Donald Friese

Donald Friese is chief executive of C.R. Laurence, a Vernon company that manufacturers and distributes tools and parts used by glazing companies — think window frames and hinges for glass shower doors. After graduating from high school, Friese immediately enlisted in the U.S. Army. It was 1958, after the Korean War and before American troops went to Vietnam. Friese was trained as a missile mechanic and was stationed in Taiwan and Okinawa. After arriving in Los Angeles, Friese got an entry-level job at C.R. Laurence, which at the time had a single location at 7th and Mateo streets in what’s now downtown L.A.’s trendy Arts District. He did it so well that after a few years, C.R. Laurence’s owner, Bernie Harris, offered to sell Friese a stake in the company. He steadily increased his investment and bought Harris out when he retired about 20 years ago. Over Friese’s long tenure with the company, C.R. Laurence acquired other distributorships and parts manufacturers, eventually becoming the country’s largest supplier to the glazing industry. Friese still goes to work six days a week. He’s in the office at 6 a.m. most days and is back home in Chatsworth — in the same home where he and Andrea, his wife of 53 years, have lived for nearly three decades — by 6:30 p.m. On Saturday, he heads home at noon. he said he wants to make sure not to give too much to his three grown children.