John William Schouten, SR

John was born in Bellflower, California, to the late Cornelius and late Agatha Schouten, and was the third of 15 children. John spent his childhood in Paramount, where he attended St. Anthony’s School (Long Beach) until 10th grade. He then moved to Gardena and attended Junipero Serra High School (Gardena) where he became a football and track & field star athlete. He set a couple school records in the 100yd and 220yd sprints. He graduated in 1954, and would go on to marry Sandra (Liebsack) Schouten, the Love of his Life, in 1959.

John and Sandra almost immediately began raising a family together, first living in Paramount, then Escondido, and Torrance, and finally settling on a dairy in San Jacinto in 1970, where John and Sandra raised their seven children: John Jr. (Denise), Cynthia Kammeyer (Ron), Therese Benge (Clinton), Steven(deceased) (Teri), Julie Perkins(deceased) (Harry), Gregory, and Angela(deceased). After having Angela, John had a special place in his heart for persons with special needs, and would go on to help and support persons with special needs, for the rest of his life.

John loved, and has been blessed, with all his family which has now grown to include 25 grandchildren (Matthew, and Nicole Schouten; Danny (Heather), and Sondra Hollingsworth; Jessica Boggs (Vern), Nathan (Hillary), Seth (Heather), Ethan Benge (Brittany), Hannah Mayes (Daniel), Gabriella Perez (Christian), Anya Taylor (Randy), Elijah and William Benge; Sinead Brooks (Teyvon), and Steven Schouten (Naomi); and Ashley Hernandez (Martin), Joshua (Madeleine), Andrew, Jacob (Becky), Justin (Molly), Kaleb, Dominic, Joseph, Elizabeth, and Maxmillian Perkins). John was blessed with 33 great-grandchildren and three more soon coming. John and Sandra were married for nearly 50 years, before she passed away in 2008.

Upon graduating from high school, John started working for his father in the dairy business in Gardena. Shortly thereafter, he worked in the petroleum industry in Torrance, for three years. John then returned to the family’s dairy farms in Southern California in Paramount, Escondido, and Torrance (forming Cream O Farms Dairy). His path in the dairy industry, with family, finally led to a long partnership with his brothers, which eventually led to the formation of Schouten Bros dairy, in San Jacinto (1969), which is where he moved his family to in 1970. He was quite proud of the fact that he and his brothers (the late Cornelius Schouten, and Nick Schouten) worked together in the dairy business, so successfully, for decades.

John liked to help young people succeed in sports. Coach John impacted countless lives as a coach. He started his path in coaching with flag football, while in Torrance. When coming to San Jacinto, he expanded that at St. Hyacinth Academy with both flag football and track & field, with great team success, winning championships for decades. He also coached Jr All-American Football ’72 & ’73(Hemet Lancers), started the Valley’s first track & field club (along with Erik Russell) through SCMAF (Southern California Municipal Athletic Federation), helped start the Valley League, for middle school sports; as well as the Catholic Schools league track & field meet championship. Coach John also coached at the high school level. He coached at Notre Dame High School (Riverside) track & field, while taking athletes to CIF Finals and also to State championships in the 70’s; San Jacinto High School football and track & field in the 70’s, and also Hemet High School football. He would come back to San Jacinto High School in the early 90’s through 2007 (with Bill Troost) to lead a powerhouse high school track & field team that went on to win many team league championships and CIF finalists, as well as pave the way for SJHS to be the first high school in Riverside County to have an all-weather track, and to host a large-scale invitational.

John was a huge supporter of anything for the community. He was a proud San Jacinto Unified School Board member from 1990-2014. With his time on the Board, he thought education was extremely important and felt that he could make unique contributions, given his business background. During his time, many new schools were built and he was a staunch supporter for improvement in technology. John loved being on the Education Foundation and help to add support and scholarships to students in SJUSD. Additionally, he took very seriously his being a member of the Planning Commission for San Jacinto, in the 90’s, which brought about doubling the size of San Jacinto.

Besides his wife, children and their spouses, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, John is also survived by his dear siblings and their families: Trudie, Marie, Nick, Agnes, Pete, Tom, Dorothy, Roni, Bob, Mike, (Cor, George, Bill, Geri deceased), as well as over 100 nieces, great nieces, nephews, and great nephews.

John was a long-time member of St. Anthony’s Catholic Church (San Jacinto). He loved the Lord and spent much time in daily prayer and devotion. He was a prayer warrior. John was an amazing and special man who gave of himself to so many people; truly a man of service and faith. He will be missed greatly.

Viewing will be held at Miller-Jones Mortuary & Crematory (San Jacinto - 165 W. 7th St., San Jacinto, CA) on Tuesday, November 19 from 4:00 – 8:00 PM. A Rosary will occur from 6:00-6:30 PM, at that same site. A funeral Mass will be held at St. Anthony’s Catholic Church (630 S. Santa Fe Ave., San Jacinto, CA) on Wednesday, November 20 at 10:00 AM, followed by a burial at San Jacinto Valley Cemetery, and then a gathering for friends and family to reminisce and celebrate his life 12:30-3:30 PM at Valley Wide (901 W. Esplanade Ave., San Jacinto, CA).

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that donations be made to one of the following:

St. Hyacinth Academy: 275 S. Victoria Ave., San Jacinto, CA 92583 – (951)654-2013

San Jacinto Education Foundation: San Jacinto Education Foundation (in care of San Jacinto Unified School District) 2045 S. San Jacinto Ave., San Jacinto, CA - (951)929-7700

Inland Valley Down Syndrome Association: 10574 Acacia St. D-5, Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91730 – (833)483-7221