I feel compelled to point out that "tarp"
is an anagram for "trap."
Coincidence?
Posted on 12/21/2007 9:04:30 PM PST by hercuroc
Ken Hendricks, a high school dropout who made himself into a billionaire, died early Friday after falling through a hole in a floor on an addition being built at his Rock County home.
Hendricks, the 66-year-old owner of ABC Supply Co. Inc. in Beloit, suffered massive head injuries and died in surgery at a hospital in Rockford, Ill.
Rock County Sheriff's Department Commander Troy Knudson said Hendricks and his wife, Diane, were having construction done at their home near Afton, between Beloit and Janesville. The couple had returned home about 10 p.m. Thursday night and Ken Hendricks walked out to inspect the progress of the construction work.
"There were blue tarps that were covering open areas that were nailed in place by two by fours and it appears he fell through one of those tarps," Knudson said.
Hendricks fell more than 10 feet to the basement and struck his head, authorities said. No underlying medical condition figured in the accident, said Sue Fiduccia, Winnebago County (Ill.) coroner.
His death has saddened many in Beloit, where Hendricks has been the once-struggling city's key benefactor - bringing in companies, creating jobs, fostering the arts and restoring abandoned industrial buildings.
"It's almost a matter of what hasn't he done," said Ron Nief, public affairs director at Beloit College and a friend of Hendricks. "I think probably the most important thing he's done for Beloit is inspire."
Hendricks, who grew up in Janesville and left high school at 17, built ABC Supply into a nationwide distributor of roofing, siding, windows and other building products. The company has 390 locations, 6,000 employees and about $3 billion a year in sales.
Forbes magazine recently estimated Hendricks' net worth at $3.5 billion, making him the 91st-richest American.
Hendricks started his business career as a part-time roofer, spotting potential customers as he drove a utility repair truck during the day. By age 30 he had 500 roofers working for him and was handling jobs at military bases and large stores. He also invested in real estate and, in 1982 with his wife, Diane, started ABC Supply.
He owned controlling interest in 16 other companies, several of them firms that Hendricks either brought to Beloit or got started there.
Hendricks, who decades ago moved his business base to Beloit because he felt he couldn't get financial backing in his native Janesville, restored the abandoned, run-down Fairbanks-Morse complex and situated ABC's headquarters there. He bought the vacant buildings of the defunct Beloit Corp. and installed a variety of new businesses there, along with a museum featuring sculpture fashioned from old papermaking machinery patterns Hendricks found in storage.
"It's kind of unusual to have a champion of the stature of a Ken Hendricks," Beloit city manager Larry Arft said. "Communities do have their leading citizens who support philanthropy and the arts in those communities, but this was kind of an extraordinary relationship."
Surviving Hendricks are his wife and their seven children.
A tragic end to a life well-lived.
I think I read about this man in a recent Reader’s Digest. What a shame and a sad loss.
tragic loss.
What a shame. Prayers for his family.
I feel compelled to point out that "tarp"
is an anagram for "trap."
Coincidence?
Yikes. RIP.
Gravity wins every time.
Not floor — roof! What the hell was he doing on a roof at
10:00 PM. NO reason for the contractor to put up caution tape in an area where a normal person would not go.
He should have known better.
After a Christmas Party?
a good example of what can be achieved through hard work and perseverence...
God Bless him
>>>Not floor — roof! What the hell was he doing on a roof at
10:00 PM
Thereby ceiling his own fate.
Ken Hendricks, a roofing company billionaire, has died after falling through his roof.
The Rock County Sheriff’s Department said the 66-year-old was checking on construction on his roof Thursday at about 10 p.m. and fell through.
This is from a different website...
Guys like these run the economy and create jobs.
Democrats/liberals demonize and steal from these guys to give their hard earned money to parasites and beggars on welfare.
This guy is worth billions. How can a smart guy like this just die in a dumb accident like this? No investigation of foul play? Cops are idiots.
Guys like this guy run the economy and create jobs.
Democrats/liberals demonize and steal from these guys to give their hard earned money to parasites and beggars on welfare.
This guy is worth billions. How can a smart guy like this just die in a dumb accident like this? No investigation of foul play? Cops are idiots.
HENDRICKS, KEN
BELOIT, WI 53511
NATIONAL REPUBLICAN CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEE CONTRIBUTIONS (R) $300
primary 12/22/00
I assume this is the same man.
http://www.newsmeat.com/fec/bystate_detail.php?city=BELOIT&st=WI&last=Hendricks&first=Ken
Sounds like a hell of a guy, I’ve bought many an item from ABC. After hearing this, Im happy I bought from him. God rest his soul.
Luke 12
15Then [Jesus] said to them, "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions."
16And he told them this parable: "The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. 17He thought to himself, 'What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.'
18"Then he said, 'This is what I'll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 19And I'll say to myself, "You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry." '
20"But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?'
21"This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God."
We must hope Mr. Hendricks did not personally fulfill this Scripture.
Are you calling the recently deceased greedy ?
Or do you just have something against the fruits of hard work intelligence and frugality ?
Honestly the timing and tone of this is beyond the pale of decency.
At least let the body grow cold first.
You’ve picked a fight with me, but I’ll not join in. Instead, please accept my earnest good wishes for a happy holiday season.
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