JAMES S. HARTENSTEIN

1922 - 2013

JAMES S. HARTENSTEIN, of Akron, Ohio and Stuart, Florida passed away on October 20, 2013 at the age of 91. James Sanford Hartenstein was born on October 14, 1922 in Akron, Ohio. He grew up in Akron and attended Miami University in Oxford, Ohio where he was a member of the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity. He served as a Staff Sergeant in the US Air Force in World II and returned to the University of Akron where he received a B.S. in Business in 1948. While still in college, he began working at Goodyear and in the insurance business with the Akron Agencies, Inc. He later joined Acme Insurance and in 1958 formed James S. Hartenstein Insurance Agency, Inc. He merged with another agency in 1960 and formed Akers-Hartenstein Insurance Agency, Inc., becoming its President. That company later became the AHD Insurance Group (Akers, Hartenstein, Daley) and in 1978 it merged with F.B. Hall, a large New York brokerage firm where he became Executive Vice President of F.B. Hall of Ohio. In 1986, he retired from the insurance business after 40 years. He was very active in the community and in the insurance industry. He was President of the Insurance Board of Summit County. He received the "Outstanding Young Man of Akron" award from the Junior Chamber of Commerce and the Distinguished Service Award from the US Junior Chamber of Commerce. He served as a Director of Akron City Club and Portage Country Club, Founder and Chairman of the Board of the Cascade Club of Akron, Director of the Summit County Red Cross, President of the Visiting Nurse Service of Summit County, the founding President of the West Akron Kiwanis Club, Co-Chairman of the Akron Children's Hospital Fund Drive, Board member of the United Way of Summit County, Emeritus Board member of Akron General Hospital, Vice President and Trustee of the Mary S. and David C. Corbin Foundation, and President of the Lamplighters at the University of Akron. He was also Senior Warden of St. Paul's Episcopal Church. He was a member of the Portage Country Club in Akron for over 60 years and was recognized as an Emeritus Member. He was also a member of the Akron City Club, Sharon Golf Club, the Cascade Club of Akron, the Golf Club of Columbus, Ohio; and Willoughby Golf Club of Stuart, Florida. He loved to travel in the United States and around the world and once counted over 100 countries that he had visited. He is survived by his wife, Marian F. Hartenstein; his son, James C. Hartenstein; his daughter, Nancy H. Ernst; grandchildren Thomas Swan Hartenstein (Terrill), Alexa Graves Hartenstein, Elizabeth Hartenstein Johnson (Sean), Jacqueline Ernst Fencl (Alex), and John Philip Ernst; 5 great-grandchildren and many nieces and nephews. He is also survived by Sidney C. Foster (Linda), Nancy Foster Benson, Brian E. Foster (Carole); grandchildren Benjamin E. Foster (Linda), Lisa F. Daleiden (Josh), William B. Foster and Kimberly F. Lynch (Jeff); and 5 great-grandchildren. He was predeceased by his parents, Robert Franklin and Frances Sanford Hartenstein; by a brother, Robert F. Hartenstein and by a sister, Marilyn Jean Hartenstein. He was also predeceased by his wife, Jacqueline Graves Hartenstein and his daughter-in-law Sally Swan Hartenstein. A celebration of his life will be held at St. Mary's Episcopal Church in Stuart, FL at 2:00pm on Thursday, October 24 and in Akron, OH at a later date. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that a donation be made in his memory to The Salvation Army or to another preferred charity. An online guestbook is available at www.martin-funeral.com