Esther Snyder, 86; Co-Founded the In-N-Out Burger Chain

When Harry Snyder died of lung cancer in 1976 at the age of 63, the chain had only 18 outlets. Their younger son, Rich, was 24 when he took over, but Esther said he was prepared, having watched his father for years, learning every aspect of the business. Rich expanded the company to 93 outlets. A devout Christian like his mother, he selected the Bible references that are still printed on the chain's drink cups.

In 1993, Rich Snyder and four others died in the crash of a company plane. He was 41.

"When Rich was killed ... my world had ended, almost," Esther Snyder said. "I had never had to worry about anything as long as he was here. He was a happy soul."

After his death, the company was run by the Snyders' older son, Guy, during what was to be a brief tenure. On Dec. 4, 1999, at age 48, he died of an accidental overdose of the painkiller Vicodin.

Esther Snyder, already a fixture at the chain's headquarters -- first in Baldwin Park and then Irvine, with titles that through the 1980s and '90s included vice president and secretary-treasurer -- took over as chairwoman and president. Her daily office routine lasted until she broke a hip at the opening of an In-N-Out Burger in Redding in 1999. But even after she began using a wheelchair or walker, the increasingly frail but determined matriarch remained involved in every company decision.

Fiercely protective of her family's legacy and privacy, she kept In-N-Out an independently owned business despite overtures from conglomerates eager to cash in on the chain's popularity and profitability.

Eventually Guy Snyder's daughter, Lynsi Martinez, stepped in to continue the family line, backed by Taylor, the husband of her half sister.

Like any family, the firm has had its internal squabbles.

In January, Richard Boyd, a vice president and longtime board member, alleged in a lawsuit that Martinez and Taylor were trying to overthrow Snyder and expand the business too quickly.

The suit reportedly was settled in May but, in keeping with the firm's tradition of secrecy, the terms were not disclosed.

For more than 20 years, Esther Snyder was involved in child welfare issues. In 1984, she and Rich Snyder founded the Child Abuse Foundation, which later became the In-N-Out Burger Foundation, to provide assistance to children in need.

Contributions may be made to the In-N-Out Burger Foundation, 13502 Hamburger Lane, Baldwin Park, CA 91706.

Funeral services will be private.\o7

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