Onslow Hamilton "Rudy" Rudolph Jr.

Onslow "Rudy" Hamilton Rudolph, Jr. , Founder of Rudolph and Sletten, Inc. in Redwood City, California passed away Saturday morning, June 7th , in his San Francisco home he shared with his wife, Carolyn Rudolph. Mr. Rudolph, 84, had battled cancer for over a year before he entered hospice care last week. Through the construction company that carried his name, the fourth generation builder began a construction legacy that continues to be a major force in the building industry in California. This success led to the construction of many familiar landmarks in the state of California such as the Monterey Bay Aquarium, Lucille Packard Children's Hospital, Genentech Founder's Research Building and Apple Corporate Headquarters. Mr. Rudolph was born in 1923 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Onslow Hamilton Rudolph Sr. and Margaret Ida Rahm. He attended Crafton Public School in a suburb of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. During his early childhood "Bud", as his mother called him, was known as a good son who quit school to support the family during his father's illness. He was proud of his Swiss heritage and the carpentry trade he learned from his father and uncle. His father credited their trade with keeping him and his family out of the coalmines. Mr. Rudolph enlisted in the Army in 1942 and served as a Company Construction Officer in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. He attended Officer Candidate School and was promoted to Second Lieutenant. He left the Army after the war in 1946 and attended San Jose State University in San Jose, California. He earned a BS degree from their School of Engineering in 1951. After graduation, Mr. Rudolph worked at Condick Company of Berkeley. He also was an estimator and project manager for McDonald Brothers in Los Angeles, California and Williams and Burroughs of Belmont, California before starting his own firm in 1959 based out of his garage in Los Altos, California. Starting with just a small amount of savings, a pickup truck and two employees, Mr. Rudolph quickly built a business that became known for its ability to deliver the highest quality work on-schedule and within budget. In 1962, Kenneth G. Sletten joined the business as partner and the company was renamed Rudolph and Sletten Inc., General and Engineering Contractors. Earlier projects that the firm built included the beginnings of Silicon Valley in projects for such historical firms as Fairchild Semi Conductor, Memorex, Ampex and Lockheed. Later projects included the Hewlett Packard Corporate Headquarters, Lucille Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford, Stanford Cancer Research Center, The Monterey Bay Aquarium, Apple Corporate Headquarters, Intel Robert Noyce Building, AMD Submicron Fab, Lucasfilms Skywalker Ranch and Corporate Headquarters, Genentech Founders Research Building, Chiron Research Center, Kaiser Hospital Santa Clara, Sun Microsystems Campuses and the Microsoft Campus in Mountain View California. The company built an unparalleled reputation for the quality construction and the integrity of their business ethic. The company is also known as an innovator in using fast track methods to deliver large construction projects on record-breaking schedules. Perhaps more than the financial success of the company, Mr. Rudolph was proudest of his company's safety record and safety culture. His company would win several national safety awards for their safety records. Rudolph and Sletten is currently one of the 10 largest building contractors in the United States. Mr. Rudolph dedicated much of his time to working for the Boy Scouts of America. He was the recipient of the Silver Beaver Award for distinguished service to youth. He was also an Eagle Scout. In 1981 he received the Alumni Award of Distinction from the Charles W. Davidson College of Engineering at San Jose State University. He served on the San Jose State University, School of Engineering Advisory Council, and dedicated much of his time to community organizations and was a member of the Foothill-De Anza Foundation board of directors. Mr. Rudolph also served on the board of directors for the Santa Clara County Associated General Contractors of California as well as that organization's collective bargaining committee. Mr. Rudolph's passion in later years was boating and he served on the Saint Francis Yacht Club, Board of Directors. He was also an avid Duck Hunter and preserver of wildlife habitat as a large supporter of the California Water Fowl Association. Mr. Rudolph is survived by his wife, Carolyn, and their children, DaNett DeBrine and April Lyon, and also survived by his first wife, Betty Rudolph and their children, John Rudolph, Karen Rudolph and Allen Rudolph. He is survived by his sister Betty Lou Kelley and Shirley Hilker of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and his brother, James Rudolph of Angels Camp, California. Services will be held on Wednesday, June 18th at 11:00 am at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco. A reception will follow at the Saint Francis Yacht Club on the marina in San Francisco. The family requests that donations be made in lieu of flowers to California Pacific Medical Center. Donations should be designated in memory of Onslow "Rudy" Rudolph and sent to CPMC c/o Jerry Mapp, 1255 Post Street, Suite 700, San Francisco, CA 94109.