Leonard Vogel

May 23, 1924 - February 26, 2014 Leonard Vogel was born in Brooklyn, New York, May 23rd 1924. He passed away after a short illness on February 26th 2014 at the age of 89. Leonard was an amazing husband, father, grandfather and friend. He grew up in his parents candy store in Brooklyn and before the age of 16 he was fluent in English,Yiddish and Hebrew. His first love was art and he had a natural gift for drawing and painting. With the onset of World War II he enlisted in the Marines and received the Purple Heart for service to his country. He was an alumni of New York Phoenix School of Design, The Art Students League, LACC, UCLA (Bachelors Degree) and Cal State Long Beach. He went on to become a school teacher in California where he met his wife Shirley of almost 60 years. He then changed careers and began designing jewelry which led to manufacturing and finally, plating jewelry. In 1967 he founded Cal-Mart Plating in downtown Los Angeles which is still in business today. He was also an extraordinary, creative artist on many levels. With his love of art he painted hundreds of beautiful paintings in watercolor and oils. With his own hands he built everything from furniture, gardens, fish ponds, scale model train sets, and the house he raised his family in. He also built a family of love. He had an amazing talent for endearing himself to everyone he met. With unbearable sadness we say goodbye to a remarkable man who simply loved life. He will be remembered mostly for his optimism and sensitivity. Lenny is survived by his wife Shirley, his children Linda, Kenny and Susie, his grandchildren Shawn, Natalie, Isabel, Ava and Olivia, daughter-in-law Christina and son-in-law Brian. A Memorial Service will be held Sunday March 2nd at 1:00 p.m. at Mountain View Cemetery, 2400 N. Fair Oaks Avenue, Altadena, Ca. 91001 at Sunrise Chapel