Hundreds Expected At Funeral For Art Van Elslander

DETROIT (WWJ) - The Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament in Detroit is expected to be packed with mourners Friday morning, paying their last respects to Art Van Elslander.

The popular philanthropist and founder of Art Van furniture died earlier this week at the age of 87.

The funeral gets underway at 11 a.m. The family asks that memorial donations be made to The Province of St. Joseph of the Capuchin Order or to Alcoholics Anonymous.

Van Elslander died after a battle with lung cancer, and passed away surrounded by his family.

Chairman and founder of Art Van, Van Elslander opened his first store on Gratiot Ave. at 10 Mile in Detroit in 1959. Currently, the company — which was sold to a private equity firm in 2017 — operates more than 100 stores in five states, employing 3,500 people.

Equally known for his philanthropy, Van Elslander was credited with saving Detroit's then-struggling Thanksgiving Parade, when in 1990 he wrote personal check for $200,000, saving the parade from the brink of cancellation and keeping the tradition alive.