West Bend, WI – After graduating high school in 1946, Rudy Scharschmidt enlisted in the Army and was informed that he would be sent to New York for training as a motion picture photographer.
It was immediately following the end of WWII and after his training was completed he was deployed to various European countries including France, Germany, Luxembourg, Denmark, and Sweden. His task would be to document the establishment of American military cemeteries overseas.
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He served until an honorable discharge in 1947 brought him back to Wisconsin.
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After returning home, Rudy attended college and earned an undergraduate and graduate degree from the University of Wisconsin – Madison. Degree in hand, Rudy landed in Battle Creek, Michigan, working for General Foods Corporation in food product development, with an emphasis on cereal.
He was responsible for quality control on new and existing products as well as the creation of new products.
Some of the notable innovations Rudy is responsible for include: Fruity Pebbles, approval of the wheat used in Grape-Nuts and the raisins used in Raisin Bran, creation of the unique shape of Honeycomb cereal, Alpha-Bits, made Log Cabin syrup thicker and created a handheld breakfast pastry called Toast’em.
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Rudy worked at General Foods for 38 years before retiring.
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Even with a demanding career, Rudy made time for his hobbies. Having grown up on a farm with the ability to use his hands, he dabbled in woodworking. He created end tables, clocks, dollhouses, several Noah’s arks (with hand-carved animals), and a playhouse he built for his kids while they were growing up.
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After Rudy retired, he and his wife, Virginia, spent time traveling, including six trips to Europe.
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Virginia was anxious to get back to the Midwest and since Rudy’s family is from Wisconsin they moved back to the area and built a home near Jackson.
Rudy and Virginia have been married for 65 years and now reside at Cedar Community.
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