Michigan fruit industry advocate Fred Schwailler dies

Frederick William Schwallier, age 95, of Marne, Michigan passed away at his home Tuesday, May 15, 2018.

Fred attended Michigan Agricultural College. He is a lifelong Coopersville area fruit grower who along with his brothers Leonard, George and father Henry owned Coopersville Refrigerated Cold Storage. He was also a partner with his brother George in Ottawa Orchards in Coopersville and the owner of Kent Ottawa Storage in Sparta.

Schwailler’s Country Basket in Sparta, Michigan, owned by Frederick’s son Phil – a Michigan State University Extension educator – issued the following statement:

“West Michigan fruit industry, Our family is celebrating the life and mourning the loss of the man who laid the foundation for our life as fruit growers, and who instilled in us a passion for the land and its fruit – Frederick Schwallier, the father of our owner Phil Schwallier, who passed away earlier this week at the age of 95. While we have been blessed to have both sets of Phil and Judy Schwallier’s parents involved with Schwallier’s Country Basket in various ways, Phil’s father Fred was a behind-the-scenes force, not often seen at the market, but always helping us run our apple storage operatons to the highest quality and efficiency. He was a lifelong Ridge-area grower, and his expertise and guidance have been invaluable to us, not just in business, but in life. Beyond sharing with us his passion for fruit-growing and agriculture, Grandpa Schwallier loved baseball and was a pitcher in his earlier years in the Marne Baseball League and the Coopersville American Baseball League. We have all been blessed by his commitment to his faith and his family, and we will miss him greatly. We are so very grateful for the legacy he has left us. Rest in peace, Grandpa Schwallier.”

Read more about Fred here:https://www.throopfh.com/notices/Frederick-Schwallier