Services have been held for men’s wear veteran Richard Ernest von Seelen, 75, who died Jan. 30 in Sarasota, Fla.
Von Seelen spent his entire career in men’s wear, starting in the Sixties as a road rep for Hathaway Shirts. He also served as executive vice president of men’s wear for The Warnaco Group Inc. for 20 years and was president of the North American division of Dawson International, which housed brands such as Ballantyne, Pringle of Scotland, Cashmere, Cashmere and Oscar de la Renta Cashmere as well as fine yarn suppliers Todd & Duncan and Laidlaw and Fairgrave. He was also credited with launching and overseeing the Nick Faldo Collection in North America. He served as an officer in the U.S. Army and was president of the Garden City Men’s Association in New York, which supported high school athletics. After he retired, he was a substitute teacher at Greenport High School in Greenport, N.Y., before moving to Florida.
Survivors include his wife of 52 years, Carolyn; sons Kurt and Keith; daughters Lisa Nelson, Karen Fernandez and Lara Haffenreffer; sister Diane Maldon; and 12 grandchildren.