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SHFA honors Willis and family with area at Virginia Beach park

By Furniture Today Staff -- Furniture Today, October 7, 2001

High Point — The Southern Home Furnishings Assn. plans to honor the man and the family who have honored so many Southern furniture retailers with the Willis Award of Merit in the past 50 years.

SHFA has arranged with the Parks and Recreations Department of Virginia Beach, Va., to have a seating area established in honor of Ben Willis and the Willis family of Virginia Beach at Kids Cove in the ecologically famous Mount Trashmore park. The park was established in the 1960s on the site of a landfill and has been studied by environmentalists and city planners from all over the world.

Because SHFA is an organization of furniture retailers, the association decided it would be appropriate to have a large custom-made bench honoring Ben Willis placed in the park's most popular play area to give families comfortable seating while their children play.

"Ben Willis has honored so many exceptional retailers in our industry for their accomplishments. In our hearts, we felt it was time to acknowledge him for his contributions to the industry and his community," said the SHFA's executive committee chairman, Marc Schewel of Schewel Furniture in Lynchburg, Va.

The seating area site is part of a park beautification program scheduled for completion later this year. The area will include plantings of azaleas along with a plaque commemorating Willis.

A dedication is set for 3 p.m. on Nov. 8. For more information, call Laurie Auman at SHFA at (800) 274-7432, ext. 1.

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