A piece of CVIAQ history has been lost with the peaceful passing of founding member and first CVIAQ President, Mr Ted Van Fleet, on the 18th December 2011 aged 84 years. The family held a private funeral which was followed up on the 28th December by a memorial where friends and colleagues had the chance to say their goodbyes.

Mr Van Fleet was a leading player in establishing the Commercial Vehicle Industry Association of Queensland in 1970 and accepting the position of Chairman in the Association’s founding year then becoming CVIAQ’s first President until 1972. Ted also played a significant role in establishing Commercial Vehicle Associations in other states and bringing the state associations together to form the Commercial Vehicle Industry Association of Australia (CVIAA).

Mr Van Fleet was also part of the group of industry identities responsible for the development and subsequent organisation of the inaugural 1968 Queensland Truck Show held in the yards of Haulmark Trailers. His leadership provided the foundation for the future success of the Show taking it from strength to strength throughout the 1970’s.

Current CVIAQ president, Mr Bob Martin said “the entire commercial vehicle industry of Queensland was saddened to hear of Ted’s passing.  The Brisbane Truck Show stands as a legacy of the hard work and determination that these founding members put in, all those years ago”.    “We were very fortunate to have Ted with us at the last Brisbane Truck Show in 2011, the smile on his face expressed how immensely proud he was of how the CVIAQ had progressed throughout the years”, Mr Martin said.

In 2008, to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Brisbane Truck Show, CVIAQ bestowed upon Mr Van Fleet and the other members of the original show organising committee, the Association’s Industry Recognition Award in acknowledgement to the group’s contribution to the show.