Pub. 2 2019-2020 Issue 3

9 Bob was remarkable for his deep love of people, and for emphasizing the importance of putting family first. He had a gift for making everyone feel as though they were his favorite. He liked to pound his fist on his heart and then move his fist toward someone else as if to say, “My heart to your heart.” August 2017 that affected people in eastern Texas, Louisiana and southern Arkansas. Some of the Garff dealerships are in Texas.) The last time Dana saw Bob was at a meeting held at the end of February 2020. The company CEO, Brett Hopkins, was meeting with human resources leadership that day, including Dana Geddes. The meeting was about how to approach COVID-19, but no one knew yet how big an impact the coronavirus was going to have. “Brett said, ‘Bob has to leave but wants to talk to us first.’ When Bob came into the meeting, he said, ‘I have to tell you, I need you guys to do me a favor. Promise me that you will keep our employees and our customers safe.’ He was teary-eyed and was very genuine,” said Dana. “I touched his arm and said, ‘I promise, Mr. Garff, we’ll take it seriously.’” After the meeting, he left for Palm Springs, and he contracted COVID-19. Megan said, “His comments in that meeting show you the compassion and care he had for his employees.” Dana added, “He was always looking out for his employees. It was a huge comfort to work for him because he wanted to keep us safe and take care of our families. That was the last time I saw him. It was pretty amazing.” Dana also talked about Bob’s love for life. Bob organized a bike tour in Palm Springs for all the company’s general managers. He and his wife Kathi went on the tour because they loved biking and the outdoors. They wanted the managers to learn about the country there and the environment. Bob was remarkable for his deep love of people, and for emphasizing the importance of putting family first. He had a gift for making everyone feel as though they were his favorite. He liked to pound his fist on his heart and then move his fist toward someone else as if to say, “My heart to your heart.” At the same time, Bob was a private man. “We don’t know even half of what Bob did because he didn’t want the accolades or the publicity,” said Dana. “Bob just wanted to give back. He wanted to pitch in and help out. He didn’t just talk about it. He lived it.” One of his favorite programs was something called Drivers of Excellence at every dealership. Each month, employees at each dealership would nominate someone as a Driver of Excellence for living the values of the company. Although the program is a little like an employee of the month program, the thing that made it different was that you didn’t have to be a top earner to get the award. At the end of the year, the company picks one person at each dealership from the year’s monthly winners. The company invites these winners and their plus one to go on a trip to an exclusive resort in Mexico. In 2019, there were about 106 people there from the dealerships, including Dana. Bob’s wife wasn’t able to go that year, but Bob decided to go anyway. He said, “I have to let those employees know how much they mean to me.” He was there the entire time by himself. Everyone who attended the trip lined up to get a picture with Bob and say thanks. It was as if he was a rock star there. When asked about Bob’s greatest strengths as a businessman, Dana said, “He wasn’t afraid to be different, and to be forward- thinking and to think outside the box. He was steady and consistent. You never saw himpanicked, riled, losing his temper, or freaked out about what to do. I never, ever heard him raise his voice. It still hasn’t hit me that he’s gone. He was the best. He created such an amazing foundation for us as wemove forward. All we have to do is what he taught us to do, andwe will be just fine.” Dana sees a clear legacy from all three generations of Garff leadership. Bob’s father, Ken, was the pioneer who laid the framework of the company. In turn, Bob’s greatest legacy was his ability to care about people genuinely. He was a fatherly man who wanted to take care of people, and people responded to that by working hard for him because they knew he had their best interests at heart. That made it possible for him to make the company substantially bigger. Bob’s son John, who is currently leading the company, can make smart decisions and (when necessary) make hard decisions, too. When thinking about Bob’s life, Dana said, “Our brand is that we are striving to be different. He was different, but what a great world it would be if we could all be like him: seeing the best in people, being kind and suspending judgment.” 3