Russ Kool’s passing, at the age of 88, is a tremendous loss for Camp Courageous; our family, personally; and the entire world he touched.  I sincerely believe the more Russ gave, the more it came back to him many times over.  And even though we were not as close after his wife, Marty’s passing, his lasting imprint on Camp Courageous, and so many others, will be his wonderful legacy…  It has been truly heartwarming to open the file on Russ Kool and read through our decades of correspondence, pictures, and personal notes…

Russ began his involvement with Camp Courageous in the 1980s after attending a Camp Courageous Open House/Breakfast.  During that event Russ and Marty had many questions about the campers, the staff, and everything Camp Courageous.  Russ and Marty quickly few in love with the place, and soon after they began supplying Camp Courageous with all the Camp’s washing and drying equipment.  

By 1990 Camp Courageous began to make major improvements in its facilities, which started with a new Main Lodge.  The Lodge was going to be at the heart of Camp Courageous.  Not only was it going to be capable of serving meals for 100+ campers, 100+ staff, and dozens of volunteers, but it would also house all the dietary and food storage.  This 20,000 square foot building needed to be the hub for water and electrical needs and have a basement storm shelter that could house the entire Camp.  For Russ, key to an exceptional camp…was an exceptional laundry service.  Russ (RJ Kool) had already installed commercial washers and dryers in the multipurpose building…but now Camp was preparing for a huge future, which required multiple units and an entire engineered design from power needs to water intake to discharge.  Russ engineered a state-of-the-art laundry facility within the new Lodge.  He continued to provide laundry equipment for the entire camp, particularly the staff.  And with activities like caving (spelunking)…camp staff were hard on laundry equipment…many may remember the days of how much can one get in a washer?

Over the years, Russ and Marty were constantly interested in the camp’s needs…and fulfilling those needs, from a trailer to a pick-up truck, to a golf cart…they were always there to help.  In addition, Russ introduced Camp Courageous to hundreds of new friends, like City Launderers-Roger Wetlaufer, who supplied Camp with towels and his grandson, Colin, later supplied Camp with Camper T-Shirts for every camper.  Russ also opened doors to for Camp to give programs to many new groups.

Russ was a true entrepreneur, which lead him to building his first coin-operated laundry—marking the beginning of a lifetime devoted to building businesses and serving his community.  Seeking broader opportunities, Russ and his wife, Marty (Johnston), moved to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where they founded the R.J. Kool Company. The dealership sold and leased commercial laundry and dry-cleaning equipment and steadily grew under their leadership. With the construction of a new office and warehouse and expansion into Kansas City and Nebraska, R.J. Kool Company became one of the larger businesses of its kind in the United States.  I fondly remember sitting with Russ, as he showed me his many projects and the challenges, for example, shipping equipment to Africa.