In Memoriam: Charles ‘Charlie’ Frommer

 

Charlie and wife Lori owned and operated Great Neck, N.Y.-based Evins Pest Control, which they bought from Dave and Jackie Ferguson in 1992, and sold to Rollins in 2012.

 

Prior to moving to the service side of the industry, Charlie had a distinguished career with the state of New York and later with manufacturer Velsicol Chemical Corporation. In October 1971, Charlie was appointed by the commissioner of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation to be director of the Bureau of Pest Control, becoming New York’s first pest control official. He served in that position until February 1980 when he was recruited by Velsicol.

 

At Velsicol, Charlie served as vice president of regulatory and government affairs. In 1987, Charlie and four other members of Velsicol’s management team purchased Velsicol in an employee buy-out. At that time Velsicol had 500 employees and was one of the most highly visible and financially successful chemical manufacturers in the pest control industry.

 

Charlie was one of the industry’s staunchest defenders and an early proponent of NPMA Legislative Day. One of his greatest contributions to the pest control industry was in 1986 when he appeared on 60 Minutes to be interviewed by aggressive, confrontational investigative reporter Mike Wallace. Charlie was tasked with explaining the pest control industry’s position on chlordane, which at the time was under regulatory review because of human health concerns.

 

As recounted in his 1997 PCT Leadership profile, Charlie spent hours preparing for the interview with a consultant, and Velsicol was open with 60 Minutes in providing access to information and resources. “In fact, several months after the show aired, Mike Wallace said Velsicol had been one of the five most cooperative companies he had ever interviewed,” he recalled.

 

This transparency, combined with Charlie’s on-air appearance, calmed a rising tide of fear about how the pest control industry would be portrayed. One year later, in 1987, Charlie was instrumental in helping the pest control industry negotiate to have chlordane phased out rather than banned.

 

In 1992, Charlie and wife Lori, a former pesticide regulatory official in California, were seeking a new challenge, so they sought out pest control company ownership. After reviewing more than 60 pest control firms from throughout the U.S., they decided to purchase Evins Pest Control, whose history dated back to 1936, when it was founded by Phil Mayer, an early mentor of Frommer.

 

Under the leadership of Charlie and Lori, Evins grew to become a leading NYC area pest control company, primarily servicing commercial accounts. Charlie continued his involvement in legislation and regulatory issues and remained an active member of pest control associations at the state and national level.

 

There will be a celebration of his life next summer at Soft Maple, Charlie’s former hunt camp and home since 2019, located in Croghan, N.Y.