Harvey Brodsky, who for many years was Managing Director of TRIB and more recently founded the Retread Tire Association, has died in Pacific Grove, California at the age of 81 from complications arising from lung cancer, which he had been fighting since March this year.
Brodsky was one of the most recognizable figures in the retreading industry worldwide, defending the industry with a boundless enthusiasm that could not fail to inspire anyone who met him. Over the years his name became synonymous with the industry he represented.
Brodsky took over the leadership of TRIB in 1982 after stints with the Lodi Super Mold Co. and Big O Tires. In 1991, he received the American Retreaders Association (ARA) Industry Leadership Award and in 2000, he was inducted into the International Tire & Rubber Association Hall of Fame.
Brodsky left TRIB in 2010 and immediately founded the Retread Tire Association, but in December 2016 severe back problems forced his to pass the leadership of RTA on to Jeffrey Parks. Brodsky leaves a wife, Rona Halpern, who herself has been battling cancer for many years.
On a personal note, I will never forget how Harvey supported me when I was trying to set up Retreading Business and its forerunner, the European Retreading Review in the mid-1990s. I will always be grateful to him and count him as a true friend in the industry. He will be sadly missed.
