Car dealership changing ownership Through a deal with Mike Anderson Dodge Ram, Ray Harris Chrysler Jeep became Mike Anderson Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram Wednesday, said Ray Harris Chrysler Jeep owner Sherry Harris. “Ray Harris Chrysler Jeep is extremely grateful for a wonderful business and great relationships throughout the years that we served Marion and Grant County,” she said in a statement. “Thank you again for the community support.” Harris declined to make any further comment than her statement, and Mike Anderson Dodge Ram also declined comment. Sherry Harris assumed control of Ray Harris Chrysler Jeep following a Nov. 26, 2011, plane crash near Crystal Lake, Ill., that killed her husband, Ray, as well as her two daughters, Ramie and Shey. In 2006, Ray Harris was responsible for moving the dealership from a low-traffic area in downtown Marion to the location at the Ind. 18 and Interstate 69 interchange — which was a busy spot, but an underdeveloped area, at the time. The dealership opened at its new location across from the Dollar General Distribution center on Dec. 1, 2006, and Ivy Tech Community College broke ground on a new building at the interchange about the same time. Sherry Harris has a background in management from years of nursing work and from being around the business before she assumed command. When Ray Harris opened his car dealership’s new building in 2006, he said it was his dream to “come out here and build a big, beautiful dealership and take care of everybody.” After 18 years as a salesman, the Marion resident bought the dealership in January 2006 from Karen and Hugh Burnett, relatives and co-owners who had kept the dealership for 15 years. A couple months later, he announced plans to move the business from 802 S. Adams — where it had been for 78 years — to the current location at 6037 Big Play Way. In March 2008, he said he was happy about the move to the street that was named after his nickname in school. “There was no drive-by at the old location,” he said at that time. “There was no new business. We were there 80 years, and people didn’t even know where we were located.” Harris started buying stock in what was called Howard Chrysler Jeep in 1994, and he became the majority owner Jan. 6, 2006. He grew up in Marion and started working in his father’s two meat-processing plants when he was 12. After graduating from Marion High School, he devoted himself full-time to the family business. But, after he had been working there two years, his father decided to sell. Ray Harris then spent six months working at Thomson; but, when he paid cash for a new vehicle at Howard Chrysler Jeep, opportunity seized him. When the staff discovered that a young man was able to pay cash for a new vehicle through hard work and thrift, they offered him a sales job, which he initially turned down. But after a persistent effort by the dealership, Harris came in to try the job for a few days — and he never left.
Posted on: Thu, 11 Jul 2013 12:08:16 +0000
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