Obituary: Rholan Larson founded top accounting firm

Rholan Larson was an unassuming man.

In 1999, when an advisory council suggested his name as a possible University of Minnesota regent, he told his son it probably wouldn't happen. Bob Larson said his father felt he just was not the type to campaign for himself at the Legislature.

He was right. He was not selected.

Despite that lack of self-promotion, Rholan Larson had co-founded one of the nation's largest accounting firms, LarsonAllen, with his college buddy from the University of Minnesota. LarsonAllen is Minnesota's largest accounting firm, with 750 employees in the state and 1,000 other employees at offices across the nation.

Larson, who lived in Bloomington, died early Friday. He was 86.

"He was a very gentle, kind man," said Bob Larson. "He was sweet."

That such a sweet man thrived in the cutthroat world of business, said Bob Larson and current LarsonAllen CEO Gordon Viere, is a testament to the way Larson treated people.

Larson and fellow founder John Allen set a tone for the firm that established "total client service" when they founded it in 1953, said Viere. Bob Weishair joined the firm in 1957, forming Larson, Allen, Weishair and Co.

"Our simple formula for success was to meet the needs of our clients, take good care of our people and profits would follow," Larson said in a 2003 company history.

The formula worked. Although the nation has weathered difficult economic times, the firm "has never had a year where it has shrunk," Viere said.

Larson's life was not without challenges, Bob Larson said.

About 10 years ago, he fell asleep for a moment while he was driving his ailing first wife, Ruth, to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester and their car crashed. She died shortly thereafter.

Bob Larson said the way his father quietly handled those sorrows "says a lot about him."

Rholan Larson served in the U.S. Army infantry in Europe during World War II and received several medals for his service.

He also led several accounting organizations over his lifetime, was awarded a series of professional awards and recognized with the Outstanding Achievement Award by the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management.

He is survived by his wife, Avis Bear Larson; a daughter, Judy Huritz; four sons, Bob Larson, Bill Larson, Tom Larson and Ronn Larson; two sisters, Bea Pearson and Shirley Larson; 11 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.