Parkland COO Jay Erickson Passes Away
CHARLESTON, S.C. — Parkland USA Chief Operating Officer (COO) Jay Erickson passed away on March 2. He was 51 years old.
Erickson joined Parkland Corp. as vice president of IT and chief information officer in January 2020. He moved into the COO role at Parkland USA, a subsidiary of Parkland Corp., in July 2021.
During his tenure as COO, Erickson helped establish a U.S. foothold for the Calgary, Alberta-based company, leading 21 acquisitions over three years, with nine acquisitions completed in 2021 alone, according to his LinkedIn bio.
Most recently, Erickson acted as interim president of Parkland USA following the departure of Doug Haugh, who left the company in December 2022 after five years in the role. Donna Sanker, former president of Parkland Canada, stepped over to the company's U.S. division to succeed Haugh later that month, as Convenience Store News previously reported.
Prior to Parkland, Erickson was president of EG America, the United Kingdom-based EG Group's U.S. convenience store network.
Erickson was well acquainted with the convenience store industry. He came to EG Group through its acquisition of The Kroger Co.'s c-store portfolio in 2018. His resume with Cincinnati-based Kroger dated back more than 20 years, during which time he held several roles in the retailer's convenience business, including president of the Tom Thumb and Turkey Hill c-store chains.
The c-store veteran was born in Colorado Springs, Colo., on Aug. 3, 1971. He graduated from Widefield High School, where he excelled on the wrestling team and continued his wrestling career at Colorado State University in Pueblo, graduating with a bachelor's degree in biology. He went on to receive his master's degree in management information systems and business administration from Colorado Technical University.
Erickson is survived by his wife of 22 years, Mindy; daughter, Hannah; son, JJ; mother, Janice Erickson; father, Gerald Erickson; brother, Ron (Isabel) Erickson; sister, Audra (Chris) Wotta; and brother, Don (Melissa Porras) Erickson.
A funeral service will take place March 11 at Majestic Baptist Church in Pueblo West, Colo.