Myron Harold Reinhart

Myron H. Reinhart passed away on September 3, 2020, at the age of 92, at his home at Westminster Canterbury in Richmond, in the company of his children. He insisted that everyone, from co-workers to bankers to waitresses to cleaning staff, call him “Bud”, and this was one of the many reasons he was welcomed with a smile by everyone.

Bud was the President of ER Carpenter Co. for many years until his retirement in 1992. He then engaged in quiet philanthropy in the Richmond area, both directly and through The Reinhart Foundation which he established in 2000. He also served as a director of The E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation. He was especially proud of attaining the rank of Eagle Scout with the Boy Scouts of America. He was a member of the Country Club of Virginia and Richmond Country Club.

Bud was born on the cusp of the Great Depression in St. Louis, Missouri in 1928, grew up in nearby Ferguson, and graduated from Ferguson Public High School. He skipped two grades, entering Washington University in St. Louis at the age of 16. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science in chemical engineering. In 1948 he married his first wife, Evelyn D. Lawson of Belleville, Illinois, a WWII Army trained RN, and took his first job as an environmental engineer at St. Joseph Lead Mines in nearby Bon Terre, MO. Returning to St. Louis in 1950, Bud worked there as a chemical engineer until 1960 when he moved with his family to Richmond to begin working at E.R. Carpenter Company, initially as the Engineering Director and gradually rising to President of the company. Carpenter is the world’s largest manufacturer of comfort cushioning products for furniture, bedding, and carpeting. He developed multiple new products for the company. The M.H. Reinhart Technical Center is named in his honor.

Bud’s charitable work made a significant impact on the Richmond community. He was the lead donor for the Evelyn D. Reinhart Guest House, named in memory of his first wife who was a nurse, at St. Mary’s Bon Secours on Libbie Avenue; the music program and organ rebuilding project at Derbyshire Baptist Church in memory of his second wife Mary Lou Reinhart, who had a lovely voice; an all-weather, year-round activity complex at Camp Baker in Chesterfield administered by Soar 365 (formerly called ARC) serving infants, children, adults, and their families with special needs and disabilities; and a STEM Educational Center at Camp Brady T. Saunders in Goochland operated by the Boy Scouts. He was also a major contributor to the Byrd Theatre Foundation and Maymont Park, as well as the many performing and fine arts organizations in Richmond.

As president, he assured that The Reinhart Foundation gave continual support to the food, housing and health care organizations serving those in need in the Richmond area, such as Feed More, the Daily Planet, Crossover Healthcare, Virginia Supportive Housing, the Boys and Girls Clubs of America and Planned Parenthood. Although Bud had worked very hard throughout his life -- he customarily worked 10-hour days as well as Saturdays until noon -- he also recognized that he had been blessed, and sharing with those who were less fortunate was part of his principles.

Bud enjoyed many years of life. While in Ferguson, Bud and his wife, Evelyn, were active in the community theatre, sailed with friends on the Mississippi River while he played the ukulele and crooned American standards in a smooth baritone, and with those friends even built a house for the mother of one from the ground up. Upon moving to Richmond, he learned to play golf and enjoyed many rounds with both Evelyn and Mary Lou. He enjoyed traveling and made a number of trips to Europe, throughout the U.S., as well as many business trips both in the U.S. and abroad, even traveling to Japan and Saudi Arabia, a rarity in the mid-1960s. He was a skilled bridge and pinochle player. He subscribed to virtually every substantial performing arts company in Richmond from the Virginia Repertory Theatre, Richmond Ballet, Symphony, and Opera to touring Broadway companies and the Richmond Forum, taking delight in supporting their performances and educational work.

He also experienced great sadness losing his first wife, Evelyn, to cancer in 1986 when she was only 58, and his second wife, Mary Lou, in 2016. In the last years of his life Bud enjoyed accompanying Shirley Baker, a long-time family neighbor, to many galas, restaurants, and other events in the Richmond area.

Bud is survived by his son, William L. Reinhart of Goochland, Va.; his daughter, Cynthia R. Richards, of New York City; and his grandson, Christopher R. Richards of Brooklyn, NY. He was predeceased in death by his younger brother, William; and his parents, Harold C. and Mary.

Interment will be in Belleville, Illinois, with his first wife, Evelyn, in a private ceremony. His family hopes to have a service to celebrate Bud’s life when public health conditions permit doing so safely for all.

People who would like to make a donation in Bud’s memory may wish to consider the Evelyn D. Reinhart Guest House, 1100 Libbie Ave., Richmond, Va. 23226; Soar 365 https://www.soar365.org; or another charity meaningful to them.