In an office with the gray light of an overcast sky I had a warm conversation with John Husby, the current president of the Transportation Club of Tacoma. We were at the headquarters of Lynden Transport in Fife. John’s career with Lynden began in 2012, but his expertise came from years of moving, hauling, and shipping.
John grew up in Seattle and graduated from Washington State University. He had a teacher who taught the geology of Washington State and how we are a perfect place to see the shifts and changes our Earth has gone through. As he points out, our history is everywhere. John was an offensive lineman for the WSU Cougars. There was one very special game in 1988 vs. #1 ranked UCLA in Pasadena. John explained, “Keith Jackson, a WSC grad called the game on ABC. We made history. The Pac-12 Network did a documentary of the game.”
Here is a clip (with John commenting) about the game.
After graduating he continued playing and coaching professional football from Spain to Japan. He and his wife, Dana, enjoyed living in Tokyo. The people there were all kind and friendly, but the happy couple decided to move back to Washington when it was time to start their family. They have two boys, Josh and Ryan.
Early on, outside of football John wasn’t a mover and a shaker, but he was a mover. He remembers when he and a buddy were moving furniture for an elderly lady who opened up her coin purse and pulled out two five-dollar bills for the tip. He tried to decline, but she was adamant they take five dollars each. They had completed the service and were kind and helpful. He still sees this as a lesson about providing great customer service and making sure the end user is completely satisfied.
John’s shift into large scale moving and delivery came when he was hired as air cargo manager at Alaskan Airlines. He learned how to jockey the various ways to ship goods for customers. He connected with Lynden for shipping goods from Washington to Alaska via truck when planes were not available. He admired both Alaska Airlines and Lynden for their dedication to helping clients with their shipments. Eventually, after working with clients and seeing their success with Lynden and the personal touch they deliver, John decided to start a new career with Lynden Transport.
John likes golfing and has a 16 handicap. At six-foot-three he can probably crush a long drive. The Transportation Club of Tacoma sponsors and promotes two golf tournaments each year. The money from one goes for scholarships for high school graduates and the other supports TCT’s chosen non-profit agencies, such as former recipients Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital, the Emergency Food Network, and Habitat for Humanity.
My wife Peg, tells a story about her dad, Ike. He grew up on a ranch in eastern Oregon that had a few milk cows for cooking. He hated milking cows and when the family bought a new herd, he waved goodbye to the ranch and joined the army. The story is similar to that of Lynden Transfer originator Hank Jansen. He worked for local dairy farms around Lynden, Washington. The first chance he had to leave the cows and manure behind, he jumped on it. Lynden Freight Shipping and Logistics is now comprised of sixteen different businesses.
You can read the whole story here – lynden.com/about/history.html
The Transportation Club of Tacoma is made up of hundreds of professionals in the transportation industry; those who regularly use transportation services for their livelihood, as well as people who have an interest in local and global transportation and logistics. Membership includes diverse companies large and small including: railroads; steamship lines; trucking companies; warehousing and distribution; cold storage; terminal managers; coffee roasters; paper manufacturers; confectioners; freight forwarders; commercial real estate; banking; consulting; education – and the list keeps growing. As their history is further written, one thing remains constant: being a member of the Transportation Club of Tacoma means members have joined an organization committed to enriching their professional and personal life.
Past President Stephanie Ticknor and current president John Husby have done a great job holding the club together and maintaining a 400+ membership. The one hundredth anniversary of the Transportation Club of Tacoma will be celebrated in 2026. When Washington State and America get back to more normal operations, the Transportation Club of Tacoma will shift from Zoom Meetings to in-person meetings where members can meet with and share with existing and new members. Attendance is not mandatory, membership fees are minimal, each meeting has an interesting speaker about business, success, or local developments, and the organization continues to fuel business in Tacoma and throughout the county and the region.
For more information about the Transportation Club of Tacoma, please, visit – transportationcluboftacoma.org/
