ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Paul Yocum, founder of Yocum Oil Co. and an active board member at Premier Banks, passed away on July 24. "Paul will be missed for his enormous contributions in business and for his positive energy, with which he brought every time he entered a room," the company said.
In 1959, Paul Yocum left his position as a commissioned agent for Standard Oil to found Yocum Oil Company (with a Skelly Oil franchise). Tired of the way that "Big Oil" treated their customers, he started Yocum Oil with two trucks he operated out of his home in Oakdale, Minn. The business moved out of his house into a newly built Skelly station. He focused on growing the bulk fuel business by servicing local homes and farms, supplying other Skelly stations and operating his own service station.
Yocum served as the president of Minnesota Petroleum Marketers Association (MPMA) from 1972 to 1973, a tenure that fell during the time of the first oil embargo. He worked tirelessly to ensure local supply was adequate for state emergency services and for the continuation of the economy--making arrangements for many of his peers to obtain supply as demand began to rise.
Paul Yocum's founding principles of service and integrity continue to reign as guiding principles at Yocum Oil today, it said, helping to grow the company as the leader in supplying petroleum solutions for commercial, agricultural, residential and retail customers in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, North Dakota and South Dakota.
Yocum "is remembered not only for all he accomplished, but also for the ethical way in which he carried out his work," said the company. "His honest and positive outlook on family, friends, employees, and customers leaves a legacy of caring for the betterment of others. His loved ones will equally remember his light-heartedness and sense of humor, as Paul always snuck in a smile or made time for a quick joke."
Yocum Oil has been in the business of distributing fuels and lubricants to a variety of customers across Minnesota for more than 50 years. The family run- and operated- company offers a comprehensive portfolio of petroleum-related products, services and solutions in Wisconsin, Iowa and North Dakota.
CSP sends condolences to his family, his friends and his colleagues.
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