Columbus Avenue and the Upper West Side Oral History Project interview with Bruce Stark, April 10, 2019 and April 24, 2019

In this two-part interview, Bruce Stark (b. July 11, 1957) tells the story of growing up in Commack, Long Island and commuting to the family business located at 371 Amsterdam Avenue (initially named Beacon Paint and Varnish, then Beacon Paint and Wallpaper, and finally Beacon Paint and Hardware). He describes the neighborhood as he first encountered it when his father, Mel, bought the store in 1971 and describes how it changed over the years. Stark talks about the community service that he organized through the store: regular donations to public schools (particularly Public School 87 located at 160 West 78th Street), an annual event for school kids to paint over graffiti on neighborhood mailboxes, a nighttime fundraiser in Central Park for xeroderma pigmentosum (a rare skin disease), and a walkathon for Guiding Eyes for the Blind to honor Stark's sister, Marsha, who was blind and died young. Stark reminisces about the store's successes (including being named NYC Small Business of the Year in 2008 and Paint Dealer of the Year and Hardware Dealer of the Year in 2009), and he talks about the challenges of staying in business. He describes the support that Upper West Siders give to one another and the pride he feels in the neighborhood. Interview conducted on April 10, 2019 and April 24, 2019, by Leyla Vural; recorded at the conference room of the Columbus Avenue Business Improvement District.