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09-25-2007, 09:31 PM
By Erik Lacitis
Seattle Times staff reporter
For half a century — for thousands of kids who included Bill Gates, the Nordstroms and the McCaws — the Fiorini name meant wintertime ski-school trips to Snoqualmie Summit, Crystal Mountain and Stevens Pass.
And later it meant shopping for skis and snowboards at the landmark Fiorini Sports family store in University Village.
Mr. Sebastian "Buzz" Fiorini, the man who started it all in 1947 with his wife, Julie, died Friday at age 91 at a West Seattle nursing home of respiratory problems, his daughter said.
His death marked the end of an era in the Fiorini family and in Seattle.
Julie Fiorini, who Mr. Fiorini had divorced in 1987 but who remained his friend, died last October.
The University Village store closed in April. The store had opened in 1962 and had become the shopping center's oldest tenant.
The ski school still operates, now managed by Georgianne Fiorini, of Vashon, the Fiorinis' daughter.
"I'm always surprised at how many people tell me they were in school when they took ski lessons, and now it's their kids doing the same thing," she said. "It's quite a legacy."
These days, the Fiorini Ski School teaches some 800 students annually.
But in the late 1960s and early 1970s, Fiorini said, her parents used 22 buses to haul some 3,000 students annually for lessons. The school was believed to be the largest private ski school in the nation.
An Oct. 25, 1967, story in Skiing Magazine about the school told how Mr. Fiorini was known for attracting the better instructors because he paid higher wages than other schools.
Mr. Fiorini also was proud that his students didn't suffer many injuries on the slopes. He told how, in 1963, his school offered 12,423 lessons without "a single fracture."
Mr. Fiorini also was a renowned hunting and fishing guide, with clients such as celebrities John Wayne and Bing Crosby. In 1959 he took Crosby fishing for two weeks in British Columbia on a 137-foot yacht, catching 42 salmon.
According to "Flying Over Rainbows," a book in which Mr. Fiorini recounted his life to author Dwayne Parsons, Mr. Fiorini set world records with such feats as catching a 58-pound king salmon on an 8-pound line, and a 53 ½-pound king salmon on a 6-pound line.
In a 1956 Seattle Times story, Mr. Fiorini summarized his life's philosophy by paraphrasing a Chinese proverb:
"Now is the time you own; the past is a golden link. Go fishing, my brother, it is later than you think!"
Mr. Fiorini was born Nov. 26, 1915, in Mildred, Pa.
His real first name was Sebastian, but as a child, he was nicknamed "Busty" because he "was continually breaking things," his daughter said. Later, she said, "Busty" turned into "Buzz."
Mr. Fiorini lost much of his hearing at age 3, during the influenza pandemic of 1918. His daughter never saw him without a hearing aid.
He and his wife came to Seattle in 1942. Julie worked at a bank; Mr. Fiorini worked as a machinist at the shipyards in Bremerton.
By 1946 the couple had saved enough money so Mr. Fiorini could spend 14 months hunting, fishing, exploring and skiing.
"I decided to turn professional," Mr. Fiorini later said. "I decided to get paid for the things I love to do best."
The Fiorinis started the ski school in 1947. Mr. Fiorini was working at a sports shop and some parents asked him to teach skiing to their children. That year, he took a station wagon loaded with half-a-dozen kids up to the mountains.
"It snowballed from there," his daughter said.
He is survived by Georgianne Fiorini; her brother Jeff Fiorini and his wife, Sally, and their daughter Risa. At Mr. Fiorini's request, there will be no services, Georgianne Fiorini said.
Donations on Mr. Fiorini's behalf can be sent to the Outdoors for All Foundation (formerly the Ski for All Foundation), 2 Nickerson St., Suite 101, Seattle, 98109. It is a nonprofit that provides outdoor experiences to the disabled.
In keeping with Mr. Fiorini's love for nature, his daughter said, his ashes will be scattered in the outdoors.
from: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003903159_webfiorini25m.html
Seattle Times staff reporter
For half a century — for thousands of kids who included Bill Gates, the Nordstroms and the McCaws — the Fiorini name meant wintertime ski-school trips to Snoqualmie Summit, Crystal Mountain and Stevens Pass.
And later it meant shopping for skis and snowboards at the landmark Fiorini Sports family store in University Village.
Mr. Sebastian "Buzz" Fiorini, the man who started it all in 1947 with his wife, Julie, died Friday at age 91 at a West Seattle nursing home of respiratory problems, his daughter said.
His death marked the end of an era in the Fiorini family and in Seattle.
Julie Fiorini, who Mr. Fiorini had divorced in 1987 but who remained his friend, died last October.
The University Village store closed in April. The store had opened in 1962 and had become the shopping center's oldest tenant.
The ski school still operates, now managed by Georgianne Fiorini, of Vashon, the Fiorinis' daughter.
"I'm always surprised at how many people tell me they were in school when they took ski lessons, and now it's their kids doing the same thing," she said. "It's quite a legacy."
These days, the Fiorini Ski School teaches some 800 students annually.
But in the late 1960s and early 1970s, Fiorini said, her parents used 22 buses to haul some 3,000 students annually for lessons. The school was believed to be the largest private ski school in the nation.
An Oct. 25, 1967, story in Skiing Magazine about the school told how Mr. Fiorini was known for attracting the better instructors because he paid higher wages than other schools.
Mr. Fiorini also was proud that his students didn't suffer many injuries on the slopes. He told how, in 1963, his school offered 12,423 lessons without "a single fracture."
Mr. Fiorini also was a renowned hunting and fishing guide, with clients such as celebrities John Wayne and Bing Crosby. In 1959 he took Crosby fishing for two weeks in British Columbia on a 137-foot yacht, catching 42 salmon.
According to "Flying Over Rainbows," a book in which Mr. Fiorini recounted his life to author Dwayne Parsons, Mr. Fiorini set world records with such feats as catching a 58-pound king salmon on an 8-pound line, and a 53 ½-pound king salmon on a 6-pound line.
In a 1956 Seattle Times story, Mr. Fiorini summarized his life's philosophy by paraphrasing a Chinese proverb:
"Now is the time you own; the past is a golden link. Go fishing, my brother, it is later than you think!"
Mr. Fiorini was born Nov. 26, 1915, in Mildred, Pa.
His real first name was Sebastian, but as a child, he was nicknamed "Busty" because he "was continually breaking things," his daughter said. Later, she said, "Busty" turned into "Buzz."
Mr. Fiorini lost much of his hearing at age 3, during the influenza pandemic of 1918. His daughter never saw him without a hearing aid.
He and his wife came to Seattle in 1942. Julie worked at a bank; Mr. Fiorini worked as a machinist at the shipyards in Bremerton.
By 1946 the couple had saved enough money so Mr. Fiorini could spend 14 months hunting, fishing, exploring and skiing.
"I decided to turn professional," Mr. Fiorini later said. "I decided to get paid for the things I love to do best."
The Fiorinis started the ski school in 1947. Mr. Fiorini was working at a sports shop and some parents asked him to teach skiing to their children. That year, he took a station wagon loaded with half-a-dozen kids up to the mountains.
"It snowballed from there," his daughter said.
He is survived by Georgianne Fiorini; her brother Jeff Fiorini and his wife, Sally, and their daughter Risa. At Mr. Fiorini's request, there will be no services, Georgianne Fiorini said.
Donations on Mr. Fiorini's behalf can be sent to the Outdoors for All Foundation (formerly the Ski for All Foundation), 2 Nickerson St., Suite 101, Seattle, 98109. It is a nonprofit that provides outdoor experiences to the disabled.
In keeping with Mr. Fiorini's love for nature, his daughter said, his ashes will be scattered in the outdoors.
from: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003903159_webfiorini25m.html