SAF member, past American Floral Endowment board member and lifelong florist James Earl Durio died Nov. 20, 2007. He was owner of Durio's Flower Shop and Jim Durio Florist, Inc., in Opelousas, La., and a longtime member, director and president of the Louisiana State Florists Association.

Bill Gouldin, president of Strange's Florists, Greenhouses and Garden Centers in Richmond, has known Jim Durio since the late 1970s, when Durio was a mentor to the Young Owner Managers (YOM) of FTD. "When I came into the industry, I soon realized that Jim was about the most knowledgeable guy on everything going on in the industry. He was well respected all over the industry — and very opinionated," Gouldin says, chuckling. "But whether or not you agreed with him, you still liked him and respected him."

Durio was founder, first president and, for many years, chairman of the board of Louisiana Wholesale Florists, Inc., in Lafayette and Baton Rouge. He served as district representative, director, president and chairman of the board of Florists Transworld Delivery (FTD), and as a director and president of Interflora. He also was a member of the board of the Southeastern Florists Association and several other professional organizations. A wake and mass were held Nov. 21, at Our Lady Queen of Angels Catholic Church in Opelousas.

--Kate Penn
kpenn@safnow.org

 

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