5-term Round Lake Beach mayor Schrimpf dies

Round Lake Beach was little more than a dot on the map when Carl Schrimpf and his wife, Yvonne, moved to town from Glenview in 1953.

"It was a pretty much wide open village at that time," Yvonne recalls.

In the ensuing years, Carl Schrimpf, a design engineer by trade, would become synonymous with the growth of the community, serving as village president for five terms totaling 20 years ending in 1993. Today, the village he led for two decades is home to about 30,000 residents and a considerable retail base.

Schrimpf, who died Saturday at 85, is being remembered for playing a key role in that progression.

"It was really a hodgepodge. A lot of people said Carl was doing things his way, but there was nothing going on. He blazed a trail," said Larry Leafblad, a former Lake County Board member and Schrimpf family friend since the 1950s.

"He was the guy who really gave birth to the village of Round Lake Beach as it is today," Leafblad said. "He is to Round Lake Beach what Dick Welton was to Gurnee."

In his professional life, Schrimpf worked more than 30 years for Hough-International Harvester. But he became deeply involved in the village as well, serving two years as a village trustee and four years as the police magistrate, a type of judge, before becoming village president.

He also served on what was then known as the Avon Center school board and as an Avon Township trustee.

"He's the one who got me involved in politics," said Rich Hill, who became a village trustee in 1995 and has served as mayor since 2001.

Hill said Schrimpf led the effort to establish a special financing district along Rollins Road that attracted Wal-Mart and spurred development of other shopping and residential areas on the north side of town.

"It was, so to speak, very primitive," Schrimpf's son, Marty, said of Round Lake Beach's early days. "(My father) is very responsible for the growth of the community."

Schrimpf stayed in town after leaving village politics, living in a home on Hainesville Road for more than 40 years, said Yvonne, his wife of 64 years.

A serious public official, he was devoted to civic matters and often would work weekends on village business, she said.

"We were extremely busy," she said.

At one time, Schrimpf was approached by several business owners who wanted to change the name of the town to eliminate confusion with other Round Lake communities. A magazine held a contest and the winner was the name Rollins. But a community survey found little interest in the name change.

"You have to enhance your community by making positive changes," Schrimpf said at the time. "That's how you improve the image."

Besides his wife and son, survivors include two daughters, 10 grandchildren and 14 great grandchildren.

Friends and neighbors can gather from 2 to 5:30 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 3, at Justen's Round Lake Funeral Home, 222 N. Rosedale Court, Round Lake. Services will be at 5:30 p.m. Burial will be private.

Instead of flowers, the family suggests a donation to Save-A-Pet, 31664 N. Fairfield Road, Grayslake, or a Mass at St. Bede Catholic Church in Ingleside. Call (847) 546-3300 or leave a condolence message at www.justenfh.com.