Obituaries
By Furniture Today Staff -- Furniture Today, December 7, 2009
Larry Kurpiewski, owner of CHF Home
BOISE, Idaho — Larry Kurpiewski, owner and operator of retailer CHF Home Furnishings here, died Saturday, Nov. 28, of an apparent heart attack while participating in a go kart racing event in Sonoma, Calif. He was 60.
Kurpiewski, son of company founder and Chairman Tony Kurpiewski, started working in the family business at age 9.
Larry took over management in 1979 and grew the midpriced to high-end CHF Home Furnishings from a $1 million business with six employees to an $18 million, three-store company with more than 100 employees in 2005, although it has downsized since then as business has dropped off during the recession, said Lyndon Johns, vice president and CEO of CHF.
The retailer operates a 48,000-square-foot main store, a 16,000-square-foot La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries store and a 20,000-square-foot clearance center, all in the Boise area.
Tony Kurpiewski, 91, continues as chairman. Other survivors of Larry Kurpiewski include his wife, Barb Kurpiewski; daughter Shannon Kurpiewski, human resources manager at CHF; son Ryan Kurpiewski, warehouse manager; and nephew Blair Baertsch, operations manager.
Services are being directed by Summers Funeral Home, Boise Chapel.
Tom Howell, manufacturer and consultant
NASHVILLE, Tenn.
— Tom Howell, a former furniture manufacturer and a consultant and adviser to industry companies, has died from complications of leukemia. He was 62.
Howell was a lieutenant in the Navy before starting his business career on the West Coast in the recording division of CBS. In the mid-1970s, he returned to his native Nashville and founded Tennessee Hardwood, a producer of workbenches, tables and specialty craft items.
Increased competition from Asian imports led him to close the business in the mid-1980s. He continued to be active in the industry as a consultant and adviser to companies, mainly in North Carolina and Mississippi.
Survivors include his wife, a stepson and a brother.
Memorial donations may be made to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society or to Walden’s Puddle Wildlife Rehab Center.
Gary Shields, retailer, C&S Home
CORALVILLE, Iowa — Gary William Shields, a longtime furniture retailer here and earlier in California, has died. He was 59.
Shields and his wife, Carol, operated C&S Home Furnishings here for the past four years. Before returning to his native Iowa, Gary Shields and his parents, Dorothy A. and William A. Shields, ran Shields Home Furnishings Warehouse in Palm Springs, Calif., for more than 30 years.
In addition to his wife, Gary Shields is survived by two sons, a sister and a brother.
Memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society or the charity of one’s choice.
Jack Brown, former president of I. Brown Bros.
FAIRFIELD, Conn. — Jack Z. Brown, who retired after more than five decades at former Connecticut retailer I. Brown Bros., has died. He was 80.
His father, Isidore Brown, founded the store in Bridgeport, Conn., 82 years ago. It was later moved to Fairfield. Jack Brown was president of the company until he retired two years ago and closed the 16,000-square-foot store, which had included a custom upholstery shop and sold high-end brands such as Baker and Henredon.
Brown also had served in the Army during the Korean conflict, and was a board member of The Jewish Home for the Elderly of Fairfield County.
Survivors include three sons, two brothers and six grandchildren.
The family expressed appreciation to the Preston Tisch Brain Tumor Center at Duke University.
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Obituaries
Mar 30, 2008 -
Furniture consultant Tom Howell dies at 62
Dec 1, 2009
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