"George Sundquist, founder of Sundquist Associates, has been building as long as he can remember. Born in Finland, "the old country" as he tells it, George didn’t think about building as a profession or a get-rich proposition. It was his life and he just loved to do it. "In those days, you built a building by yourself from the ground up. I helped my father build structures on his farm. There was no-one to help us then. It was a way of life."
In 1952 George Sundquist left Finland to see the world. He wound up working for an uncle in San Francisco who was a contractor by trade and who gave George words to live by: "If you’re willing to work, you will always make it in America.
George designed and built his first house in the United States in 1959, in East Palo Alto. For the next ten years, which he describes as particularly gratifying, he worked as a foreman and superintendent for Cliff May—John Jessup Associates in Palo Alto, building homes designed by Cliff May, a known name in California mission architecture.
George was so in love with building that, when they were old enough, he insisted that each of his children, son Erik and twin girls Stacy and Britt-Marie, learn the basics. He brought the children along to job sites, hoping to instill in them the value of working with their hands. With these skills, he reckoned, they would one day be able to build their own home or create beautifully crafted structures that would become a client’s home.
When a hip problem in 1969 limited him from swinging the hammer to the degree of perfection he was accustomed to, George formed Sundquist Associates to continue the legacy: that of superior old world craftsmanship in home construction, and honesty and integrity in all business transactions. He and a core group of three other Finns – his brother and two close friends, carpenters all – formed what George describes as "the best crew you could ever find." Together they did everything from foundations to finishes. Their motto was simple: to promise and to deliver, often on a handshake.
George didn’t have a vision of forming a family business that the children would take on into the future. His only desire was hands-on building. But now that son Erik has joined the company as co-owner and managing director, he takes delight observing how differently Erik handles the business. How different? "I love to build houses, Erik wants to build a company. For me, it’s satisfying to work physically and come home at night after a hard day’s work. He’s passionate about the process, expanding and refining it. He needs to do that to be challenged. It’s an entirely different philosophy." Father and son share the same operating principals, however, namely, do the best job possible, conduct work in a timely manner, and stay on budget.
An avid sports fan since his youth, in 1967 George started the first youth soccer team outside of San Francisco. His Redwood City club, for youth under 18, won several state and regional championships over the next 10 years. In 1969 he co-founded the California Youth Soccer Association, which today is the largest state association with nearly a quarter million registered players. George served as Treasurer, Vice Chair, State Youth Commissioner and board member over a 20-year period. In 1982, George Sundquist was inducted into the California Youth Soccer Hall of Fame. He served as Chair of the National Youth Championships from 1978 to 1987 and a member of the local organizing committee for the 1994 World Soccer Cup held in the U.S.
George has been married to Marion Sundquist since 1958.
