Gerald "Jerry" Urich.

It's no wonder Jerry Urich smiles a lot. When he's not working for the world's largest candy company, he's likely to be at his favorite pastime: spending time at the beach!

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Title: Assistant Controller, External Reporting and Compliance

Company: Hershey Foods Corp.

Born: Carlisle, Pa., May 18, 1953

Spouse: Gail, married for 29 years

Children: Andrea, 24, a graduate of the University of Maryland, working for Meridian One Corp. in Alexandria, Va.; Greg, 22, a senior at Gettysburg College majoring in Environmental Policy and Management.

Education: BA in Psychology, minors in Economics and Education, Dickinson College, 1975; MBA with a concentration in accounting, Rutgers University Graduate School of Business, 1977

Career: Began teaching high school social studies and coached football, 1975-76; Peat, Marwick, Mitchell & Co (now KPMG) in New York City, 1977-80; Began with Hershey Foods Corp. Aug. 11, 1980, and has held the following positions: Senior Internal Auditor, Hershey Foods, 1980-82, Manager, Budgeting, Hershey Chocolate Co., 1982-86; Assistant Controller, Sales and Marketing, Hershey Chocolate, 1986-88; Manager, Commodity Planning and Administration, Hershey Foods, 1988-1990; Manager, Financial Reporting and Compliance, Hershey Foods, 1990-96; Assistant Corporate Controller, 1996-99; Assistant Controller, External Reporting and Compliance, 1999-present

FEI Chapter: Central Pennsylvania; President 2000-01; North Atlantic Area Director 2002-03; North Atlantic Area Vice President 2003-05

Leisure: "I enjoy jogging and weight training. I also enjoy spending as much time as possible at the beach, at Bethany Beach in Delaware, where I spend time bicycling, ocean kayaking, body surfing, swimming and reading the latest best-sellers. At home, I enjoy relaxing with my wife and playing with our three cats."

Time Management: "I try to be good at keeping commitments. So, I set daily priorities and do whatever it takes to get the job done, meet ever-shorter deadlines and keep the commitments that I've made."

Stress Management: "Jogging or lifting weights at the fitness center during lunch helps a lot. Yoga also is very effective in helping to manage stress when I can find the time to practice."

Favorite book/s: "A few fast-paced thrillers that were also very thought-provoking that I've read recently at the beach include: Skinny Dip, by Carl Hiaasen; The Footprints of God, by Greg Iles; and Digital Fortress and The Da Vinci Code, both by Dan Brown."

I would like to spend 1 hour with: "Milton Hershey. His legacy is tremendous; he built a world-class business; took care of his employees, even during the Depression; and built the town that bears his name, providing affordable housing and many first-class facilities for his employees to enjoy. Even more important, he gave his entire fortune to the Milton Hershey School Trust, which has provided a home and first-class education for orphans originally, and now for disadvantaged children around the country."

Worst Job: "Construction work during summers in high school and college. It was a very physically demanding job. The worst of the worst was spending days breaking nearly one-foot-thick concrete with a sledge hammer to install new drains in a chicken slaughterhouse."

Best Job: "Assistant Controller, Sales and Marketing at Hershey Chocolate Co., the corporation's largest operating division. This was a newly created position which provided the opportunity to work with sales representatives and managers in a project to reduce paperwork and complexity for the sales force. I really felt, that our team made a difference in improving productivity for the entire sales force."

Favorite Deal: "Though it was very stressful and required a tremendous amount of work, the period during 2002 when the Milton Hershey School Trust explored the sale of Hershey Foods Corp., which was ultimately unsuccessful. The trust board voted against the sale, thus keeping Milton Hershey's legacy intact and protecting the jobs of many long-time, dedicated employees in central Pennsylvania."

What inspires you? "Having a sense of accomplishment in the things that I do; feeling that in some small way I am making a positive difference in the organizations in which I am involved and with my family, friends and associates."

Email: [e-mail]

edited by Ellen M. Heffes