Illness forces Stucky Furniture closing

Written by Administrator Â Â
By JIM LANGHAM Rick Stucky and Steve Stucky

spent most of their childhood at Stucky Furniture Store in Monroe. Unpacking furniture, loading furniture to be delivered, and assisting other family members in running the business was a way of life for them. “It was almost like our family lived here,” said Rick. “I can remember when Ira and Jake and other Stucky family members used to come in and sit around and visit with grandpa. We liked to stand around to listen to their stories. “As we got older, grandpa taught us how to put furniture together. We lived here most of the time,” noted Stucky. “When we were younger, you either played sports or worked. Somehow we got stuck working in here all of the time. Pee Wee (Paul Stucky) taught us how to unpack furniture and set it up for display.” These days, Rick reflects on those times as the beginning of a good lesson that equipped he and Steve for 28 years of managing the store together. Unfortunately, illness is forcing the brothers to close the business long before they had originally hoped. It was last March when Rick discovered that he had acute leukemia. After a series of treatments, the illness appeared to go into remission. However, it surfaced again last October. This time around it refused to respond to chemotherapy. As a result, the Stucky brothers have been forced to make one of the most difficult decisions in their lives. They have decided to retire the family business after 81 years of service to the community. It was 1925 when Daniel Stucky and son, Irwin Stucky, founded the Model Hatchery at 134 E. Jackson St. in Monroe. While the business of hatching and selling chickens and ducks prospered, it slowed considerably in the winter. Finally, Berne entrepreneur Orv Smith, who founded Smith Brothers Furniture Co., convinced the Stuckys to display some of his company’s furniture on consignment. “Orv talked grandpa (Irwin) into selling furniture,” said Steve. “He (grandpa) didn’t realize at the time how much this was going to be a big business turn for everyone.” That was the beginning of a transition that eventually led to Stucky Furniture. During that time, Rick and Steve’s dad, Earl, and Glen, also became involved with the firm. Eventually, the company picked up the sale of other items such as carpeting, space heaters, appliances, LP gas, and hardware. Stucky’s built up to three floors of furniture and a small hardware section. In 1966, when Irwin passed away, business officials discontinued the hatchery portion. In 1978, Rick, Steve, and Earl bought out the business and still own it. “Smith Brothers was the first line of furniture that we started with,” observed Steve. “We’ve also sold such lines as Lazy Boy, England sofas, Peter Revington furniture (from Delphi), and Wolf Mattresses. A lot of companies that we’ve purchased from over the years have since closed. “We sold lots of oil heaters over the years,” continued Steve. “We used to help hook them up when we were kids. At Christmas time, we would bring in a special table and sell extra toys and dishes for the holiday season.” During the transition years prior to 1978, Steve was employed by CTS in Berne and Rick, a graduate of Huntington University, taught for nine years at Bellmont. It was after Glen became ill in the late ’70s that the boys decided to join forces with their father in the family business. Even prior to the decision to close, the Stuckys realized that major changes were affecting small businesses such as their’s. The changes in the foreign market in such places as China and Asia have been causing small, self-sufficient businesses to struggle. “Another factor has been the change of emphasis on purchases by young people,” noted Rick. “Young people are placing much more of an emphasis on nice houses and cars than they are furniture. It used to be that people would get married, find a place to live, and then purchase their furniture. That emphasis has changed. “Thank goodness we’ve had good support from the community that has enabled us to continue to be successful. We have a lot of repeat customers. That’s very important in a small-town business such as this,” added Stucky. Stucky stressed that the decision to close was the most difficult decision the family has ever had to make, but family members decided that it was in the best interest of all. Rick said that he marvels at the way family members have come together to assist in sales and closing demands. “I really regret that we had to do this, but we felt that it was best,” said Rick. “A lot of churches and families are praying for us. We obviously pray for a miracle, but we don’t always know God’s ways. A lot of people have told us how much they appreciate us. Believe me, that feeling is very mutual.”
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