Mary Ann Schmidt, 61, of Shawano, passed away on Friday, July 31, 2015. She was born on Sept. 23, 1953, in the town of Westcott to the late Fritz and Anna Clare (Malueg) Keuschel.
Mary lived most of her life in Shawano, where she married Earl R. Schmidt on Sept. 19, 1981. Mary worked for the Bonduel Pickling factory from 1987 to 1996. She attended Peace United Church of Christ. She enjoyed fixing things, fishing, spending time outdoors and going to the cottage. Every autumn Mary and her many friends from work made their annual trip to Sturgeon Bay. She often drove people wherever they needed to go without ever asking for anything in return. When Mary became ill, she knew who her true friend was, in all the good times and in bad — her older sister was there 24/7.
Mary is survived by her husband, Earl; her sister, Myrtle Gayhart, of Shawano; her favorite brother-in-law, Elroy Schmidt; aunts and uncles, Mr. and Mrs. Melvin Weisnicht and Mr. and Mrs. Willis Weisnicht, all of Shawano; her sponsors, Lavonne (Lyle) Krull, of Birnamwood; cousin, Verna Green, of Appleton; along with many cousins and friends.
Mary is further survived by sisters-in-law and good friend Bev Peters Barb (Leon) Pitze, Bernice (Denis) Shepard, Brenda (Bruce) Westlah; three brothers-in-law and cousins, and her two dogs, Tootsie and Buddy.
She was preceded in death by her parents, one brother and one sister.
A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 8, 2015, at Peace United Church of Christ with Pastor Marty Black officiating. Visitation will be held on Friday from 4-8 p.m. at the Swedberg Funeral Home in Shawano and again at the church on Saturday from 9:30 a.m. until the time of the service. Burial will be held at the Woodlawn Cemetery in Shawano.
The family would like to thank all the caregivers at Maple Lane and hospice for helping Mary’s final days be with little or no pain and for all the beautiful flowers which brightened up her room. A special thank you to the Peace United Church of Christ quilters for the gorgeous quilt, which was presented to Mary by Sue Rindt, as well as Pastor Marty Black for all her kindness and time she spent with her. When the end became near, Pam and John Meyer came to spend time with Mary and my neighbor, Laverna Barrick, came up and sat with me so I wasn’t alone. Also a special thank you to all my other neighbors who came together to support me day after day.
Many thanks,
Myrtle