Joe Albertson

Infobox Person
name = Joe Albertson


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birth_date = birth date|1906|10|17
birth_place = Yukon, Oklahoma Territory, USA
death_date = death date and age|1993|1|20|1906|10|17
death_place = Boise, Idaho, USA
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nationality = American
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known_for = Founder of the Albertsons supermarket chain and philanthropist
education = College of Idaho
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occupation = Albertsons grochery stores
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spouse = Kathryn Albertson
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children = Barbara Jean Newman
parents = Earl and Rhoda Albertson
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Joseph Albert "Joe" Albertson (October 17 1906 - January 20 1993) was the founder of the Albertsons chain of grocery stores and a notable philanthropist.

Joe Albertson was born in Yukon, Oklahoma Territory. He was one of four sons born to Rhoda and Earl Albertson. Before he was three, the family moved to Caldwell, Idaho, in 1909, where Joe grew up.

After graduating from Caldwell High School in 1925, Joe studied business for two years at the College of Idaho in Caldwell. While in college in 1927, he began his career in the grocery industry as a clerk at a local Safeway store. In 1930 Joe married his college classmate Kathryn McCurry, of Boise, Idaho. They had one daughter, Barbara Jean Newman.

Joe quickly moved through the ranks with Safeway, until he was supervising more than a dozen stores. But he was not satisfied and wanted to start his own store -- one that he could build to his own specifications and manage his own way. With $5,000 of the money he and Kathryn had saved, and with $7,500 borrowed from his wife's aunt, Joe formed a partnership with L.S. Skaggs, a former Safeway Division Manager, and Tom Cuthbert, Mr. Skaggs' accountant. At the age of 32, Joe opened his store in 1939 on three simple principles - quality, good value, and excellent service. Albertson is credited as being one of the pioneers of the complete one-stop, self-service supermarket concept.

Joe opened his second and third Albertson's stores in Nampa and Caldwell, Idaho, in 1940. During the years of World War II, when food was being rationed, he filled the empty shelves with health and beauty products, general household goods and other non-food items.

Joe Albertson's reputation for generosity and community involvement grew during those war years. His stores promoted war bonds and sponsored scrap drives that collected aluminum, steel, fats, and paper for recycling.

During the 1950s and 1960s, Albertson's expanded and became a familiar name to shoppers throughout the western United States.

Joe's generosity continued throughout the years. The College of Idaho received many generous donations from Joe and Kathryn. It was named Albertson College of Idaho for sixteen years from 1991 to 2007. Perhaps the most obvious gift to the citizens of Idaho is the 41-acre [http://www.cityofboise.org/parks/parks_facilities/parks/index.aspx?id=ka_park_facts/ Kathryn Albertson Park] with its winding walkways, wildflower's, trees and ponds.

In 1966, Joe and Kathryn established the [http://jkaf.org J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Foundation] as a way to administer their own charitable giving. They focused their giving primarily on education, which was important to Joe and Kathryn because neither were able to finish college during the Great Depression. Since then, the Foundation has given more than $240 million to Idaho’s communities and education systems. The Foundation continues to give to charities, primarily in areas where Joe and Kathryn lived or worked in Idaho.

Joe Alberston died in January 1993 at the age of 86.

It has been written that Joe did the common thing uncommonly well. He accumulated a great wealth of knowledge and formulas for success. He found the fulfillment that comes from setting monumental goals and achieving them. His life was filled with enjoyment of the rare but simple pleasures -- fishing a mountain stream, hunting with friends, and enjoying the company of his family.

External links

* [http://www.jkaf.org J.A. & Kathryn Albertson Foundation ] - Main web page of Joe and Kathryn Albertson Charitable foundation
* [http://www.albertson.edu/media/catalog/aci2.asp?ID=about The College of Idaho] - a brief history from its official website
* [http://www.albertsons.com/defaultSSL.asp Albertsons Inc.] – Albertsons Inc main web page