Carl Ludwig Schmider, Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, died Dec. 31, 2022, a week after his 90th birthday. Summing up much of his spirit is “XAIPE,” Greek for “Rejoice!”
Born in 1932 to German immigrant parents, Ludwig and Irma (Otto) Schmider, and raised with brother, Albert, in Boston, Massachusetts, Carl graduated from Boston English High School in 1950. He served in the U.S. Air Force from 1952-’56, with two years as chaplain assistant at Misawa Air Force Base, Japan.
In 1960, Carl graduated from Emerson College in Boston, where he stayed to teach and earn his M.A. He completed his Ph.D. at the University of Denver (1972).
He met Mary Ellen (Heian) in Burlington, Vermont, where both were faculty members at the University of Vermont. They married June 17, 1970.
Carl was a loyal friend and confidante and continued to keep up written correspondence with many throughout the years.
His professional life as a teacher was dedicated to adult students who were returning to education and to oral performance of poetry in venues both in the USA and abroad. Although he “retired” in 1995, Carl continued to travel and teach overseas, as well as give time to the Literacy Volunteers of the Chippewa Valley. His students remember him as engaged, and a positive influence who was the social glue of his departments. His family remembers him as always grateful, with a kind word.
Carl is survived by wife Mary Ellen, son William Gunerius “Gus” Sanders Leonard (Denese), daughter Dagmar Heian (Dale) Meinders, and six grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents and brother Albert J. Schmider.
A memorial service was held Jan. 15, 2023, at St. Anthony Park Lutheran Church. Interment will be held at a later date at East Side Cemetery, Stanley, Wisconsin.
Memorials to the Mayo Clinic for Alzheimer’s research, or to scholarships at the University of Maryland Global Campus (UMGC).
