Harry Fornes (Skip) Burkhardt's Obituary
Harry Fornes (Skip) Burkhardt, 88 of Westlake passed away peacefully on May 3, 2020 surrounded by family.
Beloved husband of 65 years to Janet (Hottell); cherished father of Barb (Marty) Hilovsky, Debbie (Wess) Farmer, Mary K. Burkhardt (Mike Furlong) and H. Brian (Amy) Burkhardt; dear grandfather of Katie Hilovsky, Jamie (Carey) Hilovsky; Jana, Camille, and Brianne Burkhardt; great grandfather of Max, Ollie and Emmy Hilovsky; dearest son of the late Mary R. and Harry A. Burkhardt; devoted brother of Barb (the late Ed) O’Brien, Bob (the late Ginny) Burkhardt, the late Sally Foecking, Susan (the late John) Murphy and Bill (Becky) Burkhardt; and loving uncle to many.
Skip was born in Cleveland, lived in Columbus and Willoughby, then moved to Rocky River where he attended St. Ignatius High School. While in Rocky River, he met the love of his life Janet. She was a Freshman at Rocky River High School and he was a Junior at Saint Ignatius. They met at a dance following one of the Rocky River Football games and became high school sweethearts. He graduated from St. Ignatius in 1949, attended John Carroll University, and received a BS degree in Business in 1954.
Janet and Skip were married January of 1955 then headed overseas where Skip honorably served his country while posted in Aschaffenburg, Germany as a 1st Lieutenant in the U.S. Army. Following his discharge, Skip returned to the States and moved his family to Saginaw, MI. He worked for the Newburgh & Southshore Railroad in Michigan and in Ohio. Eventually moving back to Cleveland and settling in Fairview Park where he spent the next 35 years raising his family.
In 1963 Skip joined his brother, Bob Burkhardt and Jim Fitzgibbons, the founders of Lakeshore Equipment & Supply (LESCO), as Vice-President. LESCO became a nationally known supplier for the golf course and turf grass industries. Despite the demands of an innovative and constantly growing company that in 1987 was named to the Forbes Best Small Companies in America, Skip always managed to maintain a healthy work-life balance. Family always came first, and he never let work interfere with being a great husband and father. He rarely missed a concert, play, art show, skating event, coaching opportunity or attending sporting competitions or any activity in which his children and grandchildren participated. He personally enjoyed many sporting activities, even showing his good humor as he cheerfully tolerated his son-in-law and grandson’s love for Ohio State.
Shortly after LESCO went public on NASDAQ in 1984, Skip retired to spend more time with Janet and his children. His and Janet’s love of travel blossomed, and they embarked on a number of trips and cruises to exotic locations. Many of these trips were shared with their children, their spouses, and grandchildren, providing them with wonderful and never to be forgotten experiences. Between these trips, Skip loved to spend time golfing, playing tennis, swimming, playing bridge, square dancing, ballroom dancing, volunteering at the local food bank in Fairview Park and wintering in Venice, FL. He was a long-time member of the Northern Ohio Golf Course Superintendent Association (NOGCSA) and the Fairview Park Kiwanis Club. As season ticket holders of Blossom, Severance Hall, Playhouse Square, and Great Lakes Theater, they supported their love of theater and the Cleveland Orchestra.
Skip applied his strong business experience to another enterprise when he joined the board of directors of EnviroScience, Inc. in Stow, Ohio, in the early 1990s and eventually served as Chairman for more than 20 years. For the second time, Skip successfully guided a young and growing company to maturity. As with LESCO, Skip helped instill a ‘family first’ ethos at EnviroScience, and the employees there fondly recall his participation at board meetings and many company events.
Skip was a hard working, passionate figure of strength who never waned in his support of his family. He lived well; succumbing to ill health only toward the very end. He loved to laugh and always appreciated a good joke. He taught those around him how to grow old with dignity, patience, humor and kindness and those traits will live on in each person he touched.
At the request of the family, memorials may be made to the Hospice at Western Reserve, 17876 St. Clair Ave, Cleveland, OH 44110-2602:
https://donate.hospicewr.org/give/209048/#!/donation/checkout.
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