“My family moved to Old Orchard when I was nine years old,” said Jim, recalling the day he first became friends with Leonard — or “Len,” as Jim calls him. “School was out and I didn’t know anyone in the new neighborhood, so I went out for a bike ride. I saw Len and recognized him as the kid that always beat me at swim meets — so I stopped to talk with him.”
That initial encounter led to a friendship so strong, Len would call the two of them “the dynamic duo” throughout their lives. Though the boys went on to play different sports (Jim, football; Len, swimming) and went on to different careers (Jim practiced law, Len owned and managed four cosmetology schools), they remained best buddies, enjoying area nightlife when young and travel as they grew older, and occasionally reconnecting with high school buddies, until Len’s passing from a second bout with cancer in 2022.
“Len had philanthropic gifts in mind before cancer struck him a second time,” said Jim. “He owned and operated a number of cosmetology schools and wanted to use some of what he had accrued over the years to support two of his greatest loves in life: swimming and animals,” he recalled fondly. “He wanted my help to create something special with the resources he would eventually leave behind.”
Len was not just a swimmer — he was a champion, posting more than 500 career first-place finishes and ranking in the top 20 at a national YMCA meet during his teen years. Len’s desire to share his love of swimming inspired Jim’s recommendation to establish a legacy fund with Greater Toledo Community Foundation to support operations and swimming education at Toledo’s city pools during summer months.
Noting Len’s deep affection for his pets — a cat, two whippets and a greyhound — Jim also described how he helped his friend create another legacy fund on behalf of an uncommon animal beneficiary: police dogs. Len’s gift will support the acquisition of four-legged police force members, and training for both the pups and their Toledo Police handlers.
Jim was especially pleased that the Toledo Police K-9 unit will honor Len with a special patch recognizing his gift on K-9 handlers’ uniforms. “And one of their new pups has been named in his honor,” he added proudly.
“They’ve called him Lenny.”