A Celebration of Life service is being held today in Las Vegas for my old boss, Craig Schneider. He was just 74 years old and only recently retired. I am also now retired and had the very great fortune of spending 10 years working for him starting in 1993. I was working for Ryder Dedicated Logistics in Wisconsin and transferred out to Salt Lake City, UT. Craig was a senior logistics manager there at the time.
That division of Ryder Systems, Inc is a third party logistics provider employing more than 10,000 drivers serving the transportation needs of companies throughout the US. Our major customer in Salt Lake was/is one of the largest independent bottlers of Coca-Cola in the world.
It was a hell of a ride with Craig rapidly being promoted to Director in the company (Ryder). There are only a very few people in the lives of most of us that really make a difference. One of those for me was Craig. Long story, short, he was most responsible for my 25 years spent living and working in Utah. The man taught me so much, and reined me in hard when I needed it. I always appreciated his work ethic and what he taught me about business. A great man that made a huge difference in my life.
Craig was always thinking “outside the box” and throwing out ideas and concepts to customers, colleagues and employees constantly. I remember a customer's high level manager telling me that hearing some of Craig’s ideas would seem so off the wall, but ended up being brilliant. Hence the “Tasmanian devil” and “bull in a China shop” references to him. His leadership style produced amazing results directing a great team that enjoyed working for him throughout the inter-mountain west. Rest in peace Boss!
What follows are some of the online comments I received expressing how respected and appreciated he was from colleagues and former employees:
From BM:
Craig was a hell of a boss and mentor!!!! He stuck up for me when others were trying to take me down. I owe him so much with what I learn in life and management!!! Rest in Peace My Dear Friend!!! Thank you Dan for posting this!!!
From YS:
One hell of a boss for sure. Rest in peace boss man.
From DT:
God Bless him and his family
From MC:
Oh no, what a great loss. One of the greatest guys I ever knew and worked for! RIP Craig!! Thoughts and prayers go out to you and your family!!
From ML:
I am so sorry to hear, he was a great person and boss. RIP
From CW:
He was one of a kind! I learned so much from him in the 15 years I worked with him. He was the kind of boss who believed in his people and brought out the best in them. I was shaped by his leadership and he pushed me to be the best I could be. I will forever be grateful! This world lost a good one.
From NW:
With Dan's comment, Craig gave me opportunities that I never dreamed of. Will miss him
From DC:
Sorry to hear
From BK:
Good man, I have a picture of him and me together of him handing me the 1st place truck rodeo trophy. Condolences to his family.
From JD:
Lousy news. He was his own logistics engineer because he could keep the numbers in his head. More importantly he led his team with an all for one and one for all approach that for a long time produced some impressive results.
From DT:
A Good man
From YM:
That's Craig for ya. He used to make me laugh with his stories of different startups. RIP Craig
From JP:
Amen, brother. Only reason I became COO of *****, was Craig. I owe him for taking a chance on me. Speaking of *****, I retired. Will re-engage somewhere, and take some time for rest.
Bottom line (one of Craig’s frequent expressions), he had such an impact on so many lives, he deserves a tribute. I authored a book in 2020 that describes many of our adventures throughout the 1990s, into the early 2000s, My Truck Driving Life, if you’re interested. From us two haoles working a startup in Hawaii to Las Vegas, Phoenix, Denver, Seattle and throughout the intermountain west, it was a fascinating ride for me, a cheesehead from Wisconsin. I wish I could be there in Las Vegas today, not possible, but this man will live on in my frequent dreams as long as I’m still around. Craig Thomas Schneider, always will be, The Boss!
On this road called life, you have to take the good with the bad, smile with the sad, love what you got, and remember what you had. Always forgive, but never forget, learn from your mistakes, but never forget. People change. Things go wrong. But just remember, the ride goes on. Credit: simplereminders.com
Craig Thomas Schneider Obituary
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