move the Freight Train business
to a large California-based carrier and I was
offered a position in management there. I worked
at that company in various capacities for over
10 years - first as a Special Commodities Manager,
then as a LTL Terminal Manager and finally as
the Director of Truckload.
I began my career at Frontier Transportation as
an outside consultant to Osterkamp Trucking and
reported directly to Fred Sotoodeh. I was asked
to analyze the various Osterkamp and Frontier
van operations and make suggestions for improvements
in all areas. After completion of my surveys,
I was offered the position of General Manager
of Frontier Transportation. I quickly accepted
the job as I had soon recognized the dynamic leadership
abilities and styles of the owners and managers
of the Osterkamp group and saw the tremendous
potentials of the company. Fred Sotoodeh, our
Vice President, was given direct responsibilities
for both Osterkamp Trucking and Frontier Transportation.
My predecessor at Frontier, Paul Zumberge, is
now serving in a different capacity for the Osterkamp
group of companies whereby his skills as a lawyer
and transportation expert can be better utilized.
Since coming onboard, we have consolidated the
van divisions under the Frontier banner. We will
be making strides towards improving our communications
systems as well as equipment utilization in an
effort to improve service to our customers and
strengthen our relations with our drivers. Many
of the drivers at Frontier and Osterkamp have
been with the company for over 20 years. This
is indicative of a transportation company that
takes care of it’s most precious resource, the
Driver.
My lovely wife Toni and I live in Downey, California.
Together we both enjoy cooking, traveling, fishing
and snow skiing. I have two wonderful daughters
from a previous marriage and two grandchildren,
a boy and a girl that we take great joy in spoiling.
Jerry Stahl was raised in
Toledo, Ohio and became a professional musician
at 14 years old. He continued entertaining full
time until 21 years old. In addition, starting
at 19 years old, he worked full time for a manufacturer
of Holly carburetors.
In 1971 Jerry moved to California and found work
in a warehouse for $3.25 per hour. After six months
he was promoted to warehouse manager. Several
years later, he was offered a job by one of the
trucking companies that hauled for his company
and accepted. He worked for them several months
but left for better employment at a local harbor
carrier. He worked in various capacities such
as maintenance, loading of 60 foot steel I-beams
out of the harbor, safety, and dispatch operations.
His favorite story is that on his first day of
work in the trucking business, he was handed a
pair of gloves, overalls, and a sledgehammer,
pointed to a large pile of trailer tires, and
told to repair them. This became the catalyst
of his determination to become the best dispatcher
possible, so he would never have to change another
tire in his life. His respect for the hard work
that tire men do each day is undying.
In 1975 he was offered a job at Osterkamp Trucking
in the dispatch office and accepted. Osterkamp
had 24 trucks and a large following of sub haulers
at that time. They hauled primarily double and
semi flatbeds in California, Arizona and Nevada.
There were two dispatchers and they worked hard,
long hours, including evenings and weekends, but
it according to Jerry, it was one of the most
fun jobs Jerry had ever had. In addition to working
in the dispatch office, Jerry and his co-worker
unloaded hay at Gus's dairy three nights per week.
By 1983 his dispatch responsibility was all local
and line shipments out of California and all southbound
shipments coming out of Northern California into
California, Nevada and Arizona.
He accepted a sales job within the company in
1983 and worked in this position until 1985 when
he was promoted to Vice President General Manager
of Dedicated fleet Systems and remained in that
position until 1994. He married his wife Donna
Stahl in 1987.
In 1994 he moved to Arkansas, but continued to
work special projects for Mr. Osterkamp. In 1995
he accepted a position as Vice President to represent
all of Gus's companies with the various corporations
that our companies do business with. He continues
in this position today.
Jerry is married, lives in the Ozark Mountains
of Arkansas on 30 acres. His hobbies are Bass
fishing and playing music. He has six adult Children
who are currently perusing various careers of
parenting, banking, acting, professional musician,
teaching, insurance and software programmer. In
spite of it all, he still has a reasonable semblance
of sanity...
|
|
|
|
|
