California PCO Dick Scoville Passes Away

Dick Scoville

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Dick Scoville, founder of North Highlands, Calif.-based Pest Control Center (PCC), died Sunday, Sept. 27, after battling cancer. He was 71.

Scoville founded PCC in February 1986 and his first industry involvement was in 1963, working as a chemical salesman for distributor NAMCO. “His famous line was, ‘I saw how rich the people I was selling to were, so I decided to become a pest control operator,’” said son Steve Scoville, who is the company’s president.

Scoville moved to Sacramento in November 1967, where he opened a Hydrex Pest Control franchise. The franchise was eventually sold in the early 1980s.

Scoville founded PCC in 1986, and one year later Steve joined the company. Vince, another of Dick's sons, joined PCC in August 1988. A third son, David, works for Millennium Termite & Pest Control. Steve Scoville said PCC has grown from five employees in 1986 to 35 employees today, and the company has annual revenues of $3.3 million.

“It was a combination of good leadership on his part and good employees who understood how it worked,” said Steve Scoville. “My dad was a hard worker who taught everyone who worked for him something about this industry and what it takes to be a good employee.”

Dick Scoville is survived by wife Sandy, brother Walt, sons Steve, Vince and Dave, seven grandkids and two great-grandchildren. Contributions can be made in Scoville’s name to the American Cancer Society.