Contact:
Pete Mazzaccaro
Corporate Communications
[email protected]
215-784-4427
Willow Grove, PA – Carl Hj. Asplundh Jr., past Chairman of Board of Directors of Asplundh Tree Expert, LLC, and father of its current CEO, Matt Asplundh, passed away at home on Friday, March 7. He was 89.
Carl was born on June 26, 1935. He was the third son of Asplundh co-founder Carl Hj. Asplundh Sr. and Emilie Asplundh. He graduated from the Academy of the New Church and Bryn Athyn Junior College and studied forestry at the University of Massachusetts and North Carolina State University. He first went to work for Asplundh in 1953 at the age of 18, repairing and servicing chippers at the Philmont manufacturing plant. In 1957 he left to serve in the U.S. Army and returned to the company in 1959 after he was discharged honorably as a Specialist 3rd Class.
When he returned from the service, Carl became a general foreperson, overseeing tree crews in New Jersey. He soon transferred to the Equipment Department and in 1964 was elected vice president with responsibility for that department. While in that role, he took on additional responsibilities including oversight of operations in Alabama, Florida, New England, New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. In the 60s, he also took over responsibility for Asplundh Brush Control and oversaw the establishment of Asplundh GMC in 1968. He was elected executive vice president in 1987 and in 1997 became Chairman of Asplundh’s Board of Directors. He retired in 2000 after 47 years with the company.
Outside of the company, Carl took great enjoyment in supporting local community organizations, giving time and financial support to numerous institutions in the Greater Philadelphia region, including Doylestown Hospital, New Hope-Solebury School District, Abington Hospital and The Heritage Conservancy in Bucks County among others. He was also a life-long car enthusiast.
He is survived by his sister, Emily Jane Lemole; sons, Carl III, Keith, Matt, Jeffrey, Timothy, Corey, Kyle and Gary; and 12 grandchildren. He was predeceased by brothers Peter, Edward and Chris Sr.
Funeral Services will be held on March 29 at Bryn Athyn Cathedral, 900 Cathedral Rd, Bryn Athyn, PA 19009. Music begins at 3:30 p.m. and the service at 4 p.m. The reception will be private.
In lieu of flowers, donations in memory of Carl Hj Asplundh, Jr. may be made to Abington Health Foundation / Asplundh Cancer Pavilion, Post Office Box 3, Abington, PA 19001 or online at give.abingtonhealth.org/donate.
Asplundh Tree Expert, LLC is a family-owned and managed company headquartered just outside of Philadelphia in Willow Grove, PA. Its One Asplundh approach provides a single point of contact to an extensive range of vegetation management, utility infrastructure and engineering services to utilities, municipalities and other commercial and industrial customers. Asplundh employs approximately 36,000 throughout the U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Learn more at asplundh.com.