WEC founder dies

Developer and trucking magnate

R.L. Roberts passed away at age 77.

By Susan Smiley-Height susan@magnoliamediaco.com

Ralph L. “Larry” Roberts Sr., the founder of R + L Carriers, Inc., a global transportation business, died March 19, at the age of 77, in Ocala, of dementia.

With his wife Mary, Roberts, who was known by many as “Senior,” developed the Golden Ocala Golf & Equestrian Club and World Equestrian Centers in Wilmington, Ohio, and Ocala. Roberts was born Aug. 23, 1945, in Wilmington, Ohio. He and Mary were married on Nov. 2, 1963. He founded R + L Carriers, Inc., a trucking and transportation company, in 1965. According to company literature, he started with one truck that he used for hauling furniture.

“The business grew with the purchase of intrastate and interstate authority from Mayflower Moving and Storage,” notes the R + L Carriers website. In the 1980s, the company expanded to five midwestern and southern states. Its growth continued in the ‘90s with the acquisitions of other companies. Today, the company operates across America and in Canada, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic.

In addition to his affinity for the trucking industry, Roberts had a love for horses and for Florida. He and Mary bought 1,300 acres in the area and thus was born the golf and equestrian club on West Highway 27, just outside Ocala. Following the success of the World Equestrian Center (WEC) in Ohio, the Roberts’ opened WEC Ocala in early 2021.

In addition to his wife Mary, Roberts is survived by his daughter Michelle Carpenter of Ocala; son Ralph L. Roberts Jr. and his wife Terri, of Wilmington, Ohio; and son Roby L. Roberts and his wife Jennifer, of Ocala; seven grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.

Roberts did not wish to have a memorial or funeral service.

Candace Fitzgerald, WEC Marketing Director, said in email that the family was “grateful for people’s prayers and condolences and asked that anyone who wishes to honor Senior simply do something special for someone they love.”