Dale Lynch

Dale Lynch, the former president of Safeway Stores who developed a passion for wine in Healdsburg, died Wednesday of heart disease. He was 87.

The World War II veteran, avid outdoorsman and wine lover never lost the drive he felt as a 16-year-old box boy in his first Safeway job dreaming of climbing the corporate ladder.

He was born in Long Beach in 1921 to John and Effie Lynch, the second of four children. His father, a cook, owned Lynch?s Cafe.

?His father rose at 4 a.m. and baked nine pies for the day,? said son John Lynch of Healdsburg. ?That example of hard work gave him a drive for success.?

Lynch graduated from Kern County Union High School in Bakersfield and attended Los Angeles City College.

During the war, he served in the Third Army under George S. Patton?s 89th Infantry Division. Hhe spent seven months on a special assignment in Linz, Austria, repatriating displaced persons.

?He also worked as a technical sergeant and as a cook in the Army,? Lynch said. ?He felt that the war interrupted his career at Safeway.?

In 1944, he married Marjorie Gaugh of Kansas City, Mo. She died in 1997 after 53 years of marriage. The couple had three children.

His Safeway career took him to Seattle, Wa., where he became a division manager. His northwest division became a top producer for the company, leading to his assignment as president and chief operating officer of Safeway Stores, Inc. in 1976.

During his presidency, the company operated 2,300 stores in 29 states and nine countries, with over 170,000 employees. He led the trend toward super stores, one-stop centers with pharmacies and delicatessens, and introduced premium wine departments.

?He worked six days a week and long hours. But when he was home, we worked,? said his son. ?We mowed lawns and cleaned the house. He was strict, but always passionate about his family.?

Upon retirement in 1983, he joined the business school faculty at the University of Southern California.

He moved to Healdsburg in 1989 and developed a wine-grape growing business with his son and wife.

?He was such an icon to me. Not only was he just fascinated by people, he could be very sentimental about unexpected things,? said grandson Riley Lynch of Guatemala.

He taught his grandchildren to respect nature and to see the beauty of the smallest creatures, including hummingbirds and frogs.

He was always willing to listen.

?There were a number of times that my grandfather?s advice was really valuable,? said Riley Lynch. ?He always heard me out.?

Lynch was a member of the Healdsburg Kiwanis and active in the Healdsburg Branch #157 of Sons in Retirement, serving two terms as Big SIR. He served as Worshipful Master of the Free and Accepted Masons, Wayfarers Lodge #115 in Seattle.

In addition to his son, he is survived by his wife, Joanne Foote-Lynch whom he married in 2000; daughters Susan Watkins of Mukilteo, Wash., and Lorna Willard of Sumner, Wash.; his sister Lorraine Bischke of Hemet, and seven grandchildren.

The family held a private service at Oak Mount Cemetery in Healdsburg.

Donations are requested to the Safeway Companies Employee Association emergency assistance fund. Contact Deborah Davis at (626) 821-6135.

? Rayne Wolfe