Wilbert Parkhurst

Wilbert Parkhurst
Wilbert Parkhurst
Occupation	industrialist, and sportsman
Notes
	Parkhurst was also the owner of the "Vaqueros de Bayamón" (Bayamon Cowboys), a basketball team.

Last updated September 09, 2019

Wilbert Parkhurst was the founder of Empresas La Famosa, Inc., a company dedicated to the packaging and distribution of canned fruits and juices. The company, whose products are sold in 62 countries, is the owner of the brands "Famosa", "Criada" and "Coco Lopez"

Early years

In 1906, Parkhurst moved to Puerto Rico from Millville, New Jersey with his wife Bertha Jane and his three sons Wilbert Nicholas, Norman Eugene, Howard Allen.^[1] He purchased some land in the town of Bayamon and cultivated citrus fruits such as grapefruits and pineapples.^[2]

New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is a peninsula, bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware River and Pennsylvania; and on the southwest by the Delaware Bay and Delaware. New Jersey is the fourth-smallest state by area but the 11th-most populous, with 9 million residents as of 2017, making it the most densely populated of the 50 U.S. states with its biggest city being Newark. New Jersey lies completely within the combined statistical areas of New York City and Philadelphia. New Jersey was the second-wealthiest U.S. state by median household income as of 2017.

Empresas La Famosa, Inc.

In 1921, Parkhurst founded the Parkhurst Canning Co.; a company dedicated to canning and distribution of the fruits produced in his lands. In 1923, the company was renamed Empresas La Famosa, Inc. and Norman Eugene served as president. The company succeeded in introducing its products to the local market and continued to grow. Parkhurst's family became involved in the business which by 1971, included Frozen Fruits Concentrates, Inc. (the juice brand "Caribe"), Toa Canning Co., La Concentradora de Puerto Rico and Bayamón Can Company.^[2]

Ramón López Irizarry, a successful Puerto Rican inventor, packaged his product "Coco López" at the Industrias La Famosa canning factory. "Coco López" contained the ingredients which became the basis for the piña colada drink, which made its first appearance in 1954. In 1966, he sold the brand to the Parkhurst family, which later forged a deal with David Ballachow to distribute the product in the continental United States.^[3] In 1978, the Parkhurst family sold Empresas La Famosa, Inc. and the Coco López brand to the Borden company.^[2]

Ramón Lopez-Irizarry was an educator and scientist who invented an easier way to extract the cream from the coconut pulp and developed the original formula of Coco López.

Coco López is a Puerto Rican coconut product which is used in many popular drinks.

The piña colada is a sweet cocktail made with rum, cream of coconut or coconut milk, and pineapple juice, usually served either blended or shaken with ice. It may be garnished with either a pineapple wedge, maraschino cherry, or both. There are two versions of the drink's origin, but both say it originated in Puerto Rico.

Later years

Parkhurst's son, Wilbert Nicholas (January 4, 1927 - January 11, 2010), was the owner of the Vaqueros de Bayamón (lit. "Bayamon Cowboys"), a professional basketball team based in Bayamón, Puerto Rico. The team, which played in the BSN league of Puerto Rico, won their third championship in 1967, under his ownership.^[4]

The Vaqueros de Bayamón are a Puerto Rican basketball team of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional based in Bayamón, Puerto Rico. The Vaqueros play their home games at Rubén Rodríguez Coliseum, a venue shared with the Liga de Voleibol Superior Femenino women's volleyball team Vaqueras de Bayamón. The Vaqueros are one of the most successful teams in the history of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional, having won 14 league championships, their last being in 2009.

A professional is a member of a profession or any person who earns their living from a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and skills necessary to perform their specific role within that profession. In addition, most professionals are subject to strict codes of conduct, enshrining rigorous ethical and moral obligations. Professional standards of practice and ethics for a particular field are typically agreed upon and maintained through widely recognized professional associations, such as the IEEE. Some definitions of "professional" limit this term to those professions that serve some important aspect of public interest and the general good of society.

Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball through the defender's hoop while preventing the opposing team from shooting through their own hoop. A field goal is worth two points, unless made from behind the three-point line, when it is worth three. After a foul, timed play stops and the player fouled or designated to shoot a technical foul is given one or more one-point free throws. The team with the most points at the end of the game wins, but if regulation play expires with the score tied, an additional period of play (overtime) is mandated.

The town of Las Piedras, Puerto Rico named an urbanization "Parkhurst" in honor of the Parkhurst family.^[5]

Las Piedras is a municipality in east Puerto Rico (U.S.) located in the center region of the island, north of Yabucoa; south of Canóvanas and Río Grande; east of Juncos and San Lorenzo; and west of Naguabo and Humacao. Las Piedras is spread over 7 wards and Las Piedras Pueblo. It is part of the San Juan-Caguas-Guaynabo Metropolitan Statistical Area.

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References

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[1] The Parkhurst Family Journal

[LF-2] 1 2 3 Empresas La Famosa, Inc.

[S-3] Slammed Magazine

[4] Vaqueros de Bayamón

[5] Parkhurst