10-4 Magazine / February 2025 57 give my milk routes to my brother Denny and nephew Eric not long after that. With a new Mack on order at that time, I canceled that truck order, as well, and downsized everything. And before long, I was back to being just a one-man show, just hauling the pre-cast concrete, and after my radiation treatment, it was nice not to have the stress of all my employees, along with the schedule that milk hauling demanded, in my life at that point,” said Jerry. Now 68 years old (and cancer free), Jerry is semi-retired but is still very active in the milk hauling community in Wisconsin. He is the current chairman of the Wisconsin Milk Haulers Association and is the milk haulers representative on the board of the Wisconsin Motor Carriers Association. “I love what I do, I love driving, and I’m still not done yet. I’ll hook to one of my nephew’s trailers once in a while when they need help and do a milk run, from time to time, and I really enjoy it,” said Jerry. Married to his wife Gail since 1987, she fondly refers to Jerry’s RB688S as “The Mistress” due to the amount of time Jerry and that truck have spent together. But Jerry will tell you, “I couldn’t have done this without her,” because his wife has been an integral part of the business’ success. “After we got married, Gail took over all the bookkeeping so I could concentrate on the day to day operations of the company.” While Jerry’s name is on the door of his Mack, it has been a team effort for Jerry and Gail. “Running a business requires commitment and consistent effort, so being able to rely upon each other is essential,” said Gail, as she added to the conversation. Besides trucks, Jerry loves all things nautical and loves to be out on the water in the summertime when the weather is nice. “I bought my dream boat a few years ago,” said Jerry. His boat is a beautiful 31-foot Baja equipped with twin inboard big block Mercury 454 engines. “It will run a little over 75 mph out on the water when its calm,” Jerry told me with enjoyment in his voice. For this author, I was impressed when I first saw photos of Jerry’s 1991 Mack RB688S. You don’t see many 1991 model year Mack trucks, that have spent their entire life operating in Northern Wisconsin, that are in such great shape like Jerry’s, that haven’t gone through some sort of restoration at one point or another. This old Mack is definitely a survivor and a testament to Jerry’s meticulous care. But like his Mack, Jerry’s a survivor, as well, and maybe the best way to describe him is tough, rugged and venerable, or simply, “Built Like a Mack Truck!” n EDITOR’S NOTE: Special thanks go out to 10-4 Magazine’s youngest new photographer, Carson Lambrecht. At just eight years old, Carson took the time to photograph the 1991 Mack RB688S for this article. All the other photos are courtesy of Jerry and Gail Schroeder.
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