Family and friends of Orlando “Ollie” Frati, longtime owner of Frati Orlando Pawn Shop in downtown Bangor, remember him as an exceptionally kind and honest gentleman who valued family above all else.
Frati died on Jan. 9 at the age of 92.
Born in Brewer, Frati began working in his father’s pawn shop when he was 11. He eventually took over the store, then passed it down to his son, Orlando Frati Jr., though he continued to visit the store every day to chat with customers. In total, Frati worked in the store for 76 years.
Though he worked hard, he always made time for his wife, Charlene Frati, and their four children, Orlando Frati Jr., Joseph Frati, Alice Rumsey and Charlene Boggins.
Tim Cotton, local author and former Bangor police officer, met Frati in 1982 when Cotton was 18 and needed a chainsaw to cut firewood for the winter, but couldn’t afford a new one. Cotton found one in Frati’s pawn shop that Frati allowed Cotton to pay off in installments without interest.
The two became fast friends and Cotton continued to stop into Frati’s shop regularly for a cup of coffee and a chat as a Bangor police officer. Cotton said Frati was always “a classic Bangor gentleman, a pleasant conversationalist and honest.”
Frati bucked the Hollywood stereotype of a shady pawnbroker, Cotton said. He was happy to help people who needed to sell something to make ends meet, and was known to keep a person’s belongings for them to buy back when they could.
“He was a cog in the community for many years,” Cotton said. “He saw Bangor from the wartime to current. You don’t keep a business running for that long without being both a good businessman and also kind.”
Frati’s kind demeanor seemingly never faltered, Cotton said, even when people looking to pawn something grew angry after being turned down.
“You’d see some seedy people come into the shop, but he would still treat those people very well,” Cotton said. “He could calm them down just by being friendly. I don’t see gentlemen like that anymore.”
Frati was also known to contact police when a customer attempted to sell something, such as jewelry, that he didn’t believe belonged to them. Those tips, Cotton said, helped him solve multiple burglaries before they were reported.
“Some people may drive by and think it’s just a pawn shop, but they actually did a lot to keep the community safe,” Cotton said.
In his free time, Frati loved photography and would photograph everything from weddings to football games. His hobby began when his father bought him a Kodak Brownie and he joined the photography club at the former Garland Street School, which is now William S. Cohen Middle School.
He later received photography training in the two years he spent in the army during the Korean War, said Alice Rumsey, one of Frati’s daughters. Those two years were the only time he spent away from the pawn shop during his career.
He was also known to talk his way into the old Bangor Auditorium to photograph country musicians — his favorite music genre — though he never had a ticket. Over the years, his photography portfolio grew to include Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash and many more.
Parton returned to Bangor in 2016 and signed the photo Frati took of her in the mid-1960s during her first visit to the Queen City. She was 23 years old at the time and beginning her career as an opening act for Porter Wagoner.
Frati also met Stephen King at one point, and King borrowed Frati’s nickname and surname for a few characters in his books. The family’s pawn shop is also mentioned in King’s book “11-22-63.”
Though many in Bangor knew Frati from his pawn shop, his wife and children said their favorite memories of him are from the time he’d make for each of them. He also had small, simple ways he’d show his love, like taking his children out to dinner individually.
When his children were young, the family would go on Sunday drives together, during which he’d play the harmonica and tell scary stories.
“We’d always look for the most dilapidated shack we could find, and when we found one, we’d yell, ‘Dad, let’s buy that house,’” Rumsey said. “Dad would say ‘First thing Monday morning.’ Those drives were such a fun time for us because of all the stories he’d tell.”
When he and Charlene Frati were newly married in their early 20s, the couple went to an antique show and she saw a lamp she adored, but never said a word about it.
“He noticed me admiring it and saw the vendor had pocket watches too,” Charlene Frati said. “The next day, he went back and traded pocket watches for the lamp. I still have it today.”
Frati called his children each night to say he loved them and was proud of them.
“You don’t always get that from parents, but that was common for him,” Boggins said. “He was just a good dad in all ways. He guided you, you could talk to him about anything without judgment and he always had words of wisdom.”
His last words to his family were “I love you,” Boggins said.
“He was a good husband and father,” Charlene Frati said. “What more can you ask for?”