Frederick DeSieghardt

Frederick O. (Fred) DeSieghardt, 96, passed away on October 18, 2021, at Stratford Commons Rehabilitation & Health Center. Fred was born March 10, 1925, at home in Somerdale, New Jersey, to Anna and Otto DeSieghardt. He was valedictorian of the Class of 1942 at Haddon Heights High School in New Jersey. He started his college career at Rutgers University in the fall of 1942, but his education was interrupted by WWII. After serving in the Army, Fred returned to Rutgers in September of 1946 and graduated in 1949 with a degree in Dairy Science. He was a member of the TKE fraternity and Phi Beta Kappa.

He started his career as a teacher of Applied Biology and Agriculture at Burlington (New Jersey) High School, where he met his wife Connie, an English teacher there. They were married on June 30, 1951. In 1951 he left the world of education for a position at the Sealtest milk receiving station in Paradise, PA. He moved to their farm field service division in 1951, located in Chambersburg, PA, where he remained until 1963. After Sealtest, he spent a year with the Public Health Service. In 1964 he started with Sealright (now Huhtamaki) where he spent the rest of his career, retiring in October 1990 as Executive Vice President. Since retiring he stayed active by volunteering with SCORE, the IRS’ VITA program, Arcare and his church, Knox United Presbyterian, where one of his favorite activities was reading to the daycare/preschool students. He enjoyed traveling both during and after his work life, and had traveled across Europe, Russia, Australia, Japan and China. He was also a lifelong bridge player and still played regularly, enjoyed reading books on history and historical figures, and loved spending time with his granddaughters.

He was preceded in death by his parents, brothers Arthur and William, sister K. Ann Duncombe, wife Connie and son Kenneth. He is survived by his son Frederick A. of the home, granddaughters Aislinn of Cincinnati, OH and Áine of Stilwell, KS, daughter-in-law Sara (Sally) Beals also of Stilwell and sister Barbara Teti of Garnet Valley, PA. A combined memorial service, for Fred and his son Ken, will be held at 1 p.m. Friday, Nov. 12, 2021, at Knox Presbyterian Church, 9595 W 95th St. in Overland Park, KS. Masks are mandatory. A reception will immediately follow the service. In lieu of flowers, donations in Fred’s memory are encouraged to Arcare, Inc. (arcare.org), or the Knox Presbyterian Church Endowment Fund (knoxchurch.org).