Michael F. Vukelich

Michael was founder, chairman and CEO of Color Spot Nurseries, Inc, one of the largest nursery growers in the U.S., passed away peacefully at home in Orinda on August 26th, 2011. He was 61 years old and had been diagnosed with brain cancer earlier this year.
He will be deeply missed by his wife of 20 years, Karla, and their children Max, Christabella, Michael Paul, and Trisha. Michael leaves his father and mother, Michael J. and Glenna Vukelich; his sisters Patricia, Mary, Michelle and brother Mark, as well as nieces, Allyson, Mackenzie, Molly, Anna, Tara, Brooke and nephews Mark, Joshua, Eric and Blake. Michael has three grandchildren, Tristen, Michael and Maliah by his son Michael Paul and his wife Victoria.
A lifelong Bay Area native, Michael grew up in Richmond, CA, and as soon as he could walk started working with his father in their small nursery business. His father taught him all phases of the business; potting plants, making cuttings, watering plants and, as a teenager Michael began selling plants to local retailers. Under his father's teaching, at a very early age, Michael demonstrated skill, natural leadership and a rare passion for perfection that were the hallmarks of his career and family life.
Learning all aspects of the business from operations to marketing to accounting to acquisitions, Michael transformed his father's business from a small backyard entity to the $250 million corporation it is today. According to Mark, Michael's younger brother, "Michael's vision was to be the best", to provide the best quality plants, best packaging, best distribution plan and best customer service." Mark's sentiments are echoed by such leading industry partners as Mr. Jason Riley, Bank of America, who described Michael's business practices and leadership of Color Spot as "best in class".
Combining keen business savvy with steadfast integrity, Michael expanded Color Spot through a series of key acquisitions to create the largest nursery growing business in the US. According to his partner, Jerry Halamuda, "Mike Jr. was the consummate professional with incredible instincts, relationship building skills, domain knowledge, and financial expertise, he had no match in the nursery industry." Over the years, Michael traveled the world and developed relationships with business leaders continuing to find new ways to create better systems to manage the expansion of Color Spot's business.
The changes Michael helped implement over his forty-year-plus career revolutionized the nursery business. Practices now taken for granted such as upscale packaging, point of sale merchandising displays, impulse signage, plants delivered on rolling racks, were a few of the innovations Michael and his colleagues brought to the industry.
Despite the impressive legacy Michael leaves in the nursery industry, he will be remembered first and foremost as a man who loved his family, was a loyal friend and an employer of great kindness and generosity: He will be sorely missed by all who knew him.
With his family, Michael was a strong supporter of Orinda's Sleepy Hollow Swim and Tennis Club. Over the years he and his wife Karla donated plants, materials, expertise and hundreds of volunteer hours toward the club's revitalization.
Michael will be laid to rest on Tuesday, September 6, 2011. A Catholic mass will be held at 1:00 p.m. at St. Monica's Catholic Church, 1001 Camino Pablo Moraga, CA. Graveside services will be held immediately after at approximately 2:30 p.m. at Queen of Heaven Cemetery1965 Reliez Valley Road, Lafayette, California.
In lieu of flowers the family request that donations be made to "Get Your Head in The Game" at The National Brain Tumor Association in Michael's name. The web site is www.braintumor.org for online donations. Donations may also be sent to the National Brain Tumor Society,124 Watertown Street, Suite 2D Watertown, MA 02472