Joseph A. Gross

1959 - 2020

(News story) Joseph A. Gross, vice president and a third-generation owner of a 110-year-old electrical supply company, who formed lasting bonds with customers and employees, died Wednesday in his West Toledo home. He was 60.

He died in his sleep, and the cause was unknown, said his sister Laurie Gross, president and co-owner of Gross Electric Inc.

"I lost a great business partner, and the Toledo business community lost a great advocate," his sister said.

Mr. Gross in 1997 became vice president of the company, founded in 1910 by his grandfather George "Joe" Gross. His father, Richard Gross, ran the business from 1959 into the early 1990s, changing the focus from retail appliance sales to lighting and to products for wholesale customers.

Gross Electrical has locations on North Reynolds Road in Toledo, in Northwood, and in Ann Arbor.

About four years ago, Mr. Gross led the way as the company formed G&G Supply, which offers safety gear and equipment for industry, institutional users, and contractors.

"He got it started and worked very hard to make it successful," his sister said.

With Gross Electric, he ran the electrical supply division, "which deals with electrical contractors and end users," his sister said. "He was great with people. He saw the value in relationships with people, and he was great at creating relationships with customers and other people in the community.

"We have a lot of long-term employees, and he cared a lot about our people," she said.

For Jim Deaton, retired chief executive of Laibe Electric, Mr. Gross was one of his best friends.

"He was an excellent business man and had a lot of charisma. He inherited that from his father," Mr. Deaton said. "We did a lot of business with him, but it was like being with a friend, rather than a business person."

They had breakfast frequently, and Mr. Gross mainly talked about his family.

"That was the first and foremost thing on his mind," Mr. Deaton said. "He loved to tell me about his kids and their accomplishments. That was more important than business or anything else."

For Mr. Gross, many customers became like family, his wife, Cary Gross, said.

At the company, Mr. Gross focused on financials as well, making sure others understood that aspect of the business. Before he offered proposals, he gathered facts. He digested information

"He was a thinker. He was not a shoot-from-the-hip guy," his sister said. "His passion for the success of the business made me a better businessperson."

He was born Aug. 19, 1959, to Marion and Richard Gross. He was a 1977 graduate of Ottawa Hills High School and attended Ohio State University.

He worked for an electrical supply company in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. He started his full-time Gross Electric career in 1982 as manager of the company's store in Lima, Ohio.

Starting in the late 1990s, he oversaw the company's donation of thousands of smoke detectors to a city of Toledo program to offer them to people in need. He also volunteered for Mobile Meals and walked in the annual Holiday Parade downtown in the Distinguished Clown Corps.

"He touched a lot of people in a lot of different ways," his wife said. "He was sincere, and you knew if you were in a conversation with him, he was totally focused."

Mr. Gross liked to golf at Sylvania Country Club and to travel. Costa Rica, St. Thomas, and the British Virgin Islands were favorite spots. He'd been white water rafting and skydiving. He tried to learn kiteboarding last year.

He had wide-ranging tastes in music.

"He was in charge of music at the house, and we always had music going at the house," his wife said. "Music was integral to Joe's life."

Surviving are his wife, the former Cary Winkelman, whom he married Sept. 28, 1991; sons Andrew and Jason Gross; daughter, Emily Gross, and sisters Laurie Gross, Polly Collins, and Marcia Miller.

The family will receive guests from 4-8 p.m. Wednesday at home. A ceremony of life will be held from noon-4 p.m. Thursday at Sylvania Country Club. A sharing of memories at 12:30 p.m. Thursday will be live streamed via walkerfuneralhomes.com.

The family suggests tributes to Mobile Meals; MemoryLane Care Services, or Sight Center of Northwest Ohio.

This is a news story by Mark Zaborney. Contact him at mzaborney@theblade.com or 419-724-6182.