Lee Brockway Always at the Helm by Barbara Stodola
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THE TM 911 Franklin Street Weekly Newspaper Michigan City, IN 46360 Volume 23, Number 17 Thursday, May 3, 2007 Lee Brockway Always At The Helm by Barbara Stodola Young Lee at the beginning of his career. Lee J Brockway, school architect, has spent more time meeting with clients than sailing a boat. But he has always been at the helm. Brockway was named principal emeritus of the fi rm and then worked part-time, with extra hours devot- Imagine an assignment like this: tell me what ed to sailing, skiing, travel and golf. you have been doing for the past 40 or 50 years, Lee and Mary Brockway have lived in Long Beach where you have been, and who has been there with for 40 years, and acquaintances who know them pro- you. Then give me their names and phone numbers, fessionally, Lee as an architect and Mary as a school wherever they are, so I can call them up and ask librarian, might be surprised to fi nd they settled in what they have to say about you. Long Beach because of their shared enthusiasm for Imagine, if you can, the answers coming back from sports -- swimming and boating in particular. former clients and colleagues and sounding like this: “I was asked to open an offi ce near O’Hare Air- “one of the best people I’ve every known;” “a super- port,” Brockway recalls. “At the time we were living nice guy;” “at the top of the list;” “so trustworthy;” in South Bend. I talked to Mary about it, and she “the ultimate encourager;” “truly an inspiration for wanted to live near the beach. We had sailed a little, how to conduct oneself, personally and profession- in Mary’s canoe and in the Navy’s ketch rigged sail- ally.” “Lee saved the day.” “He is a genuinely nice ing whaleboats in the Philippines, and we were both man, a mentor to so many of us.” “Everybody has outdoor people. Our compromise decision was Long respect for Lee Brockway.” Beach.” The answers have come from Alaska to Arizona The Brockways moved their young family to the to Toronto and points in between -- all places Brock- Michigan City vicinity in 1966 at the behest of John way has worked planning schools with clients and Shaver, head of an international architectural fi rm colleagues, during his 45 years as a school archi- based in Salina, Kansas. John Shaver, contacted tect. Much of that time was spent as head of the last week by The Beacher, commented, “Lee was a Michigan City offi ce of Fanning-Howey Associates, unique person, a very convincing speaker. He had a and when he fi nally decided to retire, in 1998, it was way of landing contracts for architectural projects with the stipulation that he could “continue work- that built up the Michigan City offi ce of our fi rm.” ing.” Doug Wickstrom took over where he left off. Brockway Continued on Page 3 THE Page 2 May 3, 2007 THE 911 Franklin Street • Michigan City, IN 46360 219/879-0088 • FAX 219/879-8070 In Case Of Emergency, Dial e-mail: News/Articles - [email protected] email: Classifieds - [email protected] http://www.thebeacher.com/ PRINTED WITH Published and Printed by TM Trademark of American Soybean Association THE BEACHER BUSINESS PRINTERS Delivered weekly, free of charge to Birch Tree Farms, Duneland Beach, Grand Beach, Hidden 911 Shores, Long Beach, Michiana Shores, Michiana MI and Shoreland Hills. The Beacher is also Subscription Rates delivered to public places in Michigan City, New Buffalo, LaPorte and Sheridan Beach. 1 year $28 6 months $16 3 months $10 1 month $5 The Brockway family now has extra hours for sailing, skiing, travel and golf Lee and Mary Brockway recently posed at North Twin Lake in Howe, Ind. -- a lake, he says with pride, that Mary swam across last summer. On a recent day of garage-cleaning, Lee and Mary Brockway took down the old wooden canoe that has been a prized pos- session since their early days in Howe, Ind. The Brockways skied together as a family; shown here A memorable trip to the ancient city of with their grandfather are Claire (left) and Rhodes is one of the vacations Lee has Lee H. Brockway. enjoyed during his retirement years. Famous cathedrals are often destinations on their travels; Tailgating, a favorite sport at Notre Dame U., attracts alumnus here the Brockways are shown at the Cathedral of Milan. Lee Brockway (right) and colleague Bob McKay, on a regular basis. THE May 3, 2007 Page 3 Brockway Continued from Page 1 Open ‘til 6 p.m. One of their fi rst local projects was Mullen School, Evenings which was designed by John Shaver and Jerry Hyn- dman, with Brockway as project manager. They also planned and designed a high school in Delphi, Ind., and another in Lowell, “the fi rst windowless school in the state of Indiana.” Brockway’s career in architecture developed at www.littlehousefashions.comElegant Apparel for the a pivotal time in the history of school design. The [email protected] Conscious Woman simple elementary schools (8 classrooms for grades Women’s Apparel 1 to 8) were being replaced by junior highs and then middle schools, with much discussion regard- ing which grades should be “in the middle.” Deci- sions back then were made primarily by the school SPRING SALE superintendent. Brockway’s expertise as a school facility planner evolved from the increasing need Buy 1, Get 1 to have input from parents, teachers, community members and even students, in the planning of 1/2 Price successful school buildings. Demographic studies (of equal or lesser value) were conducted, and the concept of master planning was born. Simple schools became more serviceable Mycra Pac buildings, with the addition of gymnasiums, librar- ies, cafeterias, auditoriums and meeting rooms for Spring Coat use by the community. Keep dry in this In 1976, Brockway joined the fi rm of Fanning- fetching coat with a Howey Associates, based in Celina, Ohio. In the matching reversible words of co-founder Ron Fanning, “It was one of bag as an easy the best mergers in the history of ‘architecturedom.’ carryall. Lee has a driving passion for school design and for • In Irish Cream the planning process that makes better schools for Gingham, reversible kids. He is also an exceptionally good marketing to Solid Cream. person.” • Hood can either be Brockway opened Fanning-Howey’s Michigan worn scrunched City offi ce, and attracted an Indiana clientele includ- around neck or as a hood. ing school systems in LaPorte, Elkhart, Hammond • Gathered cuffs with and Chesterton. Under his leadership, almost a bil- single button. lion dollars in contracts were awarded to the fi rm. • Waterproof nylon. Fanning-Howey became one of the country’s largest • Double button designers of elementary and secondary schools. closure with on- “Lee could sell refrigerators to the Eskimos,” seam pockets. commented his fi rst employee, Max Hartzler. And • Rain and Stain in fact, years later, he did. Repellent, Brockway Continued on Page 4 Washable. Petite 48" Long Small/Medium 50" Long Medium/Large 53" Long The Tent Is Up! 50% plus another 30% off! 409409 Alexander Alexander Street Street, LaPorte,LaPorte, IN IN 326-8602326-8602 On Hwy 35 - 5 Blocks South of Lincolnway TurnTurn Rightright on AlexanderAlexander Fanning-Howey Associates have designed six schools in Alaska, and Monday-FridayMonday - Friday 10 am 9:30 to 6 topm 7 Saturday Saturday 9:30 9:30 am to to 5 5 pm occasionally Brockway (left) took time off to appreciate the scenery. THE Page 4 May 3, 2007 Brockway Continued from Page 3 tion of the Old Library Art Center, in Michigan City, As the fi rm expanded across the continent, and and the John Lloyd Wright-designed Long Beach Brockway made contacts at national conferences, Town Hall. He also served on the Long Beach Board Fanning-Howey had the opportunity to design of Zoning Appeals. schools in Alaska, one of which is at Gambell, on St. The Brockways’ summer vaca- Lawrence Island in the Bering Sea. “We got in there tions have sometimes consisted by plane,” Brockway recalls, “and if the weather was of sailing a 36-foot sailboat, char- favorable we could fl y out. There were no hotels, so tered from a port at Traverse we slept on the fl oor in the old school building.” City. The boats could sleep six, Sam Towarak, a retired school offi cial from St. and “usually one or another of Lawrence Island and a Siberian Yupik Eskimo, says the children showed up,” turning how readily Brockway adapted to Alaskan culture. it into a family vacation. Their “It didn’t take him long,” Towarak said, “to become son Bill and his wife, Grace, live well-known in the State of Alaska.” Brockway rel- on a sailboat at a lake in Dallas, ished the differences in Alaskan culture as well as where Bill teaches sailing. Old- the similarities to the midwestern way of life. “At est son Mike is a webmaster in the Yupik Eskimo school,” he said, “there were only Michigan City. Anne, the only 150 students -- but they wanted gym seating for daughter, lives in Rochester, 500, so the whole town could go to the basketball N.Y., with her husband Bob Mc- games.” It was not unlike Indiana, where basket- Donough and children, and when ball was king. the Brockways visit, they all go Brockway had played basketball in high school, snowboarding and skiing. Young- and in later years coached a youth team at his est son David is now in Colorado church, Trinity Episcopal Church in Michigan City.