Barry John Dodd (2 October 1947 – 30 May 2018) was an entrepreneur who ran a graphics company, GSM Group. He was appointed as the

Lord Lieutenant of North Yorkshire The position of Lord Lieutenant of North Yorkshire was created on 1 April 1974. Since 1996 the position has included the areas south of the River Tees in the former county of Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a ...

in September 2014. Dodd was killed in a helicopter crash in

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by National parks of the United Kingdom, national parks, including most of ...

in May 2018.

Life

Dodd was born in Salford, but raised in Canada and in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

where his mother worked as a court reporter and then in real estate. Dodd returned to England to finish his schooling and to study engineering at Hatfield Polytechnic. Dodd worked as a graduate trainee at the petrochemicals firm ICI where he took on management roles in

Teesside Teesside () is a built-up area around the River Tees in the north of England, split between County Durham and North Yorkshire. The name was initially used as a county borough in the North Riding of Yorkshire. Historically a hub for heavy manu ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and New York. He formed GSM with a colleague from his days at ICI in 1974. The company specialises in labels and barcoding equipment, sheet metal assemblies and automotive components. Through many acquisitions, the company employed over 400 people at nine sites across the United Kingdom by the time of Dodd's death. He was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the Queen's Birthday Honours list of 2006. He was made a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

(CBE) in 2014 for services to the United Kingdom economy and was made an

Officer of the Order of St John The Order of St John, short for Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem (french: l'ordre très vénérable de l'Hôpital de Saint-Jean de Jérusalem) and also known as St John International, is a British British monarchy ...

in February 2018. David Cameron wrote to Dodd in 2014 asking if he would like to be nominated to be

. Dodd accepted and was elevated to the role in September of the same year taking over from Lord Crathorne. He also served as chair of the York, North Yorkshire and East Riding

local enterprise partnership In England, local enterprise partnerships (LEPs) are voluntary partnerships between Local government in England, local authorities and businesses, set up in 2011 by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills to help determine local econom ...

; as Pro-Chancellor of the

University of Hull , mottoeng = Bearing the Torch f learning, established = 1927 – University College Hull1954 – university status , type = Public , endowment = £18.8 million (2016) , budget = £190 million ...

; and chair of the joint

Hull York Medical School Hull York Medical School (HYMS) is a medical school in England which took its first intake of students in 2003. It was opened as a part of the British Government's attempts to train more doctors, along with Brighton and Sussex Medical School, ...

. In November 2018, Dodd was posthumously awarded the ''Individual Award for Excellence'' in The Yorkshire Post business awards 2018. The award was collected on his behalf by his widow, Frances.

Personal life

Dodd met his wife, Frances McTigue, at a party in 1970, but they did not marry until 1978. Dodd and his wife, Frances, lived in Carlton-in-Cleveland a village in North Yorkshire where he kept a selection of vintage vehicles.

Death

Dodd died on 30 May 2018, aged 70, when the

Bell 206B The Bell 206 is a family of two-bladed, single- and twin-engined helicopters, manufactured by Bell Helicopter at its Mirabel, Quebec, plant. Originally developed as the Bell YOH-4 for the United States Army's Light Observation Helicopter progra ...

helicopter he was piloting crashed into a field at Aldborough near to

Boroughbridge Boroughbridge () is a town and civil parish in the Harrogate district of North Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is north-west of the county town of York. Until a bypass was built the town lay on t ...

. He had taken off from

Husthwaite __NOTOC__ Husthwaite is a village and civil parish in Hambleton district of North Yorkshire, England. It is situated approximately north from Easingwold. History The name probably derives from the Middle English 'hous', from Old English 'hus ...

just a few minutes earlier; Dodd was the only person on board. An Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) inquiry concluded that the helicopter had crashed in bad weather, probably due to the pilot becoming disorientated in the cloud. Dodd was taking the helicopter from Husthwaite to an airfield at Walton Wood for an annual service.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dodd, Barry John 1947 births 2018 deaths People from Salford Lord-Lieutenants of North Yorkshire Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in England Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Officers of the Order of St John Helicopter pilots Officers of the Order of the British Empire