Alfred G. Altimore

Alfred “Big Al” Grant Altimore

Al Altimore, was born, April 14, 1950 in Jonestown, PA to Alfred Altimore and Helen (Juretic) Altimore. He was a long term resident of Maryland, and was a well known name in his industry. 

While Al touched so many people’s hearts and made a life out of helping others in their time of need, the good Lord called him home on May 7, 2023. In his final moments in this physical form, he was surrounded by those closest to him and was at complete peace.

Al was preceded in death by his parents Alfred and Helen Altimore, his siblings Dennis Altimore, Coleen Pugh, and Kevin Altimore. He is survived by his niece Tiffany Pugh, and nephews Adam Pugh (Cara), Michael Altimore, Ryan Alitmore (Aimee), and great nieces and nephews Nathan Pugh, Taylor Pugh, Skylar Pugh, Kelsi Altimore. 

Al was a graduate of The University of Pittsburgh with his Bachelors in Arts in 1972. 

Al was a hard working individual who cared more about others than himself in almost every scenario. He was one of the earliest members of a niche market for the disaster restoration industry. He even named the company he worked for until the end. As Patrick Bergmann, the owner of the company, has said many times, “Al named Clothes Call, and then gave it a name”.

Anyone who ever worked with the company likely got the chance to hear his elation on the phone. He was a staple in the local market for textiles restoration after a disastrous loss. If your home had a fire, mold, water loss and the clothing was taken out to be cleaned and/or inventoried for your insurance company there is a chance Al was involved. Everyone who was in the industry for any real length of time locally either knew Al or at a minimum has heard of him. Al was many people’s go to for making sure the customer was taken care of. As anyone who knew Al, knew he was the guy who cared to make sure it was done and done right. 

When you got the opportunity to speak to Al on the phone or face to face, he always had a way of making you feel special. You would feel like you were the only person he needed to talk to that day. He would take the time to talk about your favorite subjects, show interest in them and remember all about your conversations for next time you talked. His favorite conversations revolved around sports. As an avid Pittsburgh fan he looked forward to any opportunity to speak about them with anyone who had an opinion. 

Al spent most evenings relaxing and reading the sports pages of the local paper and later listening to whatever ESPN had to say about sports. 

No matter where you came from, or what you had, Al cared about you equally. He was one of the first to help people when he could. He just enjoyed being able to help others. What he enjoyed even more was a good ole fashion conversation. Al could talk about almost anything, and loved it when others would take time out of their day to have a good exchange with him. 

Al’s love for others was immeasurable, and seemed to be his whole purpose for being. After his passing, many have shared their words about Al. Almost all of them have said things such as: “There is honestly never been anyone like Al”, “So kind hearted”, “Every conversation anyone has ever had with him was filled with compassion, kindness, consideration, and cheer”, “Grateful for the time I knew him”.

Al was like everyone’s favorite Uncle in the Disaster Industry. He will be greatly missed.