MARY FRUEHAUF, PRESIDENT and owner of Fruehauf ’s Patio & Garden Center (Boulder, Colorado), died recently after a long battle with ovarian cancer. According to her colleagues, Fruehauf was a hardworking, dedicated, and passionate person.

She had been involved in the casual-furniture industry and had worked at Fruehauf ’s since her parents, Vic and Gretchen Fruehauf, started it in 1977. Over that time, with a lot of hard work, she grew Fruehauf ’s into the successful business that it is today.

She was highly engaged with the industry, serving in various roles in the Casual Furniture Retailers Association and the International Casual Furnishings Association (ICFA). With over 35 years’ experience in the patio-furniture business, she knew and influenced many people in the industry. ICFA recognized Fruehauf ’s for retail excellence with the 2011 Apollo Award in the single-store category.

Despite her illness, Fruehauf never cut back on her responsibilities or her hours at the store, and she was a daily presence. Fruehauf ’s will continue as Fruehauf had run it, maintaining her family’s legacy (with Mariah Maydew, her sister, assuming the role of president and CEO). Memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society, for ovarian-cancer research, at 2255 S. Oneida St., Denver, CO 80224 (cancer.org); to TRU Community Care Hospice, at 2594 Trailridge Dr. E., Lafayette, CO 80026 (trucare.org); or to Coast to Coast Dachshund Rescue, at P.O. Box 147, Jacobus, PA 17407 (c2cdr.org).