Arthur Teichner, 83
Arthur Teichner, former partner of the North Hollywood, Calif.–based Almore Dye House, passed away on June 23 in Rancho Mirage, Calif., because of complications from cancer. He was 83 and lived in Palm Desert, Calif., at the time of his death.
Teichner was part of the second of three generations of family members that ran Almore Dye, originally founded in Chicago in 1919. The company opened in California in the 1980s and became one of the key sources of garment dyeing for companies such as Guess? Inc. and others.
Teichner retired in 1989 and was diagnosed with cancer about four years later. During the course of his battle with cancer, he and his wife, Corinne, raised millions of dollars for others struggling with the disease by establishing the Desert Cancer Foundation in the Coachella Valley with the late physician Sebastian George. The agency helps supply treatment for needy and uninsured cancer victims. Teichner’s main fund-raising vehicle was an annual golf tournament, which has raised more than $11 million for cancer victims over the years. The tournament is also a beneficiary of the Professional Golfers’ Association’s annual Bob Hope Chrysler Classic.
Teichner, who survived 13 years with various forms of cancer, was an outspoken advocate for cancer victims throughout the desert region. He would often pass out bumper stickers that read “I’m a cancer butt kicker,” said his son Stuart, who currently runs Almore with his brother Donald.
“He won the battle five times against cancer, but it was the sixth one, esophageal cancer, which got him,” said Stuart Teichner, explaining that his father also had been diagnosed with lung, liver, pelvic and lymph cancer. “He died on his birthday and stayed alive on sheer will power for the past couple of years.”
Arthur Teichner was a World War II veteran who served in the Army Signal Corps. He had a degree in textile chemistry from the Lowell Technical Institute in Lowell, Mass. He is survived by his wife, Corinne; his children, Stuart, Donald, Steven and Marilyn; and 10 grandchildren.
The family suggests that donations be made to the Desert Cancer Foundation, 45480 Portola Ave., Palm Desert, Calif. 92260, or to the Temple Sinai Tikvah Fund, 73251 Hovley Lane West, Palm Desert, Calif. 92260.
—Robert McAllister
