Paul Lorenzini: 1939-2017
Paul Lorenzini, a longtime member of the Saint Louis University Board of Trustees and supporter of the University, died Nov. 30, 2017. He was 78.
Mr. Lorenzini earned his bachelor’s degree in 1964 from Southeast Missouri State University. In 1970, he co-founded Packaging Consultants Inc., a St. Louis-based distribution company that supplied packaging materials to the food industry. In 1983, Bunzl PLC, a London-based worldwide operating company, acquired the business.
Mr. Lorenzini went to work for Bunzl and was named president of Bunzl USA in 1986. He later became chief executive officer and chairman of Bunzl North America. During his nearly 20-year tenure, the company’s annual sales increased from $400 million to $2.6 billion, making Bunzl the largest packaging distributor in the country.
In 2004, Mr. Lorenzini retired from Bunzl as chairman emeritus. The company honored his years of service by endowing a professorship at SLU in his name, the Paul G. Lorenzini Endowed Professor in International Business in the Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business.
Mr. Lorenzini had served on SLU’s Board of Trustees non-consecutively since 1996. He also served on the board of directors of St. Anthony's Medical Center, the executive board of Cascade Pacific Council Boy Scouts of America (2010) and as a commissioner for the St. Louis Regional Convention and Sports Complex Authority.
Mr. Lorenzini’s wife, LaVerne, is a 1964 graduate of SLU’s College of Arts and Sciences. Together, they supported numerous non-profit organizations, including Saint Louis University, the St. Louis Zoo, Catholic Charities and Queen of Peace Center, a family-centered behavioral health care provider for women with addiction and their children.
To recognize their many contributions to Saint Louis University and the greater community, SLU named Lorenzini’s — a 4,700-square-foot club in Chaifetz Arena used for dinners, parties and special functions — in their honor.
In addition to his wife, Mr. Lorenzini is survived by two daughters. Michelle Lorenzini, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of political science at SLU and the director of the University’s Sam and Marilyn Fox Atlas Week Program. Karen Lorenzini, J.D., earned her juris doctorate from the Saint Louis University School of Law.
“Mr. Lorenzini was a dedicated trustee who cared deeply about the University and its success,” said Saint Louis University President Fred P. Pestello, Ph.D. “He took particular pride in the Atlas Program, run by his daughter. During Atlas Week, Paul and LaVerne were fixtures on campus supporting Michelle, our students, and the program. He will be missed by the trustees and members of the SLU and St. Louis communities.”
Visitation will be held 4–8 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 5, at Ortmann-Stipanovich Funeral Home, 12444 Olive Blvd., Creve Coeur, Missouri. The funeral Mass will be celebrated at 10:30 a.m., Wednesday, Dec. 6, in St. Francis Xavier College Church, 3628 Lindell Blvd. Parking is available in the University Garage at the corner of Laclede Avenue and Grand Boulevard. Interment will be held following the funeral Mass at Calvary Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Sam and Marilyn Fox Atlas Week Program at Saint Louis University, McGannon Hall Room 138, 3750 Lindell Blvd., St. Louis, Missouri, 63108 (attention: Michelle Lorenzini); or to the Queen of Peace Center, 325 N. Newstead Ave., St. Louis, Missouri, 63108.