Albert Lee Opened Appliance Store That Became Legacy

Until his heart made it impossible for him to do much more than hold his great-granddaughter in his lap, Albert Lee sold appliances.

Well past his 80th birthday, he still came into the appliance store he started in 1939 to sell refrigerators. Other appliances had since gone too high-tech, so he left them for his employees to sell at the Albert Lee Appliance Co.

He did not understand retirement very well, because he had been working since age 14, when he left his home in Cle Elum, Kittitas County, to take a job at a mill that made doors in Everett.

He arrived in Everett alone. But he died Sunday, April 12, at Swedish Medical Center surrounded by the family he had become the center of: Olga, his wife of 56 years; his son, Albert Lee Jr.; his three grandchildren, and his 19-month-old great-granddaughter, Haileigh, who might have been the reason he hung on so long when doctors kept giving him a month or a week to live.

Mr. Lee, 85, died of complications from heart disease.

His family will carry on his most public legacy, the appliance store, which has sold washers, dryers, stoves and refrigerators to generations of families in Seattle. The store has never moved from its location on Elliott Avenue West near the Magnolia Bridge.

"He was the most fair and honest man I knew," said his granddaughter Kelli Lee Knutsen of Seattle.

"That's why the store survived through bad times. He built such a reputation. People, whose grandmothers bought a refrigerator here, would come in when they needed a refrigerator."

Mr. Lee was a tall, slim man with extraordinarily broad shoulders, the kind people tended to lean on. Even as he lay dying, he was the one who consoled others, never showing fear or sadness himself if he ever felt it, family members said.

He survived combat in the Pacific during World War II, serving as a corporal in the Army.

In one particularly fierce battle, family members said, most of his platoon was killed by snipers on a ridge. As Mr. Lee stopped to carry a wounded mate, he was grazed by a bullet across his eyes. The shot nearly blinded him and earned him a Purple Heart.

He married Dec. 31, 1941, and shipped out Oct. 13, 1942. His son was born four months later.

He started the family business from money he saved working at the Everett mill. It struggled at first as a furniture store, but it eventually became a fixture in the city as an appliance store.

The jingle from a commercial became a popular refrain: "Quality you can count on. Service you can trust. Albert Lee Appliance Companeeee."

Mr. Lee, an avid outdoorsman, was a member of the Salmon Bay Eagles, the Shriners and the Ballard Elks.

Mr. Lee was one of seven children of Italian immigrants who homesteaded in Cle Elum.

He kept farmer's hours all his life, going to bed by 8 p.m. and waking up at 5 a.m.

He purchased a large lot in Magnolia, which he used to grow vegetables. He tilled and harvested by hand, giving away baskets of lettuce, corn, onions and garlic to neighbors, friends and employees.

He eventually had a house built on the lot, as did his son and grandchildren. The family was not simply close. They were literally always together, at the store and at each other's houses.

Mr. Lee's son, Albert Lee Jr., and grandson, Albert Lee III, are co-owners of the appliance store. Kelli's husband, Eric Knutsen, is a salesman. Holly Lee, Albert Lee Jr.'s wife, is in customer service. Olga Lee does some accounting.

Mr. Lee and Olga met in Seattle. Six years ago, they celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in Discovery Park.

More than 400 people attended the party, where the couple showed off their waltzing skills.

Mr. Lee also is survived by grandchild Ryan Lee, brother Peter Giovenale, and sisters Letizia Cavelia and Florence Ozbolt, all of Cle Elum.

Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. tomorrow at Evergreen-Washelli Funeral Home, 11111 Aurora Ave. N.

The family asked that donations go to the Medic One Foundation, Harborview Medical Center, P.O. Box 359748, 325 Ninth Ave., Seattle, WA 98104.

Hugo Kugiya's phone message number is 206-464-2281. His e-mail address is: hkugiya@seattletimes.com