Jack Borkey, co-founder of PEPCO, Eastlake Village, OH, passed away on Sept. 11. EW’s editors received this note from his son, Joe, on his dad’s passing.
"It’s with heavy hearts that we share with all of you the passing of our co-founder and former CEO Jack Borkey, Sr. on Sept. 11. “Mr. B” as he was known to most of the PEPCO family, had a brief yet brave battle with pancreatic cancer and a blood clot that ultimately placed him into God’s hands.
"Mr. B. and Mrs. B. founded PEPCO back in 1968 and enjoyed early success with the help of many family and friends. Their passion and values drove the family-like culture here at PEPCO for many generations. Ultimately his legacy will live on and we can all be thankful for their early sacrifices that afforded us the opportunity to grow PEPCO into great company that it is.
"Mr. B. was your classic mischievous Irishman; he loved to weave tales of his life-long shenanigans and adventures over a drink. He was always quick with a joke and would argue both sides of an argument at the same time while visiting his favorite local stops. He loved trivia (mostly sports) and was a passionate Cleveland Indians Fan till the end. His charmed life allowed him an extraordinary amount of success throughout his personal and business careers and he was so proud of his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. He was a great role model, mentor and friend to many. His unique character drew the admiration of all and was simply a guy you wanted to hang with.
"Part of his final moments were spent remembering the PEPCO family over the years. When asked if he would like to share a message with everyone, he simply said, “How can you summarize 54 years in a few sentences? Tell everyone I am thankful for living such a blessed life.”
Electrical Wholesaling’s editors were grateful that had the privilege to get to know Jack and to visit with him during our visits to Cleveland over the years. He represented the best of what the electrical wholesaling industry has to offer – a self-made entrepreneur who was devoted to his family, his company, customers and community.
We loved talking Cleveland Indians baseball with Jack, a die-hard fan who in 2003 won MVP honors at the Indians Fantasy Camp that year and got the chance there to bat against his boyhood idol, Cleveland Indians' Hall-of-Famer Bob Feller.
According to his obituary at www.legacy.com and in Cleveland's The Plain Dealer, Jack was the beloved husband of Janice (nee Consolo); dearest father of Jack (Judy), Jeffrey (Kelly), Joseph and Jerrod (Wendi); devoted grandfather of Jenna (Trevor), Jessica (Tommy), Johnny, Jeff (Emma), Nick, Brendon (Alex), Joseph Jr, Christian, Ryan, Jerrod Jr (Paige), Ian, Samuel and Sarah; and great grandfather of Gianna, Gavin, Ben, Cole and Austin; dear brother of Rose (Horvath), Helen, Ruthie (Bak) Charlotte (Smith), Bob, Ron (all deceased) and Fred.
The family will receive friends a the DiCicco & Sons Funeral Home in Mayfield Heights, OH from 4 pm to 7 pm on Thursday, Sept. 15. A mass of Christian burial will be held 10 am Friday Sept.16 at Holy Redeemer Church in Cleveland.