Obituaries

Sept. 1, 2008
Andrea Herbert, former chief editor of Electrical Wholesaling, passed away on July 28. She is survived by her three sons, Adam, Matthew and Daniel. Her

Andrea Herbert, former chief editor of Electrical Wholesaling, passed away on July 28. She is survived by her three sons, Adam, Matthew and Daniel. Her husband, Joseph Spiers, died in 1999. Andrea won the Jesse H. Neal Award four times for her work on Electrical Wholesaling's Market Planning Guide and was respected throughout the electrical industry for her expertise in strategic market planning. She worked for Electrical Wholesaling for more than 25 years and was a graduate of Douglas College in New Jersey.

John Maddox, former president of Maddox Sales, died July 26 of complications of a stroke that he suffered in November 2007. He was 82 years old. Maddox was raised in the Oakland area and graduated from the University of California at Berkeley. He started his career as a salesperson in the electrical business and then built his own company. Maddox Sales was a manufacturers' representative for electrical products, with offices in Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Albuquerque. Maddox was a past president of the National Electrical Manufacturers Representatives Association (NEMRA) in 1974, and was the recipient of Electrical Wholesaling's GEM Award in 1991. Maddox is survived by his long-term partner, Kathy Sastavickas, his son, Josh, and his wife, Kathi of Berkeley, Calif.; his niece, Nancy Lind and her son, Peter.

Mitch Pliner, vice president and manager of the Houston, Texas, operations of Turtle & Hughes Inc., passed away on Aug. 8. Pliner spent his career with the company, joining shortly after his graduation from Carnegie Mellon University in 1975. When Turtle & Hughes opened its Houston branch in the late 1970s, he was instrumental in the company's strategy to maintain and expand its customer base in the petrochemical industry. In 1994, he became sales vice president of the location, and two years later was promoted to manager. Pliner was an active participant in the Houston Electrical League, several electrical engineering societies, and represented the company at NAED events.

John J. Pavell, former owner of Pavell Electrical Supply, passed away peacefully July 29 at age 93. He was born June 28, 1915, in Billerica, Mass. Pavell served in World War II in the Navy's Pacific Fleet as an electrician's mate. After being discharged in 1945, he moved to Las Vegas. While there, he worked at the Nevada Test Site and for several electrical companies. He started Pavell Electrical Supply in 1952. In 1973, he sold the company and retired. Pavell is survived by his daughter, Nancy. The family requests that in place of flowers, contributions be made to Alpine Home Health, 1316 Grand Ave., Glenwood Springs, Colo. 81601.

Charles “Red” Duing, former electrical sales manager for the Lancaster, Pa., branch of Raub Supply Co., passed away on Aug. 20 at age 84. Duing had worked at Raub Supply for 40 years and retired in 1996 as the electrical sales manager for the Lancaster branch. Prior to joining Raub Supply, he was in the U.S. Army Air Corps, serving in North Africa and Italy during World War II. Red is survived by his sister, Mary D. Husson of Lancaster, Pa. Memorial gifts may be made in Red's memory to Hospice of Lancaster, 685 Good Drive, Box 4125, Lancaster, Pa. 17604.