“ Jeff Ice was chosen because he has been a pillar in our industry for upwards of 30 years ... He has been a voice of reason , a friend , and a mentor to many of the people in the industry and is always willing to lend a hand where needed .”
As Brightstone grew it attracted the interest of M & A brokers and Jeff and his partners Howard and Peter Schlactus , were approached by several larger companies for a purchase After careful analysis , they decided to join Risk Strategies in 2017 . Jeff and Peter and all the Brightstone crew stayed on .
Jeff expected to work into his mid-70s , but a medical crisis three years after the merger caused him to rethink that idea . “ My plan was to work until I was 75 , but then in July 2020 I had to have heart bypass surgery . That was a wakeup call . I decided I needed to retire , which I did on March 1 , 2021 ,” Jeff says .
While Jeff was reluctant to leave the business , he believed the company was in a good place to continue what he started . “ I left it in good hands ,” he asserts . “ My son Bryan came to work for me right out of college and is the Director of Sales . One of his best friends , Brian Jungeberg also joined the company right out of college and is a VP for Risk Strategies . Another of Bryan ’ s close friends , Bryan Paulozzi , joined in a couple of years later . He is also a VP at Risk Strategies For years they have been referred to as B3 , and at the Final-Mile Forum , Rob Slack , a fellow Hall of Famer , gave Jeff a new title in honor of B3 : The B Keeper .
Jeff ’ s long-time business partner , Laura Krieger , continues with Risk Strategies as Director of Client Services . She is joined by a solid pool of long-time employees . “ One of the things I pride myself on is that we had a lot of veteran employees which I think is very unusual in this day and age . Some of these employees have been with me for 10 , 15 and even 20 + years ,” Jeff says .
Since his retirement , Jeff continued to stay connected to the industry , going to CLDA and Florida Messenger Association events and sharing ideas with his son . “ We talk about the business several times each week and on March 1 of this year I entered into a formal agreement to consult part-time for Risk Strategies Transportation Practice ,” says Jeff . “ I ’ ve spent 30 + years working with the industry . It ’ s part of my DNA so it was a no -brainer to stay connected . It ’ s very important to me to stay involved with the industry that made my career . The Hall of Fame award certainly validates that connection .”
A Friend to the Industry
Jeff sums up his reaction to the Hall of Fame award this way : “ It really means a lot to me , to have this award . I think for everybody who ’ s been inducted into the CLDA Hall of Fame over the years it means a lot . But I think it means even more to me because , I ’ m outside of the industry . I ’ m a vendor . Clearly it says they consider me a friend to the industry . That ’ s very special to me .” CLDA spring 2023 I customized logistics & delivery Magazine 57