Al Pinders, 'Mr. Furman," still a fixture on Main Street

Al Pinders, 86, is the unofficial mayor of Springfield.
http://www.rutlandherald.com/article/20150831/NEWS02/708319997

http://www.vermonttoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/RH/20150831/NEWS02/708319997 Long time Springfield businessman and Downtown Mayor Alan Pinders takes in the good weather in front of Furmans Clothing Store in Springfield Photo: Photo by Len EmeryPublished August 31, 2015 in the Rutland Herald Al Pinders, ‘Mr. Furman,” still a fixture on Main Street By SUSAN SMALLHEER Staff Writer SPRINGFIELD – Al Pinders knows practically everybody and everything about Springfield, Vt. He’s called “the mayor of Springfield,” and for proof of that, just look at the park bench on Main Street where there’s a small plaque in his honor. Pinders, “86 plus, plus, plus,” is a retired businessman who, for decades, sold Springfield business executives from the machine tool industry their suits, rented countless grooms their tuxedos, and their brides the necessities for setting up a household. You could buy everything from a handsome suit to ladies’ delicate lingerie to Christmas china at Furman’s. Furman’s Department Store on Main Street was famous for its custom tailoring, and it had a men’s and ladies’ shop in the Springfield Shopping Plaza. There was also a gift shop in the Woolson Block, where the Jennrywren Café is now located. Pinders and his family at one time had three “Furman’s” stores in Springfield, and also ran the shoe store on Main Street, as well as a men’s clothing store in nearby Claremont, N.H. The stores closed one by one over the years, until Pinders closed the flagship on Main Street in 2000. When it closed, Pinders had been a Main Street institution for 50 years. The Furman Building is now owned by Steve Greene, and is home to The Dance Factory, a yoga studio and a hair salon. But Greene has given Pinders a little apartment in the back of his old building, so he has a place to stay whenever he comes to town. Pinders is now widowed and lives during the cold weather in Clover, S.C., near his son and his family. But he returns to Springfield late every spring – “in time for Alumni Day,” and takes up his familiar spot on Main Street at his personal bench under a large maple tree, next to his former department store. “I held the tree, it was just a little sucker,” said Pinders during a recent warm afternoon. Pinders is about to return to South Carolina, a little ahead of schedule. All his appointments at the Veterans Administration Hospital in White River Junction (he’s a former U.S. Marine) are complete. Pinders has been holding court on his shady bench most days, passing the time, and catching up with a parade of friends, who know where to find him. They sit and chew over the latest news. A motorcycle aficionado who rides a BMW with a sidecar now because of problems with his feet, he can identify any Harley, year and model, as it roars through Main Street. He hails many people and knows their stories. His cellphone rings constantly. Pinders came to Springfield when he was an infant, and while in high school started working at Furman’s, eventually buying stock in the company. The best advice he ever got was when he got out of the Marines. “‘Make yourself essential,’” he said. Pinders served for 28 years on the Springfield Housing Authority, and is a big fan of the authority’s longtime executive director, Bill Morlock. A recent fire at the Huber Building, a short distance from Pinder’s bench, has kept Morlock more than busy coordinating repairs. Morlock was walking on the other side of Main Street, heading to his office. “He could have been town manager,” said Pinders, not suffering from any lack of opinions. Pinders is a born salesman, and the touch hasn’t left him about his hometown. “I think the changes in Springfield have been very positive,” said Pinders. “I think it’s survived all the hurts it’s had,” he said, referring to the almost elimination of the machine tool industry, which 30 years ago employed thousands of people in well-paying jobs. “Look,” he said, pointing to the downtown. “There are no wires overhead. Only Woodstock has that, paid for by a Rockefeller.” Retail is strong in town, he said, it’s just not downtown, where it was 50 years ago. “Don’t judge Springfield by the empty stores downtown. Look at all the business up River Street,” he said. “Springfield has been good to a lot of people,” he said, as another friend, Jim Baldwin, stopped by to talk. Baldwin has known Pinders for 60 years. And a street kid also comes up to talk to Pinders about something the pair are working on that he doesn’t want to talk about. It’s a constant flow of people. Pinders was so synonymous with the name Furman’s that a whole generation of Springfield residents think that his real name is Furman, he said with a laugh. As soon as the words were out of his mouth, a woman came up to him to say hello, calling him… “Mr. Furman.” He laughed. And laughed.