The home heating oil industry has a long and proud history, and Fuel Oil News has been there supporting it since 1935. It is an industry that has faced many challenges during that time. In its 77th year, Fuel Oil News is doing more than just holding
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/591447
26 NOVEMBER 2015 | FUEL OIL NEWS | www.fueloilnews.com BUSINESS OPERATIONS read backwards, which always impressed me. That was how you proofread most effectively to pick up punctuation or grammatical errors. It was always fun going in." Jack's wife Brenda recalls Curtis' wife Mary who passed away last year. "She just loved to talk about all the folks they met at the trade show and how they loved working with the advertisers, and we still visit with many of them (Jack and Brenda today operate Pennywise Fuel—see pg. 28)" said Brenda. "We have particularly fond memo- ries of the Amthors [Amthor International Tank Trucks] who helped us out when we were starting up our oil company. Jack has some convention memories as well. "I can remember my father going to conventions and bringing home all of these little trinkets and toys and we loved that," he said. "And then we started going to those conventions in the 1970s ourselves, and we brought that same stuff back for our kids and they loved it." In 1993, the magazine became part of Premiere Publishing Co., headed by Bill Straub, who had served as its publisher when it was part of Hunter Publishing Co. The magazine was subsequently acquired by Adams Business Media and is today owned by EPG Media, LLC. Over the years, the magazine's staff and contributors included some of the most important pioneers in the oil heating industry. Charlie Burkhardt, retired president of the New England Fuel Institute, was an early contributor who wrote many articles for Fuel Oil News. George Young, a former NEFI official, was a member of the Fuel Oil News staff, as was James Matthews, a founder of the National Association of Oil Heating Service Managers. Long time editor Tom Byrley was a former vice president of a leading boiler manufacturer and general manager of the heating department at Sherwood Brothers in Maryland. John Sibarium, long-time chair- man of the National Old Timers Association of the Energy Industry, was a regular contributor to FON for many years. More recently, the magazine has had industry award winning service profession- als John Griffin and Charles Bursey serve as columnists, along with former NEFI head Shane Sweet. When FON was founded in 1935, the overall oil and fuel industries in the United States were still shaking out. Fuel oil and kerosene had begun to replace coal as a primary energy source. As the 1940s dawned, the United States was still the leader in oil production with the United States producing 65% of the world's oil in 1940. That was to change with the discovery of the "super- giant" oil fields in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. Oil heating would At a time like this it's good to remember Fuel Oil News' long- running editor George E. Schultz, who helmed the magazine from 1982 to 2002. He died suddenly of a heart attack on Oct. 17, 2002, at age 61. During his 20 years of editorial leadership with the magazine he provided a face to the industry that was color- ful in character, but backed up by quality journalism. Schultz grew up and attended public schools in Philadelphia before moving to New York state and graduating in 1959 from Monroe-Woodberry Central High School in Central Valley, N.Y. After serving in the United States Navy, stationed in Las Vegas, he attended the Newark Campus of Rutgers University. He grad- uated Phi Beta Kappa with a BA in Journalism in 1973. After working as a police reporter for the Newark Star Ledger and various industry trade publications he came to FON in 1982. Schultz had the following to say about FON in one of his edi- tor's columns from a previous anniversary: "Sometimes if you're too close to a situation you can't see the problems clearly. They can only be seen by [someone] a 'step removed' who has a better perspective and is more objective. "Although Fuel Oil News is an integral part of the oilheating industry, we are outside the day-to-day business activities involved in operating a marketing organization so we can look at the industry from many different angles. Because we are in constant communications with all levels ' marketers, suppliers, association executives, government officials and consumers ' we are able to assess all the facts and provide our readers with some ideas that perhaps they may not have thought of themselves. "We hope we can continue to serve the industry in this man- ner for many years to come. Nobody has all the answers, but by constantly examining our actions, we can learn from our mistakes. We're never too old, or too young, to learn." At the time of Schultz's passing, the industry was asked for various remembrances. FON columnist Charles Bursey offered the following: Many of you have read my articles that I have been writing almost monthly for many years. I first met George at a NAOHSM convention at a place that was formerly know as the old Playboy Club that later became the Concord. We discussed my doing an article for Fuel Oil News relative to the oil industry. In 1995, with George's support, I was off with pen in hand and have continued this article-writing relationship to the present. George always had a strange smile, but was sincere, for sure. He also was a great defender of the oil industry, always accompanied with a little humor. I will always remember George asking, "What are the three biggest lies?" and they are as follows: 1. The check is in the mail. 2. I gave at the office, and 3. We're from the government and here to help you. I could also get a fishing story and hear about his boat that recently had the motor rebuilt. I would imagine that George is still running around with a cam- era around his neck looking for a story. So long George, Charlie Bursey In Remembrance—George Schultz