[The following is a letter to the membership of the Offshore Marine Service Association (OMSA) from its President and CEO Aaron Smith following the death of OMSA’s former leader, Bob Alario, over the weekend. The letter is published here with permission from OMSA and the Alario Family.]
Dear Members,
I am sad to report that this weekend, Robert J. “Bob” Alario passed away after a long fight with cancer.
As I’m sure most members know, the story of OMSA cannot be told without a healthy (Bob would say “lengthy”) coverage of Bob Alario’s contributions. OMSA, OMSA members, and the entire marine industry owes him a large debt of gratitude for his years of distinguished service. His contributions have made our industry safer and more prosperous for all of those engaged. Furthermore, without his steadfast leadership, there, quite frankly, would not be an OMSA as a unified voice of the offshore industry. Bob is credited with unifying the Texas and Louisiana offshore trade associations into a single organization. Subsequently —sometimes on only the strength of Bob’s personality — he made the organization a legislative and regulatory powerhouse.
For all of these reasons, earlier this year, OMSA presented Bob with a Lifetime Achievement Award, adding our plaque to a trophy case that already includes two copies of the U.S. Coast Guard’s Commandant’s Meritorious Public Service Award.
When we presented our award, past and present OMSA Board of Directors were fortunate enough to spend an evening with Bob. If you haven’t seen them already, pictures of the event are on OMSA’s Flicker Page. The scenes depicted therein are a testament to not only the great esteem in which our organization and our industry holds Bob, but also his good nature, sense of humor, and the friendships he has built and maintained over the years. Personally, I am appreciative that the Board had the foresight to put that award together when we did and as a result we all were able to once more be regaled with the history — real and embellished — of our industry and organization.
At the time, Minor “Tony” Cheramie, III, vice president of L&M BoTruc Rental, LLC and Chairman of the OMSA Board of Directors, said, “Bob is one of the most dedicated advocates this industry has ever known. I consider myself lucky to have been able to witness him in action.” It is safe to say all OMSA members wholeheartedly agree with those words.
On behalf of all OMSA members, our heartfelt condolences are sent to Mitzi and all of Bob’s family.
OMSA will work to disseminate arrangement information when we receive. In the meantime, please don't hesitate to contact us with any additional questions.
Sincerely,
Aaron Smith
President and CEO
Offshore Marine Service Association
