Noble Frank Weisbrod

Noble Frank Weisbrod passed away in Pomona, CA on December 1st, 2016. Noble evolved over his life from a disadvantaged rural farm boy to an outstanding athlete to a manager and international master salesman. He was born March 20, 1932 to German immigrant Carl Weisbrod and pastor's daughter Eva Weisbrod in Chelan, Washington. Noble raised money for his college expenses by raising pigs with the help of his father. That decidedly cured him of farming, and he turned his attention to becoming a city gentleman instead. He excelled as an athletic "4-letterman" in high school in Zillah, Washington, and went on to play fullback on the Washington State University football team at Pullman. However, when future boxing heavyweight champion Pete Rademacher dislocated Noble's shoulder in practice one day, his football career was abruptly over. Noble was also president of his campus business fraternity, and ran for class president against future college football sportscaster Keith Jackson.

An early 50's picture of Noble shows him grinning by his fancy car, wearing a watch and gold bracelet. His future as a salesman was coming into view! Noble's early career included outside sales for the Washington State Apple Commission, six years as a sales manager at Stadelman Fruit, Inc., and a short time at Phillip Morris (now Altria). Family and friends thereafter knew Noble as a salesman's salesman who could sell ice to "Eskimos." In contrast to this gift, however, was his marked preference for avoiding discussions of many of life's more difficult subjects, thereby earning him the endearing family nickname of "Darth Evader."

In 1963 he moved his family from Yakima, Washington to Redlands, California and became district sales manager of citrus sales at Pure Gold, Inc., where he worked for many years. At Pure Gold Noble was known for his gold jewelry and his cardigan sweaters, worn in rooms air conditioned at his insistence to 65 degrees! Through the years Noble opened new markets for California citrus and other produce, later including shipping lemons to Japan from Coastal Fresh, out of Oxnard, CA. He attended dozens of industry conventions and traveled millions of airline miles, including internationally to Budapest, Gdansk, Vienna, and 14 times to Japan.

Noble died following a courageous battle with long-term complications from a debilitating stroke, which he suffered in September 2013. He is survived by his wife Mary Ann of Upland, CA, his sons Brian and Loren of Redlands, CA, and their extended families. He was 84 years of age, and was preceded in death by his parents and Carolyn Weisbrod, who passed away in 1987. He goes with his family's love, respect, fondness for his humor, and the goodwill of many whose lives he touched along the course of his own.

Services are private. In lieu of customary remembrances, the family requests with gratitude that memorial contributions in Noble’s name be directed to the Washington State University International Business Scholars Fund at https://foundation.wsu.edu/support-Business-Scholars.

Arrangements under the direction of Stone Funeral Home FD272, Upland, CA.