SEDA Safety Scene Online
May 2002
SEDA BOARD MEMBER BOB HURLEY DIES
SEDA Board Member and Fendall president Bob Hurley passed away on Wednesday, May 1 after a brief illness. Bob was serving his second term as the affiliate member representative to the SEDA Board. Mike Stamn, SEDA president, summed up the feelings of all of us who knew and worked with Bob, saying "With the passing of Bob Hurley, the safety industry has lost a very valuable friend. Bob certainly made his mark as an engineer and manufacturer of quality safety products. In addition, Bob was a great friend to safety distributors.SEDA was fortunate to have Bob as a board member, serving as a liaison from ISEA. Bob did a wonderful job representing manufacturers, and also was an active participant in helping distributors advance the cause of workplace safety. He was a very active participant on our education committee and was very involved in helping ensure that QSSP was a success for our industry and associations.
Bob was a well-rounded person, committed to his family and church. He was also a true gentleman and friend. His integrity, tact and diplomacy were noteworthy and appreciated. We will all miss Bob and his contributions to our industry. How fortunate we are to have known him!"
The following is Bob's obituary. The family has asked that in lieu of flowers, contributions in Mr. Hurley's memory be made to either Christo Rey Center for the Working Child, Taena, Peru, in care of Jesuit International Missions, 2059 N. Sedgwick, Chicago, IL 60614; or Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI 53202.
Robert B. Hurley
August 7, 1936 — May 1, 2002Chicago, IL — May 2, 2002 — Robert B. Hurley, father of five, engineer, and international authority on industrial safety, died Wednesday, May 1, 2002 in Chicago. He was 65 years old.
A resident of Inverness, IL for the past 16 years, Mr. Hurley died at Kindred Rehabilitation Center of anaplastic thyroid cancer.
Mr. Hurley was widely regarded as one of the world's most innovative authorities on the design and manufacture of industrial safety devices. During more than 20 years in the industry, he introduced several groundbreaking safety products and services into the international marketplace, and holds several patents on his work.
From 1984, until his death, Mr. Hurley was president of Fendall, an Arlington Heights, IL, maker of industrial safety products. Concurrently, from 1987 to 2001, he was chief executive officer of Lenscraft, Inc., a Platteville, Wisconsin manufacturer of precision glass lenses.
Mr. Hurley was a vigorous participant in organizations devoted to occupational hazard prevention and the prevention of blindness. From 1997 until his death, he was a director of Prevent Blindness America, a non-profit organization, serving as president and chief executive officer. He was also a director and trustee of industry trade organizations, including the Safety Equipment Distributors Association, and the Industrial Safety Equipment Association. Mr. Hurley also spoke and wrote extensively on industrial safety.
Born in Waterloo, Iowa on August 7, 1936, Mr. Hurley attended Our Lady of Victory Academy, graduating in 1954 at the top of his class. He earned an ROTC college scholarship to Marquette University, School of Engineering, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, graduating magna cum laude in 1958. Subsequently, Mr. Hurley served in the U.S. Marine Corps in both active and reserve status, reaching the rank of major. Over time, Mr. Hurley credited the bulk of his personal and professional accomplishments to his education at Marquette and his training in the Marine Corps.
Mr. Hurley, whose wife, Marirob Downes Hurley, died in September 2000, is survived by three sons and two daughters: Robert, 36, of San Francisco; Mary Kathleen, 26, of Seattle; Bridget, 32, of Denver; Kevin, 28, of New York City; and Patrick, 22, a student at his father's alma mater, Marquette University. He is also survived by five brothers and three sisters.