Mentor Spotlight

When I was just 16 years old, I met two of the most influential people in my professional life; James (Jim) Kearns III and Captain Jeffrey Monroe. It was at the Inland Rivers, Ports, & Terminals 2019 Annual Conference that I met these two accomplished gentlemen. I had always heard my mom, Aimee Andres, talk about how they both helped guide her through the beginning stages of her career, and still to this day act as an advisor. I can see now, through them, the attributes and details that a... Read More

I met Steve Alley a couple of times early in my career as he would venture to Nashville from time to time to meet with customers. Our relationship began in earnest on a cold February morning when I met him in Chicago to attend to a cargo issue. At the time, I had been in Logistics with Ingram Barge Company for a few years and was managing our transportation operations from St Louis to Chicago. Our meeting was brief, and the issue went unresolved. We broke for lunch, and I got to watch him for... Read More

They say that as a parent, you meet your best friends because of your children, that is how I met Mary Waldheim. Mary's son Louis and my son Eric went to school together and became best of friends. It makes sense that Mary and I would soon follow.  For years play dates became chats and laughs. Then we began “our lunches”. Mary and I started a tradition of lunch once, if not twice a month. We shared stories of family, friends, and our passions. Mary would spend a lot of time ... Read More

The concepts needed to transfer institutional knowledge: As opposed to having a designated mentor, I was hired into a succession program, which brought in 5 individuals in their early 20s and cycled each through various departments with a sponsored graduate school track. Port Authorities are complex organizations, so a mix of institutional knowledge of executive management with practical knowledge of staff, then apply across a range of departments - from operations to legal and from real e... Read More

There have been many key people I’ve worked with over my career that shaped the way I see the world, the industry, and other people. Each phase of my career was influenced by some very special people.  I started as a deckhand in the fleets of New Orleans and later in Alabama.  I began running smaller boats on the Tombigbee, Intracoastal, Tennessee, and other tributary rivers.  I moved from the smaller boats to line haul on the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers.  In 2005 I... Read More