Jason Stricker, vice president of sales and marketing with automated food solutions provider Shick Esteve, died suddenly at his home on August 11. The 47-year-old Kansas City, MO native had been an active supporter of the bakery industry for more than two decades and was recently inducted as a board member of Bakery Equipment Manufacturers and Allieds (BEMA).

BEMA president and CEO Kerrod Brown memorialized Stricker in a tribute published on the organization’s site. The online eulogy enumerates his myriad contributions to the field of baking, including relationships forged, opportunities created, and the lasting impression he will leave behind.

“The Stricker legacy will live on, but Jason’s passing leaves a huge void at Shick, at BEMA, and in the industry but most importantly in so many lives,” Brown writes. “I guess that is what we want in our friends and leaders, a huge hole when they leave. Customers and colleagues talked about his impressive comprehensive knowledge of processes and how he stuck with them through the good and challenges of a project, maintaining focus on the long-term relationship. I know I am one of many who feels their time with Jason was cut far too short.”

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made in Stricker’s honor to Friends of KCK Animal Services, Venmo: @donateKCKasfriends.

For more information on Stricker’s life, view his online obituary.