“I loved going out,” Ojard told WTIP North Shore community radio. “I was rarely able to sleep at night before going out. “

These were early mornings and long days, in which he acquired a strong work ethic that he will carry throughout his career.

Ojard learned to pluck herring from nets, dipping his frozen hands in a pot of lukewarm water in order to get them to move again.

Grandson of Norwegian immigrants and son of a fisherman and tugboat operator, Ojard led a solid life on the Great Lakes, spending 31 years as a captain of industry. He started on the docks before later becoming responsible for the Great Lakes fleet of ships, the Duluth, Missabe and Iron Range Railway, and, ending his career, the Duluth Seaway Port Authority.

Ojard, 72, died on Dec. 30 of complications from autoimmune and neurological conditions at a hospital in Georgia, where he had settled an hour from Atlanta after his retirement from the Port Authority in 2013.

“He was an amazing boss, a great mentor and a wonderful friend,” said Adele Yorde, retired Port Authority spokesperson.

According to his obituary, Ojard’s career included transfers to Erie and Pittsburgh, back to Duluth, Mobile, Alabama, and finally back to Duluth.

Yorde described Ojard as a melodious whistler and singer who would fill the office with positive energy.

“He set goals and objectives and let us do our jobs,” Yorde said.

Executive Director Deb DeLuca recalled Ojard in a similar fashion, as a dynamic personality and a staunch advocate of harbor and shipping on the Great Lakes.

“The maritime and railway business has been a lifelong lifespan, starting with his childhood aboard the tugboat Edna G,” said DeLuca. “He has become a real giant of the port world and an absolute original. We are grateful for his thoughtful leadership of the Duluth Seaway Port Authority and his contributions to our region. He will be sorely missed.

fishing boats. Contribution / Lake County Historical Society” width=”1140″ height=”-1″/>

Adolph Ojard Sr. in the wheelhouse of the Edna G. Ojard Sr. was the last captain of the tug before his retirement. Adolph Ojard Jr. began his career on Lake Superior in his father’s fishing boats. Contribution / Lake County Historical Society

Jim Sharrow, retired director of port planning and resiliency for the Port Authority, worked for many years under Ojard, starting with US Steel’s Great Lakes fleet of vessels. He recalled that Ojard was dynamic and results-oriented. At the Port Authority, Ojard began staff meetings on Monday at 8 a.m. sharp.

“If you were to show up late to the meeting, he would say, ‘Dollars waiting for a dime’, so you know where your position was in the lineup,” Sharrow said. “You didn’t want to be a nickel very often.”

As executive director of the local port, Ojard became president of the American Great Lakes Ports Association.

“Once he got involved he was probably going to be the leader,” Sharrow said.

Ojard has overcome challenges such as corrosion in Duluth-Superior harbor and invasive species brought to the Great Lakes on foreign ships.

Yet even though he was in charge, Ojard was never one to go it alone.

“Adolph has built coalitions of all kinds,” Sharrow said.

He recalled that Ojard was integral to working towards effective ballast water treatments, working with the Northeast-Midwest Institute in Washington, DC to protect the Great Lakes from alien species, and also keeping invaders located when they did. reached the Great Lakes.

A cover of North Star Port magazine featuring Adolph Ojard, Jr. in 2003. Contribution / Duluth Seaway Port Authority

Sharrow also recalled how Ojard summoned Minnesota Sea Grant and a host of corrosion experts to tackle the problem of freshwater corrosion that has put 14 miles of sheet piles and steel structures in the harbor at risk. of Duluth-Superior at the beginning of this century.

“He and I recognized that this was a real threat to our facilities and all of the steel bulkheads in the port,” said Sharrow.

Ojard’s own words in his thought-provoking interview with WTIP showed the wonder he had for the Great Lakes.

“It was magical to be there,” Ojard said on the “Moments in Time” show. “There is nothing as mystical as Lake Superior during the seasons – summers are beautiful with sunrise and winters quite the opposite with smoky haze and rough seas.”

A graduate of the University of Minnesota at Duluth, majoring in literature and avid reader, Ojard seemed to have an understanding of his youth as a poet.

In the interview, he spoke of growing up in awe of stoic Norwegians in and around his family. The older he got, the more he understood that their gruff exteriors hid “hearts like marshmallows,” Ojard said.

“It’s a strong work ethic,” he said. “This is where it really starts. When you are a young child, you (learn to) understand what it really takes to make a living.

Adolph Ojard Jr. speaks at a conference as Executive Director of the Duluth Seaway Port Authority. Ojard served from 2003 to 2013. Contribution / Duluth Seaway Port Authority