Milton Fry
Beloved husband of Eleanor Fry for 66 years. Dear father of Robert S. Fry, Lawrence D. “Larry” Fry and the late Susan L. Fry. Loving grandfather of Daniel I. Fry, Brian A. Fry and Jonathan L. Fry. Dear cousin and friend.
Milton was born Aug. 15, 1924, and raised in St. Louis. He attended Clayton High School, graduating in 1942. He served his country as an Infantryman during World War II, and after the war he completed his education at Washington University (St. Louis), graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in 1948.
Milton was chairman of Fry-Wagner Systems Inc. founded in St. Louis in 1908 by his grandfather Mandel Fry and his father Isadore. Milton joined the family business in 1949, and by 1965 he took the reigns as company president. To enhance their national footprint, Fry-Wagner elected to join Allied Van Lines. Realizing the need for a larger and more diverse agency partner network, Milton chose to leave Allied Van Lines and join the UniGroup/United Van Lines family in 1984. Controversial at the time, the move was a huge success.
Fry-Wagner has enjoyed consistent success over the years because of Milton’s strong commitment to customer satisfaction and to his employees. In some circles, he was regarded as an “agent of change,” willing to take calculated risks to grow the family business; in others, he was just Milton, the man who knew his drivers and their family members by name. Today, Fry-Wagner is a fourth-generation family-owned business and has flourished for the 70 years of his involvement.
Milton led by example, and he served his industry, and his community, by serving on the board of directors of Allied Van Lines, Mark Twain Bank, past president of the Missouri Movers Association, past president of the St. Louis Public Movers Association, board of directors of Temple Israel and as a past president of the Temple Israel Brotherhood, among many other charitable organizations.
He received recognition from his peers for his services to his profession and community. He was awarded the Gene Anderson/United Van Lines Excellence Award for Quality and Integrity, the Missouri Better Business Bureau Torch Award for customer service and business ethics and the James S. McDonnell USO Award of Distinction for support and service for men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces.
Milton passed away on March 15, 2020, and private family services were held. A memorial celebration of his life will be held at a later date. Contributions in his memory may be made to Temple Israel, 1 Rabbi Alvan D. Rubin Drive, St. Louis, MO, 63141, the Harvey Kornblum Jewish Food Pantry, 10950 Schuetz Road, St. Louis, MO, 63146 or to the charity of the donor’s choice.
Arrangements by Rindskopf-Roth Funeral Chapel, St. Louis.