DAVE TILLER

Dave Tiller honored me with his friendship and as a colleague for almost 40 years. We met at Continental Can in the 1980s where he was HR Manager in Olympia WA and I was in Longview TX. We did a lot of good work together, but who wants to read about that? Dave, Bernie Reuland (RIP) and I bonded at business meetings in Atlanta, Tampa, Houston and San Antonio. I left CCC in 1990. Shortly afterward, CCC was acquired by a competitor and Dave, Bernie and several others took their talents to Southdown Cement. While at Southdown, later acquired by Cemex, Dave twice invited me to apply for HR roles and although we couldn’t make it happen at those times, we continued to stay in close contact.

In the late 90s, I was Employee Relations Director at CSR Rinker Materials in W. Palm Beach, an experience that strengthened my candidacy for Dave and Cemex to boost my career in 2006 by hiring me as an HR Director in the Carolinas. Then after the Rinker acquisition, I returned to W. Palm Beach in 2010 where my daughters and their families, Mary and I still live. That was the best job of my career. In September 2010, Dave and Jamie hosted several on the HR team at a poker night in Tampa followed the next day by the Steelers-Bucs game, won by the Steelers 38-13!

In 2015, Dave hired me into a temporary HR Manager position in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. This was expected to be a short-term assignment as the business unit was up for sale, but it lasted through June, 2016. With Dave’s support, I was invited to give a presentation at the Cement Employers Association conference in San Diego. Other memorable highlights (that typically featured superb red wines) were HR team meetings in El Dorado Hills, CA and Las Vegas where we celebrated the retirement of Martha Bartlett, but the capper was a whitewater rafting outing and cookout hosted by Dave, Jamie and Mickie in… the Olympia/Lacey area! Dave generously offered me a full-time role, but I declined in order to return to Florida, which opened the door for a much younger and better-looking HR Manager. A few years later, Mary and I were honored to witness Mickie and Scott’s wedding in Clearwater. In addition to Jamie, Mickie and Martha, Dave was instrumental in my establishing highly rewarding professional relationships with countless great people. Except for Craig Thomas (RIP), I’m reluctant to mention them by name because I don’t want to leave anyone out, but please know that I appreciate knowing you all very much!

Dave was a very kind and gracious man with a wicked sense of humor. He has been among my very best friends and an outstanding HR leader. I have been blessed to have known him and owe him a deep debt of gratitude for supporting me at several key times throughout my career. Thank you, Dave! I will miss him, treasure the memories, and have faith that that he and Jamie are together in Paradise.

Gary Palma 12/22/23