Passing of Mrs. Mac LaForce


UW-Green Bay mourns the passing of longtime community friend Eleanor “Mac” LaForce, 90, who died last weekend in Green Bay. Born in Chicago as Eleanor MacBride (hence, the nickname “Mac,” which she carried for life), she attended the UW and worked for a time as a stewardess for Pan American Airways on newly-opened routes from Miami to Cuba, Colombia, Suriname and Venezuela, later telling stories of flying in unpressurized cabins, landing on grass runways illumined by hand-held lanterns, and cargo holds filled with the U.S. Mail as well as live chickens. Post-WWII she and husband Joe LaForce settled in Green Bay and eventually founded LaForce Builders Hardware, which became one of the nation’s largest distributors of doors and related hardware. Just a few weeks before her death, she attended a lunch celebrating more than 50 students from St. Norbert and UWGB who have been awarded scholarships by the LaForce Family Foundation, which was established by Mac’s and Joe’s children to continue their spirit of giving in the Green Bay community. The elder LaForces were supporters of the UWGB Founders Association since its founding in the 1970s, and Joe served on the board in the 1980s. In 2006, he made a major gift endowing the Joe LaForce Business Faculty Development Fund. A year later, following Joe’s death, Mac created the Joseph and Mac LaForce Business Scholarship. The LaForce family will celebrate the life of Mac LaForce next Friday (Nov. 6) at 3 p.m. at Oneida Country Club in Green Bay. All are welcome.