Craft Talks: Richard Schulhof and Adam Throop

We enjoyed two member craft talks today, both very interesting.  The first was from Richard Schulhof, who happens to be the CEO of the Los Angeles County Arboretum.  He is a product of the San Diego area, where he grew up working on his grandfathers’ land in Rancho Santé Fe growing plants and learning horticulture (from the ground up).  Richard has always remembered what his grandfather taught him, “skillful, sustained hard work produces results”.  After high school in Encinitas, Richard attended U.C. Berkley and U.C. Davis and received his undergraduate degree in landscape architecture.  He received masters degrees from the University of Delaware where they offered the Longwood Graduate Program in public horticulture as well as forestry from Harvard.  Richard also spent a couple of years doing research in Appalachia studying the effects insects have on certain trees.  He has served as executive director of Descanso Gardens and joined the Arnold Arboretum as its Deputy Director in 2002.  When the L.A. County Arboretum searched for a new C.E.O., Richard Schulhof was the perfect fit.  He realized from his days at Descanso Gardens that most funds from the government had dried up and like Descanso (92% of funding comes from private business and contributions); he is finding ways to meet his budget needs.  Thank you Richard and best wishes for success at the L.A. County Arboretum.

Adam Throop delivered our next craft talk and to all of us he immediately became a “person of interest”.  If the name Throop sounds familiar, it should.  His family has been involved with the George L. Throop Company since 1921.  The Pasadena based company sells building materials and specializes in concrete that sets up quickly and can be trailored to the job site.  Adam was born in Omaha, Nebraska during a time when his father was playing pro baseball for the Houston Astros as a pitcher.  By late 1979, his family moved back to Pasadena and Adam showed off his athletic abilities by playing soccer.  He received an athletic scholarship to Westmont College in Santa Barbara and turned semi-pro after his junior year.  Adam truly wanted a pro soccer career and after graduating, he was drafted in to the MLS Major League Soccer team named Tampa Bay Mutiny.  After a relatively short soccer career, he returned to Pasadena to join the family business.  He joined Indy Mac Bank in 2004 and now works at Bank of America.  We welcome Adam and Richard to the Arcadia Rotary Club and we’re sure you will soon discover this to be “The greatest Rotary Club in the World”.

Pat Dolphin