William A. Schubert

As Bill Schubert’s youngest grandson, I was privileged to be part of his life since the day I was born in 1969. I have countless memories of positive, humorous and loving care, including many road trips along the western US coast line, in several of his RVs named Itchyfoot (renamed in numerical order). Itchyfoot eventually became his nickname, and later my nickname (Itchyfoot 2) because we had both traveled so much in our lives, and never seem to stop. Additional special memories are from a tour of Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands where I was so honored to introduce him and Marcelle to my closest friends in Germany, especially my God-son, Wilhelm Friedrich. The Friedrichs, along with every person they were to meet in Europe and Chicago (my home) all send their prayers and blessings to Bill & Marcelle, and all of the extended Schubert/Lemieux family. I learned from my dear grandfather how to embrace so many joys of life, and how to earn the respect of others by first showing respect and kindness to all others, (especially if it involved sharing some beer). I was especially fortunate enough to spend his most recent (97th) birthday with him in Temecula, and some of his final days undergoing medical care at The Springs, where he managed to charm just about everyone he met. I’m grateful for the service he gave our country, and I hope everyone can carry on his kind and generous spirit for all of our lives.

My uncle Bill was a special uncle, kind, witty, genuine, a real people-person. Although I saw him on maybe only a dozen occasions in my life I will always have fond memories of him. I am still in shock that he is gone, we last spoke in September and we had a wonderful chat on the phone catching up on family news, politics, weather, health, our respective countries… Somehow I thought he would live forever. I stayed with Bill for a few days in Oct.2017 when Marcelle’s health was rapidly declining, he was so hospitable even though this was such a difficult time for him. My 20 year old daughter traveled with me and she commented that Bill was so “cool” for his age. She had never met an elderly person quite like him, so full of life. Bill took good care of my aunt Marcelle, true love and dedication. I returned again with my husband just over one year ago and Bill was as usual the perfect host. We visited Marcelle’s gravesite with Bill on our last day of the trip. We left for the airport and Bill would stay by her grave a couple more hours. We wished him well and said goodbye, a moment I will never forget as he stood so stoic and waved at us until we were out of sight at the top of the hill. Of course I wish I could have visited Bill and Marcelle more often over the years, but given the distance from Montreal, lack of time and money, and other life events getting in the way it simply was not easy. I feel fortunate to have been related to Bill and even though we did not spend a lot of time together he left a huge impression on me. I will miss him.

Andrea Balzamo
Montreal