Chip Off The Old Block Three Generations Have Given White Block A Solid Business Foundation

Fifty-two years ago Thursday, Japan surrendered to the United States, ending World War II.

It was an event that led directly to the founding of one of Spokane’s oldest concrete companies.

Because if Japan didn’t surrender, twin brothers Harold “Hank” and Edward White would have been in the middle of what military historians believe would have been one of the bloodiest battles of the war.

And if the brothers, who served together in the same army company, hadn’t returned to Spokane in 1946, they might never have founded the White Block Co.

Now in its 52nd year, White Block has grown steadily but not wildly since Hank and Edward stumbled into the concrete business, virtually by accident.

With about 15 employees at the same Valley location on East Trent the Whites bought in 1947, the company is still family owned and still churns out concrete in all shapes and sizes.

Products range from building blocks and pavers to parking-lot bumpers and septic tanks.

While the company keeps on humming, Hank and Ed retired in 1977, handing the business over to a second generation. Some 22 years later, members of the third generation now share ownership.

Every year, the company has grown, said Hank.

“When we turned the company over to them, we just sat back and watched it go,” he said. “It just took off. It’s been good times.”

Wayne White, Ed’s son and the company’s current president, said the keys to success haven’t changed. Like most small businesses, White Block survives by delivering customer service and quality products, Wayne said.

“Basically, the owners are still hands-on,” Wayne said. “We work with our employees.”

The White Block Co. almost wasn’t.

When Ed and Hank returned from World War II at the age of 30 (they’re now 82), the Priest River natives planned to get into the truck repair business, a field they knew from working with their older brother, William.

But as they were ordering supplies for the well they planned to drill, the brothers were told it would take three weeks to receive their shipment of 230 concrete blocks.

“Maybe this is the business we should be in,” Ed recalls saying.

After a tour of concrete plants in Portland and Seattle to learn the business, they were up and running.

The company was successful from the start, but it wasn’t a lot of fun.

“We used to never see the kids,” Hank said. “We didn’t take a vacation for the first 15, 16 years. We worked seven days a week. At about that time, you get pretty tired.”

They also learned some hard lessons.

The brothers took out a $5,000 loan from a Spokane bank and had to sell their homes to pay it off. As a result, they built houses on the White Block lot, where Hank still lives.

The experience gave them a strong intolerance for debt.

“Everything we’ve bought since then has been cash,” Hank said.

That policy continues to this day.

“If you can’t afford it, don’t do it,” Wayne White said. “They drilled that into our heads. Maybe it’s paid off by keeping us out of debt, but maybe we could have grown faster.”

The tradition of working long hours was also passed down to the next generation, and to the third generation as well. As a result, said Wayne, who is 60, he has no problem passing on the reins.

“They’re hard workers just like we were,” Wayne said.“I have all the confidence in the world in them.”