Jay W. Stream

Jay W Stream, 84, of San Luis Obispo died Sunday, Jan. 22, 2006, after battling a seven-week long illness at his winter home in Scottsdale, Ariz. He was born in Churdan, Iowa, on April 17, 1921, to Adrian and Theo Stream. Later, the family moved to Wheaton, Ill., where they had a dairy herd and about 65 horses. After high school, Stream went to the University of Southern California on a football scholarship, but left school to enlist in the Army Air Corps at the outbreak of World War II. He attended flight school at what was then Thunderbird Field, in Scottsdale, Ariz., taking his first solo flight as an air cadet from that runway in 1942. He became a bomber pilot, but for much of the war, he ferried USO performers to military bases around the world When World War II ended, Stream went to work briefly for John Hancock Insurance in Boston, Mass., but missed his Midwest origins, and soon returned to Chicago,Ill. Working out of John Hancock's Chicago office, he quickly rose to leadership in the field of annuity programming. In 1947, looking for something a bit more tangible, he was instrumental in opening the city's first ready-mix concrete plant, and served as president of Royal Ready-Mix Concrete Co. This endeavor, which involved confrontations with unions, political interests and picketing laborers, pushed his ingenuity and perseverance to full throttle. Undaunted and undiminished, he bought a gravel pit in Wisconsin, and was soon shipping 60 freight cars a day full of sand and gravel to Chicago. The business thrived. From 1949 to 1964, he pioneered and led the Durable Construction Co. to a position as one of Illinois' largest residential and commercial building firms. During this period he served as president of Midwest Land Corp, a land developing and shopping center holding company; of Wheaton Sewer and Water Co., one of Illinois' largest such underground facilities; and president of Hydro-Structure Corp., specializing in large, municipal disposal plants, swimming pools, and related concrete structures. It was in 1958 that Jay Stream had a vision that now, 48 years later, represents visible proof of his clarity of vision. After selecting an area of virgin farmland in Illinois, Stream carefully pulled together a planned community of residential atmosphere that would be supported by well-selected manufacturing companies. The village of Carol Stream was named in honor of Stream?s daughter. Under Stream?s direction, the industrial area grew to include many of the nation?s industrial leaders, such as Fiat, Morton Salt, Container Corporation of America, Allis Chalmers, Meyer Cord Decalcomania Company, Easterling Silverware and many more. Today Carol Stream has more than 40,000 residents. In 1962, he founded the Hawthorne Bank of Wheaton, Ill., and served as its bank president and chairman of the board. Early in the 1960s due to daughter Linda?s interest in horses, the Stream family became involved with Arabian horses. In 1967, Stream retired from the bank to pursue a new post as president of the International Arabian Horse Association. This endeavor took him to San Luis Obispo. His enthusiastic dedication to the Arabian horse resulted not only in his founding Greengate Farms, one of the largest and most successful Arabian Horse breeding farms in the world, but also his participation in the creation of the World Arabian Horse Organization. Serving as chairman of the Steering Committee, he helped found and wrote the constitution for the World Arabian Horse Association, an organization representing more than 50 countries. Stream was elected first president of the organization and served in that capacity for 30 years. This position placed Stream in close contact with many governments, including Russia and several nations of the Eastern bloc. Stream dealt extensively with countries of the Mid-East (including Jordan, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait, swimming pools, and related concrete structures. It was in 1958 that Jay Stream had a vision that now, 48 years later, represents visible proof of his clarity of vision. After selecting an area of virgin farmland in Illinois, Stream carefully pulled together a planned community of residential atmosphere that would be supported by well-selected manufacturing companies. The village of Carol Stream was named in honor of Stream?s daughter. Under Stream?s direction, the industrial area grew to include many of the nation?s industrial leaders, such as Fiat, Morton Salt, Container Corporation of America, Allis Chalmers, Meyer Cord Decalcomania Company, Easterling Silverware and many more. Today Carol Stream has more than 40,000 residents. In 1962, he founded the Hawthorne Bank of Wheaton, Ill., and served as its bank president and chairman of the board. Early in the 1960s due to daughter Linda?s interest in horses, the Stream family became involved with Arabian horses. In 1967, Stream retired from the bank to pursue a new post as president of the International Arabian Horse Association. This endeavor took him to San Luis Obispo. His enthusiastic dedication to the Arabian horse resulted not only in his founding Greengate Farms, one of the largest and most successful Arabian Horse breeding farms in the world, but also his participation in the creation of the World Arabian Horse Organization. Serving as chairman of the Steering Committee, he helped found and wrote the constitution for the World Arabian Horse Association, an organization representing more than 50 countries. Stream was elected first president of the organization and served in that capacity for 30 years. This position placed Stream in close contact with many governments, including Russia and several nations of the Eastern bloc. Stream dealt extensively with countries of the Mid-East (including Jordan, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait,