MCHS students sit in the gym during halftime of a boys varsity basketball game on Jan. 23. The whole gym is tense waiting for the third quarter to begin. At the front of the student section a chant begins. “We’re on Randall! We’re on Randall!” Many students soon realize, leading the chant and recording a TikTok, Cadillac Jerry has finally visited their school.
Jerry is the general sales manager for Cadillac, Chevy and GMC for Castle in McHenry. He took a liking to posting videos on social media, primarily TikTok, as well as Instagram and Facebook.
“What happened was, we took over these three brands last January. Before that, I used to run the Kia, Subaru side,” Jerry says. “I came over here and our Cadillac brand wasn’t as successful as we wanted it to be, so I took on the moniker of Cadillac Jerry, just to embrace it, gain an audience and show people that car dealerships can have fun too.”
His mission for posting as Cadillac Jerry, with all his catchphrases, is to give recognition to small towns and businesses inside and near McHenry.
“Whenever somebody asks you where you’re from, typically you’d say ‘I’m from Chicago,” Jerry says. “Well, we’re from the suburbs, and we have a lot of nice things. I think sometimes, it’s important to scale it back and just appreciate what you have or shine light on it.”
Occasionally, Jerry visits high school basketball games and other high school sports competitions in the Fox Valley Conference because he finds it fun. Viewers in his comment section often suggest places for him to go or competitions to attend.
“I used to play high school basketball and college basketball, so it takes me back to those days. There’s a lot of good players out here and McHenry has a great team,” Jerry says. “It’s fun any time I can show appreciation.”
Jerry was born in Poland, but grew up here, and learned English through elementary and middle school. His high school experience was like any other when it came to class, but sports are what really kept him going.
“I was just a quiet kid really,” Jerry says. “Now I’m on social media, and you can be whatever on social media.”
Not only does Jerry highlight high schools, but small businesses and restaurants as well.
“I’ll go to small businesses on Randall and show them appreciation, because it’s tough. Owning a small business is harder than it really looks,” Jerry says. “I go there and just give them a little bit of content, and get them rolling on social media too.”
He finds joy in showing his appreciation whether it be through a selfie, video or just showing up to support wherever he goes.
“I appreciate all you guys and all my fans,” Jerry says. “No matter where I go, it seems like there’s somebody, so if I could take a picture or a video for them, then it makes my day as much as the other person.”