[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 63 (Thursday, May 19, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[Congressional Record: May 19, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
HONORING THE LATE LEONARD CARPENTER
Mr. DURENBERGER. Mr. President, I rise today to commemorate the
passing of a major contributor to the commercial and cultural life of
Minnesota. Last Sunday, my friend Leonard Carpenter died at the age of
91.
Leonard was truly a man for all seasons. Born in Orono, MN, he went
from Yale to the 1924 Paris Olympics, where he was a member of the
gold-medal United States rowing team.
Back home, he became a key figure in Minnesota's lumber industry,
impressing industry observers with his accomplishment in turning a
struggling enterprise--McCloud Lumber Co.--into a major economic
success.
But Minnesotans--myself included--will miss him most as a driving
force behind the Minnesota Orchestra. For over half a century, he
devoted his very best efforts to making that symphony the pride of our
State--serving in various capacities, including vice president and
member of the board of the Minnesota Orchestral Association.
He will be missed by the many of us who knew him and loved him. I
would like to take this opportunity to extend the warmest condolences
to his widow Geraldine--and especially to thank her for the terrific
contribution she made to building the Leonard Carpenter success story.
All Minnesotans stand in the debt of Leonard and Geraldine Carpenter.
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Minneapolis Star
Tribune obituary of Leonard Carpenter be included at the conclusion of
my remarks.
There being no objection, the obituary was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
(From The Minneapolis (MN) Star Tribune, May 17, 1994)
Leonard Carpenter, Key Orchestra Supporter, Dies
(By David Chanen)
Leonard G. Carpenter devoted more than 50 years to the
Minnesota Orchestra, but it was only a small part of what
made his life special.
He ran one of the largest lumber companies in the United
States and was a member of the rowing crew that won a gold
medal in the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris. Through all his
accomplishments, his greatest joy might have come from
classical music and his work with the orchestra.
He died Sunday at Abbott Northwestern Hospital in
Minneapolis. He was 91.
``He had an interest in everything that was going on around
him, from business to his extended family,'' said his son,
Tom, of Buffalo, Colo.
His longtime friend and former next-door neighbor, John
Pillsbury, said Carpenter was a gentleman with capital
letters. He took Pillsbury, the retired chairman of
Northwestern National Life Insurance Co., on his first
sailboat ride. Both raced at the Minnetonka Yacht Club, where
Carpenter was a champion.
The Minnesota Orchestra was known as the Minneapolis
Symphony until 1968. Carpenter was a board member of its
governing body, the Minnesota Orchestral Association, for 56
years, including long terms was vice president and member of
the executive committee. He was named a life director, the
association's highest honor, in 1970. His father, Albert, was
a charter member of the board of the association when it was
formed in 1903 and was its president from 1905 to 1945.
``If he was in town, Carpenter and family members were
always attending concerts,'' said Richard Cisek, former
president of the association ``He had a great devotion to the
orchestra and wanted to make sure it was a gift to the
community.''
He said Carpenter had a great understanding of classical
music and was tenacious when it came to defending the
orchestra's artistic standards. His son was a board member of
the association, and his daughter-in-law, Vicky B. Carpenter,
is now chairwoman of the board.
Carpenter was born in Orono and attended the Blake School
in Hopkins and Hotchkiss School in Lakeville, Conn. He earned
a bachelor's degree in English from Yale University. While at
Yale, he was part of the team that won a gold medal in rowing
at the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris. The crew never lost a
race and set a world record.
Except for a stint in the Navy during World War II, he
worked for the family lumber business, Shevlin, Carpenter &
Clarke. It was a sawmill operation that operated a railroad
and distribution sites throughout the United States.
He was president and director of McCloud Lumber Co. in
Minneapolis and president of McCloud River Lumber Co. in
McCloud, Calif., both associated with Shevlin, Carpenter &
Clarke. The company was sold to U.S. Plywood Corp. for more
than $40 million in 1962.
``He took the company, that for a time was floundering, and
turned it around with his leadership abilities,'' said Curt
Lee, former comptroller at McCloud Lumber Co. ``He had a
phenomenal success record.''
Preservation of the forest and the proper management of
timber was important to Carpenter, Lee said. He was a board
member of the National Lumber Manufacturers Association and
the National Forest Products Association, president of
American Forest Products Industries and a member of the
American Forest Society.
He was a director of First Bank System, Northwestern
National Life Insurance Co., the Minneapolis Institute of
Arts, the Minneapolis Foundation, the Minnesota Historical
Society and the Community Chest of Hennepin County (now
Untied Way of Minneapolis Area), trustee of the old Farmers &
Mechanics Savings Bank of Minneapolis and a member of the
Minneapolis Club and Woodhill Country Club in Orono.
Besides his son, Carpenter is survived by his wife,
Geraldine, and a daughter, Nina Carpenter Masek, of Sonoita,
Ariz.
A celebration of life and music including members of the
Minnesota Orchestra and assistant conductor William Eddins
will be held in his honor at 3 p.m. Thursday at Orchestra
Hall, 1111 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis. Memorials to the
Minnesota Orchestra Association's Leonard G. Carpenter Family
Fund are suggested. Arrangements are by the David Lee Funeral
Home, Wayzata.
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