Kayaking expert and rotational molding veteran John Schreiner died June 5, surrounded by family members. He was 67.
Schreiner loved whitewater kayaking and ran the Kayak School of Central Pennsylvania. As the owner of New Wave Kayaks in Middletown, Pa., near Harrisburg, he started out making composite kayaks then moved into rotomolding, building his own machines.
He also built rotomolders for other recreational product companies, helping them convert to the rotational molding process. Schreiner's enthusiasm for the rotomolding process led him to establish a company, NW Rotofab, to build rotomolding ovens and machines.
He served as a hands-on technical director for 15 years at Mold In Graphic Systems in Clarkdale, Ariz., traveling in his recreational vehicle and visiting hundreds of rotomolding companies.
The Association of Rotational Molders shared news of Schreiner's death with an online post. He was a 30-year veteran of the rotomolding industry, ARM said.
Scott Saxman, Mold In Graphic Systems' business development director, said Schreiner was an accomplished photographer. During his RV travels, he got interested in the Burning Man event and photographed those events, Saxman said.
"Our good friend and colleague ... was an excellent representative for Mold In Graphic Systems, who contributed greatly to our success for a generation. He was a gracious, genial and generous man and was a great ambassador for the entire rotational molding industry," Saxman said. "He will be greatly missed."
A celebration of life service will be held for Schreiner on July 12 at 11 a.m. at Hetrick-Bitner Funeral Home in Harrisburg.