Brennan names boat for long-term employee
Written by Marine Log Staff
Merrell “Cobb” Colsch and Brennan Marine President Adam Binsfeld at the Brennan La Crosse, Wis., office
La Crosse, Wis.-based J.F. Brennan Company Inc. is honoring long-time employee Merrell Colsch, or “Cobb” as he has been known throughout his career, by naming the latest addition to its fleet, the M/V Merrell Colsch, after him.
“Having a vessel named after you is the highest honor we can bestow upon an individual in recognition of his or her contribution to Brennan’s success over the course of a career,” says Brennan.
Colsch began his career on the river in 1971 at 20 years old, following service in Vietnam and his honorable discharge from the U.S. Army, and returned to New Albin, Iowa. His first job was as one of two operators of a dredge. Four years later, the owner of that operation transitioned into barge fleeting and Colsch earned his USCG license and became a boat pilot. In late 1991, J.F. Brennan recruited him.
“We could write a book on the 27 years of contributions that Merrell would make to Brennan,” says the company. After running the company’s Lansing operation for four years, he was reassigned to run its dry dock in La Crosse.
“I’ll bet I repaired over a 1,000 different barges and tows over the years,” Colsch says.
In addition to his work as a dry dock manager, Colsch’s fabrication skills made him a go-to resource for the construction and dredging side of the company. Many times, too, he was called upon to run a towboat on a lock and dam project if the company was short of pilots or to lend a hand on a pile driving crew.
Colsch will be retiring next April, leaving a large legacy behind. When asked what he likes most about working at Brennan, his response was, “There’s just a lot of good people. Good pilots, good deckhands. It was nice being out on some of those crews too.”
The boat now named for him is a 1981-built, 65-foot push boat formerly called Brooke. It is powered by an 1,800 hp Mitsubishi S 12A2-MPTA engine turning 75- by 63-inch propellers via Twin Disc MG-540 gears.
