Obituaries: Bernie Falk of NEMA; Jake Rosenstein of Chicago

Sept. 20, 2013
Bernard (Bernie) Falk, longtime leader of the National Electrical Manufacturers Association, and Jake Rosenstein, scion of cornerstone family of the Chicago electrical market, both have died.

The electrical industry lost a real gentleman with the passing Bernard H. (Bernie) Falk, a former president and CEO of the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA), Rossyln, Va., who passed away Sept. 16. In the 1980s, Falk was one of the industry’s most respected leaders. During this period of rapid globalization, he was a staunch advocate for the U.S. electrical market, but also saw that the industry would become more global in the coming decades and worked tirelessly in the standards area to ensure that NEMA manufacturers would not be at a competitive disadvantage.

 Falk was also a good friend of Electrical Wholesaling Chief Editor George Ganzenmuller, and an industry advocate whom the magazine’s editors could always depend on for a thoughtful observation while they were researching an article. In addition to his duties as NEMA president and chairman, Falk was president of the International Electrical Commission and a board member of Underwriters Laboratories. “Bernie was an innovator and a pioneer who laid much of the groundwork for what NEMA is able to accomplish today,” said NEMA President and CEO Evan R. Gaddis. “Our highest award is named in his honor. Senator John Danforth, Astronaut Neil Armstrong, and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Jon Wellinghoff are all past winners of the Falk Award.”

The Chicago electrical market lost one of its most-respected mentors with the passing of Jake Rosenstein, 80, on Aug. 29. Here’s the remembrance submitted to Electrical Wholesaling from Connexion, the fast-growing electrical supply house owned by Jake’s son David:

"Jake spent part of his childhood and all of his adult life in the electrical distribution industry. He began working for his father, Louis “Sparky” Rosenstein (the first of three generations of Rosenstein that have been Chicago Electrical Association Hall of Fame inductees). Recalling his early years working for his father, ‘I did just about everything; worked the counter, filled orders, hand-cut wire — no machines back then. My father said it would build character…maybe that’s why I got paid so little.’

“Jake was a beloved mentor to many in the electrical industry; always generous of his time, humor and counsel. Jake will often be remembered for his knack of imparting wisdom by his clever turn of a phrase —most notable, ‘It’s nice to be important, but it’s more important to be nice.’” He is survived by his three children, Debbie, Dana and David.