Paul H. Scheid Jr., president of Scheid Produce Inc., died on June 3 after a lengthy illness. He was 89. Mr. Scheid was a fruit and vegetable wholesaler located in Millersville, PA.
Mr. Scheid was the son of Paul H. Scheid Sr., who founded Scheid Produce the same year as his son’s birth, in 1929. Mr. Scheid grew up learning the family business, which at first consisted of some vegetable plots and door-to-door sales.
Known as “Sonny,” Mr. Scheid grew the business greatly after taking over from his father in 1968. He oversaw the transition from retail sales to wholesale in the 1960s and started making trips to Florida to purchase direct from the farmer in the 1970s. He moved the business from a small warehouse in Bausman, PA, a village just outside of Millersville, into an updated cold-storage facility. When that reached its capacity, in the early 90s, he and two of his sons moved again, this time across the street into a modern warehouse.
Though he “retired” in 2003, he was a fixture at the warehouse for many years after. He offered sage advice or a joke to lighten the mood to employees and customers alike. A knowledgeable and intrepid spirit, he will be greatly missed.
