Robert L. Moore Jr., a Sacramento civic leader and businessman who led his family's Orchard Supply Co., has died at age 95.
He died Oct. 29 of complications from pneumonia and Alzheimer's disease, said daughter Carolyn Carr.
Mr. Moore began working at Orchard Supply Co. at age 5, sweeping floors at the agricultural and garden supply business founded in 1919 by his father, Robert Sr. He rose to president and ran the company with his brothers, Richard and David. Generations of Sacramento residents shopped at the retail institution, which had a reputation for friendly staff and unbeatable service.
Mr. Moore's emphasis on service kept the family business competitive with larger chains. After handing the operation over to his sons, he went to the store every day to greet customers until Orchard Supply Co. closed in 2001 after 82 years of business.
"The store was his whole life," said his son, Robert III. "He lived it, and he loved it."
Mr. Moore also gave to the community as a volunteer. He was a past chairman of the American Red Cross in Sacramento and once helped evacuate a flooded trailer park at Northgate Boulevard and Highway 160. He served on the United Crusade board and was active in Rotary Club.
As KVIE president, he was instrumental in building the station's transmission tower in Walnut Grove. After World War II, he helped arrange the merger of International Active Clubs and 20-30 Clubs.
Helping others was a religious and civic obligation for Mr. Moore, his daughter said. "My father was a very staunch Presbyterian, a very staunch Republican and a very staunch American," Carr said. "He believed public service was something you did because you were called to do it."
Born in 1914 in Lodi, Robert Lorenz Moore Jr. moved with his family to Sacramento when his father opened the store downtown. He graduated from Sacramento High School but left his entomology studies at UC Davis to help support his three sisters and two brothers during the Great Depression.
He learned the family business in the field, spraying fertilizers and pesticides in orchards and vineyards. He was exempted from military service to help with food production during World War II.
He married Irene Hillman in 1940. The couple reared four children, settled in Land Park and built a large swimming pool that neighborhood families were invited to use freely. His wife died in 2008.
Mr. Moore was a member for 85 years and an elder at Westminster Presbyterian Church. He helped build Presbyterian Pines, a church camp in the Sierra Nevada.
He enjoyed fishing and was a student of California history and geology. A descendant of gold miners, he enjoyed hiking and hunting for gold in Northern California rivers.
"He spent many of his best hours panning for gold," his daughter said. "He loved nothing more than being outdoors finding gold flakes in a pan."
Call The Bee's Robert D. Dávila, (916) 321-1077.
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