At the end of the day yesterday, Jerry Fisk passed away. He was a manufacturers’ representative, and had been since the beginning of the new hearth industry. Those of us who knew Jerry (and there are hundreds if not thousands) regard him as a legendary rep, a person with an incredible work ethic and exceptionally good at what he did.

Last year he logged over 70,000 miles on his vehicle, covering a number of states in the Pacific Northwest, including Alaska; he was taking care of his dealers.

Jerry was 77 when he died, and apparently had no need or desire for retirement. He was soft of disposition, warm of heart and eager to help others.

He was also a connoisseur of fine wines with a cellar of many thousands of bottles at his home in Lake Chelan, Washington. He also had a strong affection for Zihuatanejo, Mexico, a small town on the Pacific Coast a bit above Acapulco where he vacationed many times.

Jerry will be missed – and remembered with affection – by all those who knew him.

RIP Jerry "Friskie" Fisk

The industry lost an iconic personality and contributor yesterday.  Jerry Fisk (Jennifer Vaughan’s dad) passed away. 

First and foremost: Jennifer, we are thinking of you and our very deepest feelings of sympathy from your fellow Jøtulers. We know how close you were to your dad, and the apple certainly didn’t fall far from the tree.

Second: Along with Paul Birnstihl, Jerry was a very key mentor for me during my early years in the industry when I joined HearthStone. Together, Jerry and Paul formed a dynamic (and damn fun) east-west support system for me and helped me get up to speed quickly in terms of product needs, but more importantly HOW TO TREAT THE DEALERS. I owe much to them.

I have many stories of Jerry and my every-other-year road trips out West with him. Just picture this: Doing 1,500 miles in four days driving from Great Falls, MT, to Seattle, WA, thru Glacier National Park, parts of ID and OR (southern tip near CA). Jerry was a mad man behind the windshield (sometimes clocking 100k miles/year) and, as with Jennifer, his dealers coveted their time with him. He earned the business and became highly successful.

Jerry and I stayed in touch over the years and we are lucky and grateful that he blessed Jennifer’s coming to Jøtul. Although a competitor of ours, Jerry was very good at helping Jennifer develop her dealer network for Jøtul.

So after the sadness wears away I know I will be tipping a glass to honor Jerry and his impact on our industry and my career. He was a true friend and I will miss the many laughs with him and his fun-loving personality.

Good bye, Friskie,
Bret Watson