Lee Allan “L.A.” Train, the longtime president of Swiff-Train Company and a familiar figure across the floor covering industry for more than six decades, died on June 3. He was 85.
Born March 4, 1940, in Corpus Christi, Texas, Train joined the family business in June 1962, the same year he graduated from Tulane University and married his college sweetheart, Rona Chafetz of Memphis. The company had been founded in 1937 by his father, Herbert Train, and his grandfather, Joseph Swiff. L.A. worked alongside his father and his brothers, Kenny and Jeff, a partnership that would last more than half a century and become one of the most recognizable family teams in the industry. As the years progressed, more family members joined the business—Rona herself came on board in 1983, and several from the next generation including Richard, Jonathan and Jason, working alongside L.A. and his brothers as the company grew.
Under the three brothers’ leadership, Swiff-Train grew from a regional South Texas distributor into a national and international company that was, at various points, a distributor, importer and brand owner. The company was an early pioneer in luxury vinyl tile, launching its LVT program with Winton Tile in 1982. The company later established the EarthWerks brand, which carried its name into 54 countries, and began doing private label business years before it became a standard industry practice. At its height, Swiff-Train employed more than 200 people before the family sold the company in 2014.
L.A. served on the board of the North American Association of Floor Covering Distributors (NAFCD), part of a three generation family tradition of NAFCD board service that began with his father, Herbert, and continued with his son Jonathan. Together with his brothers, Kenny and Jeff, L.A. received the NAFCD Lifetime Achievement Award.
What those who worked with him remember most was the way he treated people, the company shared. He never burned a bridge and never forgot a relationship. At industry events and customer trips, he and Rona were in their element—they would make a point of greeting everyone, knowing each person by name and making each one feel like the most important person in the room, whether at the bar, on the beach, or on the ship. He genuinely valued people, and they knew it.
L.A. carried a serious heart condition quietly for most of his career, and on his 50th birthday, March 4, 1990, he received a heart transplant. He spent the next 36 years honoring that gift, returning to his work with characteristic energy and devoting himself, alongside Rona, to organ-donation advocacy.
In 2023, at the age of 82, L.A. and his grandson Jake Train founded Train Industries, bringing a fifth generation of the family into the business—a fitting final chapter for a man who never stopped building.
L.A. treated everyone he worked with as family, according to the company. He was interested in the experiences and observations of everyone he met, and would often engage strangers in deep conversations. L.A. had the ability to ask penetrating questions that got to the heart of the matter; he was quick with a compliment, slow to anger, honest with his feedback, and gave compassionate “tough love” with an empathetic smile. In business and in life, everyone L.A. knew benefitted from his wisdom and judgement. He was an extraordinary mentor and coach.
The Train family wishes to thank the employees, customers, vendors and business partners who enriched his life over six decades. They were the reason he did what he did. The friendships he built along the way and the respect he gave and received in return were his life’s truest reward.
He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Rona; his children, Terri (Alan) Greenspan, Richard Train and Jonathan (Nina) Train; eight grandchildren; and his brothers, Kenny Train and Jeff (Marilyn) Train.
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