Frederick Leo Heid's Obituary
Frederick Leo Heid was born in Browerville, MN, third son of Leo Edward Heid and Lulu Woell Heid. He attended St. Peter’s Catholic School and graduated 4th in his class of 27 from Browerville Public High School.
Fred planned to join the U.S. Navy prior to his 18th birthday but did not qualify because he was color blind. The U.S. Army, however, was happy to draft him. His enlistment was delayed by a couple of months due to the untimely death of his father in June of 1945.
In summer of 1945, he completed Basic Training at Camp Roberts in CA and was assigned active duty in the Aleutian Islands at Shemya Army Air Base, which is a small 2 mile by 4 mile island which operated as a forward airstrip. This strategic base experienced harsh weather and hurricane force winds requiring evacuation to the island of Attu. Fred served his two years and returned to Minnesota, residing with his mother in Browerville and working in the milk plant before starting college at St. John’s University that fall. He transferred to University of Minnesota to pursue his degree in Electrical Engineering, graduating in June 1951. While attending college, he played the trombone in the U of M football band and was also part of the ROTC.
After graduating, Fred and his college classmate, Marc Shoquist, took jobs at Convair in San Diego. They lived with Fred’s sister, Irene Fitzmaurice, and her family. Fred was only at Convair a month, before he met Ellen Garra on a blind double date. Ellen was Marc’s date but she only had eyes for Fred. They dated for less than 2 months before he was recalled to the Army, this time as Second Lieutenant. Fred invited Ellen to travel to Minnesota during his Christmas break, where she met his family, and they became engaged. They were married in April 1952 in San Diego and lived most of their married life in La Mesa, California. They were blessed with seven children and were married almost 58 years, enjoying the life of a large family with ongoing events. Fred loved dancing, sailing, windsurfing, beach activities, snow skiing, playing bridge, summer vacations, and volunteering at the church. Ellen passed away in January 2010.
Over the course of his career, Fred worked at Westinghouse (Pittsburgh), Convair, NASA, and Naval Ocean System Center, where he retired in 1990. He continued to work after retirement as a Contractor for his old company. Later he worked part-time for Greenwood and Goodbody Mortuaries, where he was a great comfort to grieving families and had a knack for drawing them into conversations about their lost family members. He worked for these mortuaries until he was 88 years old.
In July 2012, Fred married Janice Chase who was a family acquaintance for many years due to her working at the office where Fred and Ellen had received medical care for at least 2 decades before Ellen’s death. Fred and Jan were married for 10 years and enjoyed traveling, watching numerous sporting events, and spending time with their growing families.
Fred was a devout Catholic, always involved with Blessed Sacrament Church, was an officer for many years in the San Diego Serra Club, and sang in the Mission San Diego de Alcala choir for more than fifteen years.
He is predeceased by his first wife, Ellen Garra Heid, his son, Paul Frederick Heid, and his daughter, Deborah Heid Woodyard. He is survived by his wife, Janice Chase, and five children, Anne Heid Marquez, Judy Heid Alford, Leo Vincent Heid, Diane Heid Sack, and James Joseph Heid. He also leaves behind his children’s 7 spouses, 22 grandchildren, and 14 great-grandchildren. Fred is also survived by his 4 stepchildren, 7 step grandchildren, and 4 step great-grandchildren.
A memorial mass and reception will be held on Friday at 10:00 AM, January 13, 2023, at Blessed Sacrament Church, 4540 El Cerrito Dr., San Diego, CA. Fred was the patriarch of a large and loving family and will be greatly missed. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be sent to Catholic Charities.
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