Charles E. “Gus” Whalen Jr., a Gainesville entrepreneur who turned the family manufacturing business that made corsets from the quills of fowls into a multigenerational educational facility, died Sunday. He was 70.
Whalen chaired the Warren Featherbone Company, which was founded by his great-grandfather, E.W Warren. Among many items the company manufactured were corsets made with the quills, called featherbones, instead of the more traditional whalebone.
Whalen also managed the Warren Featherbone Foundation, which he revived in 1993, after it had been dormant for many years. Under Whalen’s tenure, the foundation began to focus largely on healthcare and education.
When the manufacturing side of the Warren Featherbone Company was sold in early 2005, Whalen reinvented the manufacturing complex on Chestnut Street as the Featherbone Communiversity, which is a first-of-its-kind center for training and new business development.
Today, the facility is home to the Brenau University departments of nursing and occupational therapy, the Interactive Neighborhood for Kids, and the Lanier Technical College Manufacturing Development Center, as well as the University of Georgia Small Business Development Center and the Georgia Tech Enterprise Innovation Institute.
Each year, the communiversity honors the best in the fields of teaching, nursing, craftsmen, entrepreneurs and public safety, programs that were Whalen’s idea to pay tribute to those who were making a difference in the community.
Whalen often spoke at national and international venues about the Warren Featherbone Company and about corporate philanthropy. He was the author of four books.
Whalen remained active in the community and within industry affairs. He is past chairman of the American Apparel Manufacturers Association and has served two terms on Georgia’s Workforce Investment Board. He was a member of the Gainesville Kiwanis Club.
This story will be updated.
