Remembering Frank Konigseder Sr.
Liberty Coach founder and president Frank Konigseder, Sr. passed away on Thursday, February 12, 2026 at age 88. The following is a brief retrospective on the life and legacy of a truly remarkable man.
Frank Konigseder Sr. was born in 1937 in Lake County, Illinois, to German immigrant parents who embodied the American Dream by starting a small business, F.K. Pattern & Foundry, in North Chicago the same year he was born. Frank began working there as a young boy, learning the craft and work ethic that would shape his life.
As all who knew him will tell you, Frank had a lifelong passion for travel, the outdoors, and anything with an engine. He was an accomplished sports fisherman who landed trophies across all five of the world’s oceans. He built an extensive tractor collection. And of course, he loved motorhomes, and the never-ending challenge of building a better one.
By the 1960s, Frank and his wife Jeanne had become avid campers and in 1968, spurred by their dissatisfaction with production motorhomes, decided to build their own. Frank purchased a used Greyhound bus and, with Jeanne and their growing sons helping, spent his spare time converting it into a custom motorcoach. Which they promptly sold and built another, and then another – and Liberty Coach was born.
A defining moment came in 1978, when Frank struck a deal with Andre Normand of Canadian bus manufacturer Prevost Car to begin building coaches on Prevost shells, a move that effectively launched the modern custom motorcoach conversion industry.
Under Frank’s leadership, Liberty Coach went on to complete hundreds of coaches and establish a reputation for building the finest recreational vehicles in the world.
Frank remained active in company operations into the 21st Century, and continued to run the original family foundry, F.K. Foundries, well into his later years. Liberty Coach is still a wholly family-owned business, with sons Frank Jr. and Kurt Konigseder heading the firm since 2000 and a third generation emerging as key players in company operations. All of which speaks to the lasting impact of Frank Konigseder Sr. on his family, his company, and the industry he launched and led.
