Richard L. Snow

1921 - 2015

SNOW, RICHARD L. Richard L. Snow, age 93 of Naperville, IL left us on Tuesday, January 20, 2015 at Edward Hospital. Born December 5, 1921 in Binghamton, NY, the son of the late George and Mina Snow. He is survived by his loving wife, Ann of 69 years; eldest son, Ronald and his wife, Kathleen (Truxes) Snow; their three children, Erica (Darrell) Holmstrom, Kimberly Snow and Ronald Snow II. Great-grandchildren, Madisyn Hamann, Travyn and Talyn Holmstrom; grandchildren, Shannon Snow, Shay Snow and her children, Joseph, Jay Jay and Jayden. He was preceded in death by his son, David Snow and daughter, Vicki Snow and grandson Jordon Snow. WHAT DO ALL OF THE FOLLOWING HAVE IN COMMON: "WORLD'S LARGEST Furniture Manufacturer;" "Largest Private School Bus Contractor in North America;" Air Transport Command? Transportation, of course. More specifically, they all describe our Richard L. Snow (alias ""Dick" and "Rich"). Rich has been driving at our facility from the Van Com days-initially using Park District para-transit vehicles, now school buses. But, he has also driven literally a million tractor-trailer miles; and, he's flown both passengers and equipment worldwide in the Army Air Corps (predecessor to the air Force) during World War II. Among the reasons that your editor chose Rich for this, the first of several driver profiles, was doubtless my admiration for those pilots among The Greatest Generation; those who, like my late father, had served our country in World War II . And, like some of my relatives, Rich spent the lion's share of his professional life with Kroehler Furniture Company-for more than 50 years Naperville's largest employer. The romance with the road arose early. "My first love-my one great love, from earliest memories, has been driving a truck," Rich explained. But, behind the wheel at age 10!? That's- really early! "At ten or twelve I practiced, fooled around a little." Until the late 1930' s, after all, there was no such thing as a driver's license. You just had to be big enough to reach the pedals. "Even before that, I'd go out in the dirt and pretend-go grr, rrrr like a big rig." At the time Rich graduated Binghamton North High School in upstate New York, 1939, a chauffeur's license was the catch-all commercial driver certification, "I went out and got one ... and it never lapsed-I was 'grandfathered' in. I started driving for Grand Union Groceries, then Moore Northern hauling different commodities. In January of '42, scarcely a month after Pearl Harbor Day, Rich enlisted in the Army Air Corps, training in Arcadia, Florida. Even flight training was not without adventure, as Rich. bailed out of a disabled plane. Not immodestly, Rich reveals, "some people just have a natural ability to fly. Fortunately, I apparently was one of them." And so, in an era when it was only typical that he "had never even been inside a plane" Rich, by one year later, was assigned to the Air Transport Command, delivering new aircraft from the manufacturers in the U.S. to air bases in India, Africa, and Australia. These included the whole gamut, from P39's to B-17 bombers to C-46 and other four-engine aircraft. "Then, I-received special-flight training in Reno;' Nevada, in early '44, and started a 10 month, 1,000 air-hours tour of duty, first out of Casablanca, Morocco, then Cairo, Egypt." Flying C-46' s from these bases, Rich delivered cargo and passengers to and from Egypt, Persia (now Iran), Iraq, India, and Russia. "Among the highlights. I flew injured crew members from three bases in Russia to Tehran after their shuttle bombing-the 8th and 15th Air Corps." And, to top it all off, Rich flew Ambassador Averill Harrimon himself-"as his personal pilot to the Big Three (Churchill, Roosevelt, Stalin) Yalta conference in Russia!" Rich discussed some of the challenges, the hazards inherent to even non-combat World War II aviation. While on a courier flight from Karachi, Pakistan, to various Indian bases, Rich had to ditch a disabled C- 46 in the Indian Ocean because of complete electrical failure and bad weather=and, in part because of incompetent forecasts. But, even when the forecasts held and good weather prevailed, it was a different era for flying: "We had minimal aids to navigation," notes Rich. "We flew a lot by D.R.- Dead Reckoning. In other words, we had a map, we looked at the ground, and flew on a heading. Each time we saw a landmark, we compensated. So, a majority of flights in certain areas had to be in the daytime. The desert at night is blacker than black." If one expresses to Rich the extraordinary contributions his generation made to freedom he balks at defining heroism: "I really have no heroes-- although I never followed the war much." Is he proud of his accomplishments? "Remember, I was never in combat. I did have several flights in what we call the zone of the interior--on the battle lines. But, if we did not get to the interior, then those people on the battle line would not have the necessary equipment to continue." Undaunted, Rich signed up for a second overseas tour in 1945, ferrying the massive troop re- deployment from Europe to the Pacific theatre aboard C-54's-the planned but never-used invasion force approaching the Japanese main islands. And, this tour continued after V-J day, as his "hospital plane" brought home countless wounded soldiers from extended-care centers on Pacific bases. For a time Rich looked into continuing to fly as a career, setting up to be a standby pilot with TW A. But, his love affair with the road beckoned. So, Rich, married now to Ann and with a child on the way, instead bought a 10-wheeler and hauled loads across New Jersey and New York State as an owner- operator. Then, he relates, "In the spring of 1948 I sold my business, and I didn't do anything for awhile; then I said to myself, 'I've gotta do something." If you're a baby boomer or before, you can remember home deliveries. But, someone got milk from the dairies to the distribution centers, and that 'was Rich's next move: driving the big tankers -for Crowley Milk Company from Binghamton to points throughout the metro New York area. "After six months, though, I found out Kroehler was paying better." World's largest furniture manufacturer (the "upholstered" qualifier would be added later) Kroehler's biggest plant was right there in Binghamton. There he truly found his niche, staying on nearly thirty years, eighteen as a driver. For sixteen of those years, prompted by "the super seniority you got on bidding a run," he served as Shop Steward for the local union. His negotiating abilities and experience as a former business owner himself, bode him well in resolving grievances. The stewardship success, in turn, afforded Rich the necessary recognition-along with "other things they thought I had the ability to do"-to be promoted to Kroehler's corporate offices. This meant a move to Naperville, Kroehler's home office from its birth in 1892. "A 45-day leave from the Teamsters ... to orient myself, a whole series of courses and tests to see if I fitted in" as management, Rich explained, went swimmingly. Thus, he garnered a 12-year management stint, culminating in Superintendent of Transportation for Kroehler's fleet, for decades the world's largest in private hands! What did the former Teamster think of the union's role in those heady days? "They were people like me: they were honest. We'd try to' bull-t one another, of course. It's the same with a teeter-totter: if you want to balance the scale, you better have the same weight on either side And that's the way I treated them from day one We had each other's trust-those that I dealt with, anyway. " By the late 1970's, Kroehler was playing out that all- too common plot-line of a family-owned or operated business dynasty: nepotism gone awry; unqualified family members mismanaging a company into the ground. "In essence, there was a mutiny within the company. The younger people took over ... They had great ideas and intentions and desires, but they didn't have proper skills to do anything with them. In two years, the Kroehler was gone," bought out by Duncan Meter Corporation holding company, and the furniture giant became a splinter of its former self. Rich, meanwhile, secured a lifetime annuity with the stipulation "that I never again work in the manufacture of furniture." So, he took up similar positions with Sears subsidiary Signal Delivery, followed by Evans Transportation, until retiring in April, 1987. "Then," says Rich, "I "unretired in July of 1987." "I started out here [at VanCom, who operated this facility before Laidlaw] with the para-transit; I said I 'd never drive a school bus. But one day, the Terminal Manager, a tall, thin gal, said 'Dick, you're got a charter going. '" Does Rich believe that having, by then, helped to raise 3 children and 6 grandchildren, enhanced his qualification? "I get along with kids in general--most of them very well ... The more I did it, the more I said, 'heck, I've gotta do this; otherwise I'll just sit around and die early. '" And how to account for his sterling record of maintaining order aboard Laidlaw buses? At the start of the year, after explaining the rules he tells them, "'I can be nice guy, or I can be a tough one. Now, you can try me either way, but you'll find my statements are true.' And, usually, the kids you've had the previous year back you up. That's one of the reasons it's so valuable to keep the same driver from year to year." Regarding proper discipline, Rich's approach to school children parallels that towards his own kids. "My sons and daughter knew things had to be done the right way, or there would be some type of punishment. But, I did not believe in physical punishment. There was always an alternative. For example, if my oldest son would give my wife a hard time while I was on the road, I would take a yard stick and say 'by the time I get back I want to see a hole that deep and that wide. And, as you dig, separate the stones and the dirt.' I'd get back later, and say, 'all right, now I want you to put the stones on the bottom, the dirt over it, and smooth it out.' When it was all done, I'd say, 'now you see, all that time you were doing that, you had to be thinking about something-and furthermore you weren't giving your mother a bad time." "I like driving the kids," says Rich, "and some of the mothers tell me I have the patience of a saint." But, surprising as it may seem, he says, "I could never be a teacher. But, that's a different kind of patience-where you try to explain to somebody what to do, and can't understand why the hell they're still not getting it!" Continuing an excellent safety record, this very healthy octogenarian has no public policy suggestions on improving the overall safety record of his peers. However, he maintains that "your health is only as good as your mind. If you think positive about things, you lessen health problems." Rich has a balanced approach, too, to letting off steam, admitting "I do have a short fuse sometimes, but then I cool off, shake hands ... " And he swears by the benefits of "every morning a spoonful of good grade honey; one ounce of cider vinegar, and a glass of grape juice, then my required pills. And, plenty of water. But, you have to have something for relaxation. I buy all the groceries, I cook all the meals, and I do all the dishes. I enjoy doing all those things." But, does he have anything that might be conventionally considered a hobby? "Oh, yes, auto races. I go to NASCAR races ... and eleven times to the Indy 500." After leaving the Army Air Corp as a Captain he married Ann Patricia Jakimiw and started a trucking company in Binghamton, NY, eventually going to work for Kroehler Mfg. Co. driving all over the East delivering their furniture. He was promoted to their Director of Transportation in 1967 and moved to Kroehler headquarters in Naperville, IL. After a successful career in transportation he continued working as a school bus driver and transported disabled children around until he retired at 92. He was a loving father and husband, and leaves a legacy that will never be forgotten. A graveside service will be held at Naperville Cemetery in the Spring. Friedrich-Jones Funeral Home & Cremation Services, 44 South Mill St, Naperville, IL 60540. (630) 355 0213 www.friedrichjones.com