William O. Garin

GARIN, William O. - Died at his home in Salinas on Sunday, October 9, 2005 of natural causes. He was born Sept. 5, 1921 in SF, son of Henry Pierce and Elsie Swan Garin. He attended Piedmont High School, Monterey High School, Hartnell College, and The University of Oregon. WWII interrupted his college years and he joined the Navy. Returning home from the war, he joined the family business. He married Eleanor Hoobler from Alameda and began their family in Carmel. His father H.P. Garin was a groundbreaking pioneer vegetable grower-shipper, creating a vast agricultural business operating in California and Arizona with 18 district offices and thousands of employees. William became president of the Garin Company in 1963 with farming operations in Brentwood, Firebaugh, Salinas, Taft, Bakersfield, El Centro and Blythe, CA; Parker and Phoenix, AZ. Bill was widowed in the early '70s and married Roberta (Bobbie) Vuncannon in 1973. William (Bill) introduced a celery field packing unit in Salinas to eliminate the need for a shed operation. He was instrumental in starting Western Iceberg Lettuce Inc., at first a promotional organization concentrating on public relations promotion of iceberg lettuce to food editors, home economics teachers, and major advertisers on tie-in promotions. The Western Iceberg League which later became the Iceberg Lettuce Commission continued the job of promoting the consumption of iceberg lettuce to the public. William was an active board member of the Iceberg Lettuce Commission, Western Growers, Growers Container and Shippers Development. Bill was also one of the first to promote lettuce internationally. He traveled to Iran in the late '60s to promote and consult with the Shah of Iran, and in 1977 traveled to Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore. He also promoted the export of asparagus to South America. Bill retired from produce with the sale of the Garin Company in 1983. In 2005, Bill Garin was awarded the E.E. "Gene" Harden Lifetime Achievement Award, with Certificates of Recognition from the California State Assembly and Senate. Bill was a great outdoorsman. He spent his joyful times at the St. Germaine Duck Club near the Delta, a deer club south of Salinas, or playing golf at the Corral de Tierra Country Club. But one of his greatest thrills was fly-fishing and tying his own flies. He fished from Alaska to Chile to New Zealand with friends and family. He was a Charter Member at Corral de Tierra CC, Salinas Elks Lodge #614, and Salinas Valley Fly Fishers. Besides his family home in Salinas, he provided his family with their beloved summer home at Arroyo Seco. A big fan of firecrackers, barbeques, and family parties, Bill Garin hosted many legendary 4th of July events at the Garin cabin in Grandma's Flats. Bill Garin is survived by his wife, Roberta Garin; his children Anne, Marian (Puffy), Noel (Tiny), Peter and Desiree (Baby); and his grandchildren, Scott, and Sam Causley, Jody Garin, Mila Bock, and great-grandson, Benjamin Sherwood Causley; sister, Elsie Jane Dill; cousins, Annette Warren and Maxine Thayer. "Good men will die, but death cannot kill their name." Funeral Mass will be said at St. Joseph's Catholic Church, Spreckels Blvd and Railroad Ave. in Spreckels, CA, Saturday, October 15, 2005 at 11:00am. Burial to follow Mass at Garden of Memories Cemetery, Abbott Street and Romie Lane in Salinas, CA. The Family requests memorials to Heartland Hospice, 2511 Garden Road, Monterey, CA 93940, Salinas Valley Memorial Foundation, 450 East Romie Lane, Salinas, CA 93901, or to donors' favorite charities. Funeral Arrangements by Struve And Laporte Funeral Home. For more info please visit www.struveandlaporte.com