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The Company that House Built
By Leroy Standish
Staff writer for the Daily Press
Apple Valley- Duncan House owned and operated Apple Valley Blueprint and
Supply Co. for 46 years. It was one of the longest running businesses in
town, if not the longest in continuous operation under the same ownership.
House, 72, recently sold the business. He’ll be working a few more weeks
and saying goodbye to friends and business associates while helping out
the transition to the new owners, Steve and Vera Ostrander.
It was 1958 when House opened up shop in
the High
Desert. In his mid-20s, he left behind his job at the state highway department
in San Bernardino and moved with his wife, Marilyn, to what would become
the town of Apple Valley It would be another 30 years before Apple Valley
incorporated. Back then, the only congestion on Highway 18 was when
a train would pass. “Bear Valley Road
was only two lanes,” he said. “You’d never see other cars.”
Traffic is the worst change he has seen happen to the Victor Valley in the past four and a half decades, House said. “The traffic here is
horrendous,” he said. “It’s just one of those things you just have
to live with.” Another thing people lived with was boom and bust
economies over the years. The growth the Victor
Valley
is experiencing now is one that will continue to for quite a while, he
said, and although not at its current breakneck pace.
He managed to survive through continuing
surges and lulls in the economy, with help from his neighbors and
competitors. Jane Hooker and her husband used to own the competing
blueprint shop in town, Apple Valley Advantage. She remembers the two
working together to stay in business more than trying to cut each
other’s throat. “It wasn’t a competition,” Hooker said.
“My husband and (House) would bail each other out. They’d call one
another up and say, ‘What do I do about this?’ It’s been a long,
friendly association.” House’s
son, also named Duncan House, had a lifetime of fond memories to share
about the man who raised him.
“He’s been an
Apple Valley
institution. For years he’s been a constant,” the younger House said.
“His generosity was incredible. He taught me that generosity is an
incredible virtue, and I will never forget that.” The senior
house, a long time member of the Kiwanis Club, said he will miss the
people the most, and being part of the community he loves. ‘It’s
good to give something back to the community,” he said, while sitting
Sunday afternoon during his retirement party at Spring Valley Lake Country
Club. “We’ve been here 46 years. You can’t help but be a part of the
community.” Duncan House senior said he may head up to
Benicia
for his retirement years, but he will always have a soft spot in his heart
for the
Victor
Valley
and urges everyone moving here to treat it with respect.
“Just be nice to the desert,” he
said. “It’s really a nice place to live.”
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