Remembering Harold “Red” Leonard

Tim Spitzack Editor

Fury Motors in South St. Paul hosted a traditional Irish wake on June 28 for its founder Harold “Red” Leonard. More than 1,200 family and friends gathered to share laughter and tears as they congregated near Leonard’s casket, which rested between two of his prized vintage automobiles: a 1959 Plymouth Fury and a 1963 Plymouth Sport Fury. Leonard passed away on June 22 at age 95. Until the end, one could find him greeting customers and doing administrative tasks at the dealership he founded in 1963.

Leonard was born in 1928 to Thomas and Barbara Leonard of South St. Paul, the third of five children. Like his father, Leonard had red hair, and his father’s nickname, “Red,” was given to Harold almost immedi- ately after his father’s death when Leonard was 17.

Leonard’s senior year was monumental for another reason as well. It was then that he met Jeri Lee from St. Paul while visiting Kaposia Park one day. Enamored of her beauty, he quickly struck up a conversation and was thrilled that she showed an interest in him. Their romance blossomed and survived an early challenge when Red went overseas during the Korean War to serve in an anti-mine and tank unit with the U.S. Army. They married shortly after his return and began building a life together. They had two sons, Tom and Jim, and were wed 58 years when Jeri passed away in 2012.

Red loved the city of South St. Paul and chose to build his career there, but it took some time to find his niche. After a brief stint in the accounting department at 3M, he landed a job with the Desoto division of the Chrysler corporation. From there he became operations manager of Adamson Motors in Rochester, Minn. In 1963, he returned home and purchased the Chrysler Plymouth dealership in South St. Paul with, as the story goes, $5,000 in his pocket, one car on the lot and four spark plugs. He renamed it Fury Motors after Fury, the strong stallion of the 1950s eponymous book series by Albert G. Miller. The name was Jeri’s suggestion, which she later thought was a bad idea. Red liked it, though, and the name stuck.

Today the dealership is owned and operated by Tom and Jim Leonard, who joined the dealership in 1988 and 1991, respectively. In 1999, Fury expanded from its original location at 740 Concord St. N. – now Fury motorcycle and used car dealership – to a new

I would like to shine a spotlight on one of the original founders of Neighbors, Virginia Milbert, as we had the absolute joy of celebrating her 106th birthday recently. Virginia inspires us every day to bring our absolute best. She continues to volunteer at Neighbors every week in our Clothes Closet Thrift Store. When asked, she shared her vision for Neighbors to continue to stay person-centered and focus on our amazing volunteers and their dedication to our mission. On behalf of Neighbors’ board of directors and staff, we wish to thank Virginia for her tremendous dedication and commitment to the agency she helped established 51 years ago. It is because of her and so many others who have given their time, talents and dedication, that we have the honor and privilege of serving the community today.

Second, it has been a wonderful opportunity to see Neighbors’ services and staff in action. Wow – where to even start. I am humbled by the incredibly long legacy and foundation of providing highly dignified, personcentered services across all of our programming. From our choice model food shelf shopping experience to our beautiful boutique-style Clothes Closet to our individualized free Financial Empowerment services, Neighbors’ staff and volunteers take our mission to heart to provide opportunities for our neighbors to thrive. building at 1000 Concord St. S. In 2005, the brothers purchased a dealership in Stillwater, and another one in Waconia in 2022. Red kept an office at the South St. Paul dealership and enjoyed watching his sons grow the business, which turns 60 this year.

As we reflect and honor the incredible foundation of Neighbors, we are excited to share that we are embarking on our next three-year strategic planning process. This is a vibrant time for our organization to reflect, energize and dream of the future.

I have enjoyed meeting so many of you. And for those I have not yet met, I look forward to meeting you soon. Feel free to reach out to me at dawn@neighborsmn.org, 651-272-1135, or just stop by. I would love to connect. Thank you again. I am honored to join Neighbors’ and be a part of a tremendously supportive community. Stay connected with Neighbors’ latest updates at neighborsmn.org.

According to Tom, their father was always there to lend a hand, and advice, when needed.

“He was happiest when we were all working together,” he said. “That was his pride and joy. He turned over the reins in ’96 but always kept a close eye and gave us freedom to make mistakes. He was an amazing mentor and a wicked-smart man. And his recall of details of South St. Paul history was always spot on.”

As Red pulled back from the business, he and Jeri spent more time with their five grandchildren and at their cabin in Balsam Lake, Wis. Those closest to him say he was an honest businessman, dedicated family man, and that he loved goodnatured teasing, which kept the atmosphere light at work and home.

“He was quick-witted, and his teasing nature was always so funny,” said Tom. “For him, it was always about family.”

“Sustainability” is one of those buzzwords that everyone seems to think is important but which often means different things to different people. For Dakota County, we define and measure our sustainability chiefly through an economic and environmental lens. Today’s column will explore these measures more closely.

Economic sustainability

- The tumult surrounding the raising of the U.S. debt ceiling – and what could have been a catastrophic national default – consumed the news for much of 2023. This got me wondering whether our nation has ever been debt-free. I searched back nearly two centuries to find a period of zero national debt. In 1835, President Andrew Jackson fulfilled a campaign promise to make America debt-free. It lasted one year.

The State of Minnesota has never been debt-free. Borrowing money since its founding in 1858, the State first issued bonds to finance the construction of the Min-

Joe Atkins Dakota County Commissioner

nesota State Capitol. While the debt amount fluctuated over time, it has never been fully eliminated. Contrast this with Dakota County, which has now been debtfree since 2016. Indeed, we are one of the only county governments in the nation with zero debt.

One can argue over whether there is “good debt,” such as for items with long useful lives, like a maintenance garage or dam. However, there is no question that Dakota County’s run of seven years without debt places us in a more sustainable position than virtually any other gov-