Schmidt, John L

If you see a squirrel at a bird feeder, please take a moment to think of John Schmidt.  He passed away on Wednesday, October 5, 2022.  John is preceded in death by his loving parents John and Minnie (Sauer) and is survived by his lifelong companion and soulmate, Sue (Danner).  He began his life on April 10, 1945 in St. Louis and led the Hancock High School basketball and baseball teams to many victories due to his bull-like physique and German stubbornness.  He played baseball and football at Central Methodist ultimately graduating with a finance degree from the University of Missouri in 1969.  His career as a Comptroller with many companies such as Masonite, Giant Portland Cement, Sterling Drug, and Siemens, led the family to Michigan, California, Illinois, South Carolina and Mississippi.

He touched many lives with his incredibly hard work ethic and passion for saving money.  His children Carol and Mike loved teasing him and adjusting the thermostat much to his chagrin.  His love of feeding deer, birds and raccoons led to many obese animals in the greater Eureka area.  His collection of jars and coffee cans filled with a wide variety of screws, bolts and hardware was the envy of many.  As a Grandpa, he loved to spoil Nicholas (20), Sam (19), Sophie (19) and Rachel (16) and show them the magic of tree forts and tire swings.  He passed along to his grandchildren his love of Dairy Queen and he astonished them with his ability to eat a Dilly Bar in a single bite.

John’s love for plants and gardening were fulfilled with his landscaping side hustle and constant mulching whether the plants needed it or not.  His happy place was working in the yard with family and friends, creating beautiful flower beds and then drinking a cold beer with you after the work was done. To the larger family, he was Papa John and with his ability to creatively hide each year’s Golden Egg, he taught many young children how exciting Easter can really be.  He also loved fishing (but not necessarily catching fish), splitting firewood and troubleshooting lawn mower engines, furnaces and cars with his brother, Ron, with their favorite tool, the bottle opener.  Many friends and family will cherish their memory of coming in from cold winter weather to solve the world’s problems around John’s potbelly stove in the barn.

He had a great love for his church family at St. Francis Episcopal Church of Eureka and was always the last one to leave the donut table in the fellowship hall.  A service there on Saturday, October 15^th, 2022 at 2:30 will be followed by a celebratory dinner.

John was preceded in death by his father, John, and his mother, Minnie. He is survived by his wife Sue, his two children, Carol, her husband Nick, their children Nicholas (20) and Sophie (19); Mike, his wife Dawn, their children Sam (19) and Rachel (16); and his brother Ron and his wife Pam (Oshie).