Chester Beard built downtown business on shoes and service

During downtown Everett’s heydays in the 1940s and ’50s, shoppers could choose from more than 20 shoe stores. Times changed, stores closed, and then there was one — Chester Beard Shoes and Apparel.

“We stayed downtown longer than most people did,” said Evelyn Beard, who helped her husband run the store on Colby Avenue for decades, until it closed in 1995. The couple later worked at the family’s SAS Shoes near Everett Mall.

“He didn’t do high fashion, high heels. He’d concentrate on what people were asking for,” Evelyn Beard said. “When styles changed to more comfort, he was already there.”

A lifelong resident of Everett, Chester “Bud” Beard Jr. died May 3. He was 76.

A 1950 graduate of Everett High School, he joined his father in the family business after his graduation from the University of Washington in 1954.

The business had long been an institution downtown. Beard Brothers Shoes, on Hewitt Avenue, was founded in 1915 by identical twins Chester and Lester Beard, Chester Beard’s father and uncle. The store had one other location before the move to Colby.

“In the downtown area, you knew everybody, all the other shopkeepers,” said Evelyn Beard. She got to know her future husband through the Colby Avenue floral business owned by her father, Herbert Quaas.

“Bud used to come in and buy flowers. I went up and bought shoes from his store. He invited me out for coffee. By the time we got to the front door, he had invited me out to dinner,” she said.

Born Dec. 6, 1931, Chester Beard is survived by his wife, Evelyn; and by three children, Julie Rozell, of Camano Island; Chester “Buzz” Beard, III, of Everett; and Krys Beard, of Tacoma.

Perry Snyder, 84, of Bend, Ore., lived next door to the Beards on Colby Avenue when Chester was a boy. “I remember their back yard all fenced for him to play. He wanted to go out in the big world,” Snyder said.

Evelyn Beard said she took time out to raise their children, but later worked full-time with her husband. “That can be difficult, but we worked it out pretty well,” she said.

Parking problems forced them out of downtown after the Everett Mutual Tower was built, she said. “We’d still be in the downtown area, but that retail is gone,” she said.

Away from business, the family spent time at a summer place on Whidbey Island, where Beard enjoyed fishing and crabbing. After retirement, he became a master gardener.

Always active in his church, Everett’s Trinity Episcopal, Beard devoted much time to the Kairos Prison Ministry, a nondenominational group. “He really enjoyed doing that,” said Evelyn Beard. Her husband visited the penitentiary at Monroe one Saturday each month, and took part in retreats several times a year.

With Glen Atwood, a close friend from church, Beard was also involved in Cursillo.

“It’s a Christian organization: make a friend, be a friend, bring a friend to Christ,” said Atwood, 69, of Everett. “We became very close friends.”

They visited prisoners together for years. “The inmates loved him,” Atwood said. “He was the kind of guy who didn’t speak too much, but when he spoke they listened. We’re going to miss him greatly.”

Atwood remembers his wife calling Beard “the candy man” for his habit of carrying and handing out wrapped pieces of hard candy.

“I think it started at the store, but he took them to church and handed them out,” Atwood said. “He was a salesman, but kind of a quiet salesman.”

In the last years of his life, Beard suffered from dementia. Still, he’d go to the south Everett store with his wife. “He would hand out candy and talk with people,” she said.

“He always had a twinkle in his eye. He had a wit about him,” Evelyn Beard said. “He was a happy person, a quiet, gentle person.”

Reporter Julie Muhlstein: 425-339-3460 or muhlstein@heraldnet.com.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

Olivia Vanni / The Herald 
The Mukilteo Lighthouse. Built in 1906, it’s one of the most iconic landmarks in Snohomish County.
The Mukilteo Lighthouse. Built in 1906, it’s one of the most iconic landmarks in Snohomish County. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mukilteo mayor vetoes council-approved sales tax

The tax would have helped pay for transportation infrastructure, but was also set to give Mukilteo the highest sales tax rate in the state.

Marysville Mayor Jon Nehring gives the state of the city address at the Marysville Civic Center on Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2024, in Marysville, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Marysville council approves interim middle housing law

The council passed the regulations to prevent a state model code from taking effect by default. It expects to approve final rules by October.

x
State audit takes issue with Edmonds COVID grant monitoring

The audit report covered 2023 and is the third since 2020 that found similar issues with COVID-19 recovery grant documentation.

Bothell
Bothell man pleads guilty to sexual abuse of Marysville middle schoolers

The man allegedly sexually assaulted three students in exchange for vapes and edibles in 2022. His sentencing is set for Aug. 29.

Larsen talks proposed Medicaid cuts during Compass Health stop in Everett

Compass Health plans to open its new behavioral health center in August. Nearly all of the nonprofit’s patients rely on Medicaid.

Everett
Judge sentences man, 73, for intending to have sex with ‘teen’ in Everett

The Arizona man sent explicit images to an agent posing as a 13-year-old. Investigators found images of child sexual abuse on his phone.

State’s draft of climate action plan open for public comment

Residents can submit public comments or climate-related stories online through Aug. 22.

Community members gather for the dedication of the Oso Landslide Memorial following the ten-year remembrance of the slide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
The Daily Herald garners 6 awards from regional journalism competition

The awards recognize the best in journalism from media outlets across Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington.

The Edmonds School Board discusses budget cuts during a school board meeting on Tuesday, April 15, 2025 in Edmonds, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Edmonds school board approves 2025-26 budget

After facing an estimated $8.5 million shortfall earlier in the year, the board passed a balanced budget Tuesday.

A wall diagram shows the “journey of the ballot” at the new Elections Center on Tuesday, July 9, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
County Auditor: No need for feds to meddle with state or local elections

Garth Fell’s comments were in response to a report of Justice Department mulling criminal charges against election officials.

Edmonds Police Chief Loi Dawkins speaks after the city council approved her appointment on Tuesday, July 8, 2025 in Edmonds, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Edmonds City Council confirms new police chief

Assistant Chief Loi Dawkins will begin in the role Aug. 1. She has more than 23 years of law enforcement experience, including three years in Edmonds.

The Edmonds City Council discuss the levy during a city council meeting on Tuesday, July 8, 2025 in Edmonds, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Edmonds votes to place levy lid lift on the ballot

By a vote of 5-2, the council decided to put the $14.5 million property tax levy lid lift to voters in November.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.