FMCA to induct Short, Moyer into Hall of Fame
By Furniture Today Staff -- Furniture Today, March 24, 2003
High Point — Louis Short and Carleton Moyer will be honored by the Furniture Manufacturers Credit Assn. here for their service to the furniture industry and the organization.
Short, a longtime treasurer at Lane who retired in 1991, and Moyer, former director of credit for former Basic Witz Furniture, are among seven industry leaders who will be inducted into the new FMCA Hall of Fame during a reception at the FMCA offices here at 109 Rockspring Road at 6:30 p.m. Friday, April 4. FMCA will unveil portraits of all seven leaders during the ceremony.
Short joined Lane in 1948 as an accountant and rose to assistant treasurer in 1959 and treasurer in 1974. He spent 21 years on the FMCA's board and 18 years as its treasurer. Short, who was vice president of the FMCA from 1973 to 1974 and president from 1974 to 1975, was known by FMCA members as "The Virginia Gentleman" and "The Teacher" for his service and as chairman of the organization's education committee.
Moyer, a longtime credit manager at Basic Witz and then American of Martinsville, was an FMCA board member from 1962–1963 and 1968–1969. He joined the staff of FMCA as assistant executive vice president in 1975 and served as executive vice president from 1979 until he retired in 1988.
The deceased honorees who will be inducted are Henry Wallace Taylor, FMCA founder and its first executive vice president; Joe Patterson, former president of the Joseph Dean Co.; Thomas Glen Miller Jr., former treasurer and credit manager of Caldwell Furniture; R.K Rudicil II, former vice president, secretary and treasurer of Berkline; and Steven Osborne, former director of credit for Bernhardt.
Patterson was president of Joseph Dean for nearly 40 years and chairman of the Furniture Market Development Committee — an early High Point Market booster — for 16 years. He was a member of FMCA's board for 23 years and served as vice president, treasurer and two terms as president.
Rudicil joined Berkline in 1964. He became an FMCA director a year later and spent about 13 years on its board. He was vice president for three terms and president for two.
Rudicil was instrumental in establishing the FMCA pension fund. He also was involved in the design of FMCA's emblem, which features a saw representing case goods, a hammer representing upholstery and clasped hands symbolizing the trust upon which credit is extended. FMCA's annual award for outstanding credit manager of the year is named for Rudicil.
Miller served nine years on FMCA's board starting in 1962, including two terms as vice president and two as president. Osborne, who won the R.K. Rudicil Award in 1993, was a board member for 10 years, served four terms as secretary and one each as vice president and president.
Taylor was executive vice president of the association from 1962 through 1979.
