OSTEEN, Fla. – A beloved business owner is in the hospital after a tragic accident this weekend. Skip Patsos, who founded Skip’s Western Outfitters, was injured when a truck and van collided outside of his flagship store in Osteen.
According to the Florida Highway Patrol, a truck with a trailer attached was backing out of a driveway Saturday morning and into the path of a minivan on Doyle Road. Troopers say the truck hit the van and after the initial crash, a propane tank that was in the truck’s trailer was “propelled” and hit Patsos, who was standing on the left side of the trailer.
News 6 spoke on the phone on Monday with Patsos’s daughter-in-law, who said Skip was setting up for a fall festival at the store when it happened. She called the accident jarring and unexpected.
“Unfortunately, there was kind of a freak accident,” Sydney Patsos said. “It was very scary for all of us.”
[WATCH BELOW: Conservation Florida announces $2.5M nature center in Volusia County]
Sydney Patsos said Skip is expected to make a full recovery after multiple surgeries. Right now, he remains in the hospital in Sanford.
“He had emergency surgery on both of his legs, but he’s in good spirits now. Just waiting for the next set of surgeries to kind of complete things,” Sydney Patsos said. “There will be a few months of bedrest and, you know, that’s tough on anybody — especially someone like Skip who is just an Energizer Bunny.”
Skip opened his flagship store at the corner of S.R. 415 and Doyle Road back in 1983. Before he became a household name, Skip and his wife would sell boots out of a truck at a local flea market every Sunday.
“Him and his wife made Osteen home,” Sydney Patsos said. “And my husband, John, actually even grew up right next to the store.”
Patsos said her father-in-law’s legacy, brand and character made for a very successful business. At one point, Skip had 11 stores open all across Central Florida. Today, there are locations in Daytona and in Osteen, which they say is more than a store — it’s a piece of local history.
“He’s just got this incredible ability to connect with people and make things happen. He’s just really, really a special person,” Sydney Patsos said. “I was at the playground with my daughter, and I met a lady, and we were just chatting, and I told her what I do for a living, you know, I work at Skip’s. She was like, ‘Oh my gosh! I bought my first pair of boots there in the ’80s.’ And that’s a common occurrence.”
[WATCH BELOW: Flooded sidewalks cause concern in Daytona Beach’s Mosaic neighborhood]
Dozens of people have shared kind words or offered prayers to the Patsos family on social media. Brooks Vaughan with the band Hayfire called Skip a pioneer.
“They’ve sponsored our band for a while now,” Vaughan said. “We’re devastated by it.”
Vaughan said based on what he knows from everybody around Skip, it’s clear that he’s a great guy.
“It’s just a small little, drive through blink your eyes a couple times and you’ll miss the whole town. I’ve always wondered how he could survive in such a small little spot,” Vaughan said. “But, you know, he’s always just been supported by the community because everybody just loves what he’s about.”
Sydney Patsos said Saturday’s fall festival was the first event of its kind since the pandemic and since Skip has had some health issues. The event was a chance for Skip’s to reconnect to the community he loves so much.
“He’s got such a big heart. Part of our big push for this event was a food drive, which we partnered with Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida for it. He was very adamant that we did something to give back to the community,” Sydney Patsos said. “Skip was just amped up about it and excited. And we just kind of never expected it to start off the way that it did.”
The food drive donations amounted to 408 pounds of food, according to Skip’s family.
Sydney Patsos said Skip would want people to be careful after the accident, whether they are drivers or pedestrians.
“Just be very careful. You know, realize how precious life is,” Sydney Patsos said. “And hug your loved ones and be a part of your community.”
Sydney Patsos added that Skip’s family and employees are so grateful that he is going to be ok.
News 6 did ask FHP about the driver who caused the crash. Troopers said the driver in the truck, a 52-year-old man from Sanford, was cited for improper backing.