The legacy of alvin schottenstein

 Alvin Schottenstein served his country as a Captain in the United States military in the Pacific Theater during World War II. While stationed overseas, he managed the post exchange—an early chapter in a lifetime spent understanding that people work hard for what they have and deserve genuine value for what they spend.

After returning home, Alvin became the first CEO of Schottenstein Stores, helping lead a family retail business whose history would ultimately include some of America's most recognizable value-oriented retail brands.

But the legacy we remember isn't simply about stores or business growth.

It is about a philosophy.

Work hard. Take care of people. Respect what they've worked to build. And always look for a better value.

Alvin often expressed that philosophy in four simple words:

"Better Living for Less."

Today, his grandson, Sam Schottenstein, carries that principle into a very different business.

At Linden Grove Agency, better value doesn't mean simply finding the lowest insurance premium. It means helping our clients understand what they're buying, comparing options across a broad range of insurance companies, and finding the right balance of coverage, protection and cost.

The business is different.

The principle isn't.

Better living begins with better value.

 Jurek “Joe” Werthaiser survived the Holocaust and came to America to rebuild a life that war and persecution had tried to take from him. He went on to become a successful businessman with Midwestern Feather, building a new future for his family through perseverance, enterprise, and relationships. 

His life would eventually take him far beyond the family business. During the Nixon era, Joe participated in efforts surrounding the opening of American trade with China—an extraordinary chapter for someone whose own life had been shaped by the consequences of nations and people being divided from one another.

But the lesson he passed down to his grandson Sam was far simpler.

"We love everybody."

For Joe, those weren't merely nice words.

Having experienced what can happen when people are excluded, isolated, and stripped of the protection of community, he understood that our security is connected to the security of those around us. Strong communities are built when people know one another, care for one another, do business with one another, and recognize a responsibility beyond themselves.

Sam grew up with that lesson.

Today, it influences the kind of agency we want Linden Grove to be: one built on relationships rather than transactions, where clients are known, neighbors matter, and success carries a responsibility to contribute to the communities that make it possible.

The circumstances are different.

The lesson endures.

We love everybody. And we take care of one another.