Farewell to a Friend — Past President Ralph D. Little

Past President and Man-of-the-Year Ralph D. Little

Ralph D. Little, longtime resident of Geneva Illinois, passed away on March 30, 2022 the cusp of his 98th birthday. With his infectious sense of humor and unending interest in connecting with others, he was social right up to the end. Ralph spent his childhood in Des Moines, Iowa. He was the third child of Mary E. and A.D. Little, and his siblings included Jeanne, Howard, Carolyn, Don, and Harriet. He was an army veteran who served in Europe during World War II, and a graduate of University of Iowa.

Ralph met his wife, and love of his life, Lucile, in college. They were married in 1950 and spent almost 68 years together, until her passing in 2018. They started their family in Iowa, welcoming their first three daughters Suzanne, Jean and Jan, and later their fourth daughter, Betsy, born in St. Charles, Illinois.

In 1958 Ralph, with Lucile’s blessing, chose to follow a life-long passion: landscape design. They moved to Illinois to work for Marlie Moulton, founder of Thornapple Nurseries, in St. Charles, Illinois. They eventually purchased the nursery business and continued to grow it until Ralph’s retirement in 1990.

A believer in the equality and dignity of all people, and an ardent pacifist after the horrors he witnessed in WWII, Ralph was an outspoken supporter of the civil rights and other justice movements. He was an advocate for community engagement, serving on the Geneva School Board, Geneva Parks and Recreation Board, and Tri-City Family Services Board. An active member of the Geneva Rotary Club, he was also a founding member of the Illinois Landscape Contractors Association (ILCA). As a supporter of the Chicago World Flower and Garden Show, he was recognized with gold and silver awards in 1974, 1975 and 1977. Along with other colleagues in the landscape industry he helped develop industry education programs in coordination with faculty from University of Illinois. The education programs provided by the ILCA, continue to flourish today.

Ralph was grateful for all the opportunities in his life. He and Lucile survived the lean years and prospered in their landscaping business, thanks to assistance from Geneva business owners and landscape/nursery colleagues following a devastating fire. We will miss him dearly.

ILCA Members Reminisce A Leader - Colleague - Friend

I served on any of number of committees with Ralph and assisted by Lucile at ILCA. They were very sincere and caring people making extraordinary investments in time into the profession and the Illinois Landscape Contractors Association (ILCA). At the time, the Littles gave me a tour of their Tree house home built on poles set in the woods. It made a great lasting impression on me and I tried to pass along their love for nature, the landscape and unique solutions to save trees.

John Hendricksen ILCA Past President and the Care of Trees, emeritus

I am very sorry to hear of Ralph’s passing. We were really good friends, as was Lucile. She worked many years on the Summer Field Day with me. I got involved with Summer Field Day thanks to Ralph. Years ago ILCA was looking for a Chairman and Ralph said “Wally will do it,” so I took the job and worked with Ralph, who was president at the time. I never have known a better guy. He had a saying I never forgot. We would be going over something in a meeting and Ralph would say, “Now listen,” and we would stop and listen.

Wally Clauss Clauss Brothers, Inc.

I met Ralph very early in my landscape contractor career. He was very involved in the ILCA at that time, but was always ready to help out a beginning contractor. He encouraged me to get involved in the association which I did.

The first time I actually worked with Ralph was on the committee for the Summer Field Day at the Morton Arboretum. Organizing this event was made possible by the association Ralph had developed with the Arboretum. He worked behind the scenes making the friendships with other organizations as well.

And he worked tirelessly at putting together the events that would make the ILCA one of the top green industry association in the country.

I also was on the planning committee for the first MidAm at the old Arlington Park Race Track. He was involved not only in the organization itself, but in the many events ILCA was developing at that time.

When Ralph retired, he continued to help aspiring entrepreneurs. He joined a group that placed retired business volunteers with people in countries throughout the world to teach them how to run their businesses.

Ralph Little was a part of the leadership of ILCA for many years. The effects of his leadership are still felt today. I was proud to be his associate, and his friend. George Weyland Weyland’s Landscape

I did not get to know Ralph personally, but I know my father, Denny Church, had the greatest respect for Ralph and the work he did at Thornapple. Back in the 70’s, commercial landscaping was truly starting to gain momentum as Brickman, Damgaard, Thornapple, Clauss Brothers, Clarence Davids, Church Landscape, and others started to shape what would become a strong economic driver in Northeastern Illinois.

Denny would tell me about the hard work that the ILCA was doing and the incredibly difficult job that its founders had pulling together contractors that were more farmers than business people. They had the charge of moving the perception of landscaping from agricultural/ farming based, to a group of professionals that did great work and provided solid opportunities for the individuals that chose commercial landscape contracting as their career of choice. Ralph and Lucile had a lot to do with that change. Thornapple was consistently a winner of multiple ILCA awards during Ralph’s tenure as owner and President. Ralph could definitely “Walk the Walk” when it came to promoting landscape contracting as a profession performed by professionals.

If Denny where here today, he would have many more and better words of praise for what Ralph (and Lucile) did for landscaping in Illinois. Ralph and his legacy to landscaping will be missed.

Bruce A. Church President Balanced Environments, Inc.