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Published 3:16 pm Thursday, October 2, 2008
Reprinted from the Snoqualmie Valley Record, October 14, 1948
Hronek retires as manager of company store
Thirty-one-year period of service is concluded;
Kelly to be successor
An employee of the Snoqualmie Falls Lumber Company throughout the entire span of the its active
operations, W.H. Hronek retired last Friday as manager of
the store department. Thomas Kelly, who has been in
the company’s employ for a total of 17 years, will
succeed him.
Mr. Hronek came to Snoqualmie Falls from the Seattle Cedar Lumber Company, beginning work on
Aug. 27, 1917, before the company started actual
sawmill operations. He was still on duty Sept. 30 when the
merger of Snoqualmie Falls Lumber Company into Weyerhaeuser Timber Company became
effective. Walter C. Phelps is the only other employee of the
company with a record of service longer than 374
months, or more than 31 years, which will be credited to Hronek.
When the retiring store manager first came to Snoqualmie Falls he went to work in the office, which
at the time was located in two camp cars in the center
of the present plant.
In Office 12 Years
He served at the pay desk and worked as cashier
and general bookkeeper until 1928, when he was placed
in charge of the store department because of the illness
of the manager, William Sanders. His previous
merchandising knowledge had been gained from his father,
a Pocahontas, Ia., merchant, and from seven years of
store experience at Mountain Home, Ida.
W.W. Warren was general manager of the lumber company when Hronek first came to work here. He
has since served under F.R. Titcomb, Charles Ingram
and the present manager, E. H. O’Neil.
For 25 years Mr. Hronek has been active in Boy Scout work, serving in all departments. He was
recently awarded the Silver Beaver Scouting Award in
recognition of this service to boyhood. A board member
of Snoqualmie Valley Kiwanis Club, he served as
secretary of the first Snoqualmie Valley Sportsmen’s
Association and as chairman of the 4-L, which was
organized following World War I. He, is an active
church member and twice served on the board of the
Y.M.C.A. Community Hall.
Although he is moving from Snoqualmie Falls,
Mr. Hronek does not plan to leave the Valley. He and
Mrs. Hronek, a civic-minded and highly regarded citizen
in her own right, will make their future home in Meadowbrook.
Mr. Kelly, the new manager, is conducting a
closeout sale in the dry goods and clothing departments
in preparation for moving into a new and more
compact store, which is being constructed directly in front of
and to one side of the present building. The present line
of quality groceries, meats and vegetables will be
stocked at the new location, and gasoline sales will be
continued. The present building will be razed when the
new structure is completed.
