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started appearing on all the heavily traveled roads throughout New
England. Other manufacturers caught on to the idea and as Dexter put up new stores, other manufacturers would open their outlets next door. By the 1990s, the Dexter Factory Outlet chain had expanded to over 80 stores. About this time, Dexter also stopped building freestanding log cabins and began leasing stores in
353:
was looking for a Maine sportsman to join them. Alfond was the obvious choice and ever since Dexter has been a limited partner in the franchise. When Dexter was sold to
Berkshire Hathaway in 1993, the Alfond family retained its stake in the team, a stake that remains in the hands of two of his sons.
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factory and started selling his own factory seconds. Soon, the factories weren't making enough mistakes to supply the store, so Harold decided to put in stale inventory (first grade shoes that weren't selling in the wholesale market). This worked so well that Dexter's log-cabin-style outlet stores
325:
in
Readfield, Maine. Kents Hill opened the Alfond Athletics Center in 2001 and the Alfond Athletic Fields - the largest turf complex in New England - in 2008 after receiving substantial gifts. In 2011, Kents Hill received a $ 2.3 million gift for the construction of its Akin Learning Center. Most
239:
Although Dexter was successful from the beginning, Alfond tired of being controlled by a few large customers and decided to go into the "branded" business. He developed a line of shoes under the Dexter name, hired a sales force and began selling to independent shoe stores across the country.
333:
The Alfond
Scholarship Foundation introduced the "Harold Alfond College Challenge" in January 2009. Through the program, a $ 500 grant is given to every Maine resident who is enrolled before his or her first birthday; the money is intended to help Maine families plan for education beyond
195:
immigrants Simon and Rose Alfond. Harold, his brother David, and four sisters, Anne, Bertha, Gladys and Grace, grew up in
Swampscott and attended Swampscott schools. In high school, Harold was an outstanding athlete and developed his passion for sports.
251:. The practice in the industry was to sell these shoes to jobbers for about a dollar a pair, who would then resell them for five times their cost. Alfond thought that was a pretty good mark-up, so in the 1960s he opened an outlet store at Dexter's
318:. In December 2003, five years after his $ 1.65-million donation for the athletic and recreation center, Alfond contributed $ 1 million to St. Joseph's towards the $ 10 million needed to build Alfond Hall, the college's primary academic hall.
271:, with an agreement to not interfere with the family's continued management of the business. In 1993, Dexter and its affiliates, Pan Am Shoe and Ocsap Ltd., were sold for $ 433 million in stock; eight years later
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In 2007, having lived with cancer for 17 years, Alfond donated $ 7 million to a cancer care center at MaineGeneral
Medical Center in Augusta. The center is named the Harold Alfond Center for Cancer Care.
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In 1943, Alfond married
Dorothy Levine, who was also Jewish; they raised four children: Ted, Susan, Bill, and Peter who grew to provide them with thirteen grandchildren. His wife died in December 2005.
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Dexter continued to grow rapidly throughout the 1970s and 1980s and from time to time, corporate suitors came calling to see whether they could entice Dexter into a marriage. Many were national
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that promised rapid expansion, but would emphasize foreign production and likely, a departure from Dexter's family style of running the business. Alfond eventually decided to sell to
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208:, where his father worked. In a short time, he rose from odd shoe boy to factory superintendent. In 1940, Alfond and his father bought a shoe factory in
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287:. Between 1950 and 2003, the foundation has contributed more than $ 100 million to charitable causes, and as of 2008 had over $ 106 million in assets.
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212:, and founded Norrwock Shoe Company. They sold the company to Shoe Corp. of America in 1943 and Simon Alfond stayed on as president for 25 years.
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In addition to his donations to colleges for improvements to their sports facilities, Alfond demonstrated his support of sports in other ways.
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In order to coordinate his charitable giving, the 36-year-old Alfond organized the first private foundation in the state of Maine, the
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decided to fold Dexter into another business, H.H. Brown, characterizing the purchase in 2008 as "the worst deal that I've made."
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He has donated money to various institutions of learning to help improve their sports facilities; for example, the
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recently in 2015, the school received a $ 3.5 million matching grant for the construction of a new dining hall.
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Golf Club, a course close to his summer home. The club has been recognized as among the best public
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247:. Because factories make mistakes, not all shoes pass quality control; these products are called
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in the sailor's effort to compete in the
Olympics. Mahaney later earned a silver medal in
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After graduating from high school in 1934, Alfond got a job at
Kesslen Shoe Company in
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171:(March 6, 1914 – November 16, 2007) was an American businessman who founded the
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814:
587:"$ 1 Million Pledge by Harold Alfond Adds Momentum to UMass Amherst Building Project"
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recognized the course as the only five-star public golf course in the
Northeast.
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Harold Alfond and the Alfond Foundation have also been major supporters of
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338:. As of July 2010, 5,500 babies have been enrolled in the program.
219:, and founded Dexter Shoe Company. There, he produced shoes for the
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32:
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Colby College Digital Commons: "Bibby Levine Alfond Scrapbook"
80:
783:"Harold Alfond, gave generously for healthcare and sports"
439:"Harold Alfond, Donor and Shoe Factory Owner, Dies at 93"
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In 1956, Alfond left, purchased an old woolen mill in
977:
Jewish American sports executives and administrators
493:"Buffett defends using stock in Burlington takeover"
243:Alfond is often credited with the invention of the
368:Along with other investors, Alfond helped create
92:Founder of Dexter Shoe Company and philanthropist
883:
669:"Alfond Center for Cancer Care officially opens"
691:"What is the Harold Alfond College Challenge?"
474:"Buffet calls Dexter Shoe his worst deal ever"
633:"Kents Hill School receives $ 2.3 million..."
314:'s Isenberg School, and the Alfond Center at
310:, the Harold Alfond Management Center at the
302:, the Harold and Ted Alfond Sports Center at
857:"Philanthropist Harold Alfond dies in Maine"
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805:
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907:American people of Russian-Jewish descent
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772:
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718:"Maine Newborns to Get $ 500 for College"
437:Pérez-Peña, Richard (November 17, 2007).
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223:catalog market, supplying stores such as
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811:"City races get nasty in final stretch"
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619:"Kents Hill School Athletic Facilities"
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491:Stempel, Jonathan (February 27, 2010).
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126: 1943; died 2005)
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427:
942:People from Swampscott, Massachusetts
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781:Marquard, Bryan (November 17, 2007).
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414:Alfond died on November 16, 2007, in
693:. www.500forbaby.org. Archived from
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357:In the 1980s, Alfond helped sponsor
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597:University of Massachusetts Amherst
363:sailing at the 1992 Summer Olympics
312:University of Massachusetts Amherst
13:
724:. Associated Press. Archived from
716:Adams, Glenn (December 11, 2007).
533:. December 5, 2003. Archived from
175:Company and established the first
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988:
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912:American retail chief executives
349:In 1978, a group purchasing the
937:Jewish American baseball people
902:American fashion businesspeople
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531:Saint Joseph's College of Maine
521:"Harold Alfond keeps on giving"
316:Saint Joseph's College of Maine
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191:, on March 6, 1914, the son of
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927:Deaths from cancer in Maine
650:"KHS Receives Alfond Grant"
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957:Philanthropists from Maine
557:"Harold Alfond Foundation"
947:People from Dexter, Maine
922:Businesspeople from Maine
402:in 2008, and was elected
376:in the country. In 2002,
308:University of New England
237:Montgomery Ward & Co.
189:Swampscott, Massachusetts
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932:American philanthropists
748:"The 2500th Alfond Baby"
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285:Harold Alfond Foundation
967:Jews from Massachusetts
952:Sportspeople from Maine
394:One of the grandsons,
917:Boston Red Sox owners
697:on September 15, 2009
398:, was elected to the
342:Investments in sports
200:Founding Dexter Shoes
867:on November 25, 2007
753:. www.500forbaby.org
728:on February 15, 2009
480:. February 29, 2008.
245:factory outlet store
177:factory outlet store
102:factory outlet store
16:American businessman
300:University of Maine
210:Norridgewock, Maine
187:Alfond was born in
821:on January 7, 2011
671:. Kennebec Journal
656:on April 19, 2016.
599:. November 3, 1998
444:The New York Times
269:Berkshire Hathaway
861:Bangor Daily News
561:Foundation Center
323:Kents Hill School
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69:November 16, 2007
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404:Senate President
206:Kennebunk, Maine
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351:Boston Red Sox
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296:Alfond Stadium
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273:Warren Buffett
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73:(aged 93)
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359:Kevin Mahaney
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217:Dexter, Maine
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169:Harold Alfond
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160:Justin Alfond
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89:Occupation(s)
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58:Massachusetts
55:
50:March 6, 1914
42:
38:
34:
29:
25:Harold Alfond
22:
19:
871:November 16,
869:. Retrieved
865:the original
850:
825:February 27,
823:. Retrieved
819:the original
792:February 27,
790:. Retrieved
787:Boston Globe
757:February 27,
755:. Retrieved
742:
732:December 12,
730:. Retrieved
726:the original
721:
711:
701:February 27,
699:. Retrieved
695:the original
685:
673:. Retrieved
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654:the original
644:
627:
613:
603:February 27,
601:. Retrieved
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571:February 27,
569:. Retrieved
565:the original
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541:February 27,
539:. Retrieved
535:the original
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502:February 27,
500:. Retrieved
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400:Maine Senate
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374:golf courses
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292:Alfond Arena
289:
282:
279:Philanthropy
262:
258:outlet malls
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214:
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186:
168:
167:
150:Peter Alfond
142:Susan Alfond
71:(2007-11-16)
18:
897:2007 deaths
892:1914 births
815:The Bollard
386:Family life
379:Golf Digest
336:high school
173:Dexter Shoe
146:Bill Alfond
886:Categories
422:References
183:Early life
162:(grandson)
138:Ted Alfond
54:Swampscott
46:1914-03-06
675:August 8,
453:0362-4331
406:in 2012.
253:Skowhegan
229:JC Penney
156:Relatives
722:ABC News
458:July 30,
134:Children
77:Belgrade
497:Reuters
478:Reuters
298:at the
233:Spiegel
128:
120:
116:
451:
235:, and
193:Jewish
108:Spouse
100:First
83:, U.S.
60:, U.S.
751:(PDF)
636:(PDF)
410:Death
225:Sears
122:(
118:
81:Maine
873:2007
827:2010
794:2010
759:2010
734:2007
703:2010
677:2007
605:2010
573:2010
543:2010
504:2010
460:2020
449:ISSN
294:and
66:Died
40:Born
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124:m.
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44:(
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
