“People often say ‘A picture is worth a thousand words.’ But the original quote was actually ‘A picture is worth ten thousand words’ as stated by Fred R. Barnard, of Printers’ Ink, 10 March 1927.

If that is true, the framed memories of family and friends, vacations and ventures adorning the walls of their home would fill a library. John Larish and Rose Ellen Quinn met as coworkers at the Ansco Film Company (Kodak’s old rival) in Binghamton, NY. John was new hire learning the company products and services, and Rose Ellen was one of the secretaries. Pretty and petite she also caught his attention because she was the one who distributed the pay checks at the end of each week.

Some of John’s work included time in the dark room, and the young couple often took their breaks in the lab to see what would develop. Fancying himself a reasonable cook, he invited her to his apartment for dinner one evening. She was delighted at the invitation from the tall handsome traveling salesman and accepted. Two of her aunts came along to chaperone.  Rose Ellen grew up in a dairy farm family and attended a rural school where cows frequently were seen peeking in the classroom windows. She then took a one year business course and had worked at Ansco for almost a decade.

After completing his training, John was assigned as a technical sales rep in Indiana, headquartered in Indianapolis. The couple stayed in touch, and that summer Rose Ellen, her mother, dad and two sisters stopped in to visit him. One evening, John took the whole Quinn family to Louisville, Kentucky, for an evening steamboat cruise on the Ohio River, a trip sponsored by the Louisville Professional Photographers Association. He slipped Rose Ellen away from the noisy crowd and in the moonlight on the quiet, dark top deck of the paddle wheeler he proposed. When she said yes, they came down and shared the happy news with family, friends and photographers..

They were married on June 10, 1961, in Binghamton and their reception was held in the parish hall where the pastor did not allow alcoholic beverages; they had their champagne toast at an after party and then left immediately for a month long honeymoon in Europe. Because of engine trouble, their Air France flight was delayed, and they had to spend their first night in a NYC hotel with no luggage—not even a tooth brush. Finally they did get to Paris, then to Frankfort where they visited the Volkswagen plant and bought a brand new Karmen Ghia for $1,000. Then on to Munich and Slovania where they stayed in a barn with a balcony and slept on a mattress filled with fresh straw gathered from the fields. John introduced Rose Ellen to his grandmother and his family in the old country.

When they returned to Indianapolis, John had another surprise for his bride. He had purchased a new house that was under construction but not quite ready for the newlyweds to inhabit. So for the first month back in the USA Rose Ellen traveled with him around Indiana, Kentucky and Illinois and met and became close friends with many of his customers. There were nine houses on the block they moved into, all occupied by young couples or families. At the end of the first year the population of the neighborhood had increased, with four babies being born within one week. Three of the four Larish children, John, Mary and James, were born and baptized in Indianapolis. In her spare time Rose Ellen learned to crochet.

John’s career was going well, and he was promoted to Industrial Specialist covering a large part of the Midwest with major customers in Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Omaha, St. Louis and Wichita. It was a good move but involved a lot of travel. Next he was transferred to San Francisco, CA, as District Sales Manager covering the Pacific Northwest. They lived in a brand new house in Danville, CA, but much of the time John was traveling to Seattle, Las Vegas or Salt Lake City—important potential markets for Ansco.

He then received an offer to join Kodak in Rochester, NY, as a Professional Technical Sales Rep (TSR). The family moved back to a small rented house in suburban Brighton,  and in May of 1969, their daughter Susan was born. Soon after, the job took John to NYC and the family moved to Suffern, NY.  He was responsible for the Kodak professional information desk and later planning and supervising the move of the facility to a new building on the Avenue of the Americas.  After the move John was appointed TSR  covering the SOHO area.  It included working with the Police Photo and Crime Labs and Fire Department Photo Unit.  Some nights John drove around with the police or fire department photographers to better understand their needs.  In addition to his corporate duties, John organized dozens of programs for photographers in NYC and developed the slogan, “Kodak is people who care!”  He was also an adjunct faculty member at the Cooper Union School of Art and Architecture, teaching a class in the fundamentals of color materials.

With the excitement of the city added to  his resume, John became coordinator of Customer Training for Professional and Finishing Markets at the Kodak Marketing Education Center in Rochester. The facility was ultramodern with rotating stages in the lecture rooms, a large auditorium and several floors of laboratories. Visitors from around the world came to learn about the latest Kodak products and methods. The Larishes hosted many international guests at their home—a wonderful experience for the whole family.

In the entry hall of their home hangs what resembles a roll of paper towels, but is in fact a length of linen fabric containing the signatures of everyone who has visited their home since the time they were married. Some are written in Asian or Cyrillic characters. Rose Ellen then embroiders over the signature to keep it from fading. It is a beautiful keepsake which I was privileged to sign.

When John became part of the International Markets Group, covering Africa, the Middle East and Japan, it meant six-week trips around the world. Rose Ellen was left in Rochester to deal with the weather–snow up to her waist– while he was gone.

At this juncture of his career John decided to complete his studies and enrolled at the State University of NY Empire State College, using work experience, previous college credits and individually mentored classes to earn a bachelor’s degree in 1980.  About this time electronic photography was appearing, and Kodak needed to be part of the movement.  In his last presentation to the members of the Office of the Chief Executive, John recommended hiring an outside electronic VP to move the company in that direction.  It didn’t happen.

In January, 1984, John retired from Kodak and started his own company, Jonrel Imaging Consultants.  He had his wife’s full support; but starting a new business was a financial challenge, and when he was approached by two investment partners, he sold the company and became an employee.  He was awarded two patents in 1988 and 1989 for a system that allowed a studio photographer to immediately show proofs of a portrait sitting–an early example of the electronic and digital revolution in the industry.

John was approached to write a book on the subject.  It was the first in the field and led to almost two dozen other books, more than five hundred business articles and even a couple of newspaper sections telling the story of digital photography.  In time the investors decided that Jonrel did not fit their investment strategy, so without any investment on his part, John regained ownership of the company.

At the same time he was writing for publications around the world as well as for the local Rochester newspaper.  He made presentations at conferences in the US and overseas, held broadcast interviews and was hired as Imaging Analyst for a local 24-hour TV news station.  John emphasized the opportunity of the coming field of electronic and digital photography, but it was difficult for the general public to comprehend that traditional methods of chemical still photography and printing were about to disappear.  In 1992, The New York Times ran a column entitled “He’s Seen the Future and  It’s Digital.”  It was frustrating for him to watch the more than 100-year-old Eastman Kodak Company lose its dominant position in the world of imaging.

In 2010, with health and financial challenges facing him, John gave up Jonrel Imaging Consultants and took himself into Chapter 7 bankruptcy just before having major spinal surgery.  Passing his eightieth birthday, John began to slow down but still continued to write about Catholic Church events and personal experiences and musings.  Through it all Rose Ellen was at  his side, literally and figuratively.  She was his chief cheerleader in all he attempted and accomplished, served as editor and transciber of his writings, and nursed him through his medical difficulties–a true and loving partner.

In their travels John and Rose Ellen collected crèches and although they have given away over two hundred they still have a sizeable collection they display at their parish church or the Sacred Heart Cathedral in Rochester. The nativity sets range in size from a carving within a walnut shell made by the trainee woodcarvers in Oberamergau, Germany, to a life-size lawn display. A ceramic set made in Spain is their favorite. Another prized piece of art is a Japanese wedding Kimono that John purchased for $500 in San Francisco against his wife’s wishes. She felt that with four young children, it was an extravagance they couldn’t afford. That was the one time he did something of which she adamantly disapproved.

They claim never to have had a “real argument” because they have compatible personalities and similar tastes and interests. That doesn’t mean they don’t sometimes disagree; they just handle it amicably. Also they listen to and respect each others’ opinions.  The story of their life and love is told in the myriad cherished photos and paintings that literally blanket the walls of their home. Having weathered the challenges of a corporate career and now dealing with health concerns and mobility issues,  John and Rose Ellen Larish celebrated their 57th wedding anniversary this year and are still very much in love.