Donald Schmahl

Donald R. Schmahl, age 82 of Sheboygan passed away at home on February 7, 2015 after a two month illness. He was born in Sheboygan on December 29, 1932 to Robert and Emma (Jung) Schmahl. He attended Mapledale School and graduated from Sheboygan Central High School in 1950. On December 26, 1953 he was united in marriage to Jean Traas. Donald worked for 44 years at The Vollrath Company in Sheboygan retiring in 1995. His time at Vollrath was interrupted as he served in the US Army from 1953-1955. He was one of the best local amateur pitchers in the 1950's playing for Sheboygan's Kingsbury baseball team. He was a member of the Sheboygan Old Timers Baseball Association. He was a passionate sports fan. As a Packer season ticket holder, he attended every regular season and playoff game played in Lambeau Field's first 25 years including the "Ice Bowl" game in 1967. He continued to attend most games until about 10 years ago. As much as he was dedicated to the Packers, he was a bigger fan of the Chicago Cubs. He made many trips to Wrigley Field over the years and rarely missed a Cubs game on radio or TV. After retirement, he and Jean made an annual trip to Arizona in March to escape the winter and spend time with family and friends and conveniently see the Cubs in Spring training. In earlier years he was an avid fisherman, spending lots to time on the water and ice on Lake Winnebago and salmon fishing on Lake Michigan. In recent years he preferred to stay home with family, take care of the yard and relax. He also loved being around dogs and one of his final happy moments was when he said goodbye to his grand-dog Daisy. Donald is survived by his wife Jean, sons Rick (Linda) Schmahl of Cable WI and Jim (Suzanne) of Monona, WI; grandchildren Brittany Gaier of Anchorage, AK and Dylan Gaier of Bend, OR and sister Carol Hecker of Random Lake, WI, sisters in law Lora Schmahl, JoAnn Schmahl and Marilyn Daane; and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by son Jeff Schmahl; brothers Alvin Schmahl (Alverda), Kenneth Schmahl, LeRoy Schmahl (Delores), Ellwood Schmahl and sister Pearl Schetter (Bernard) and brothers in law Art Hecker and Glenn Daane. A memorial gathering in celebration of Donald's life will be held on Friday, February 13, 2015 from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. at Ballhorn Funeral Chapels. Family memories will be shared at 11:00 a.m. In lieu of flowers, a memorial fund has been established in the name of Donald Schmahl. His family would like to express heartfelt thanks to helpful neighbors Ronald and Sue Dexheimer and Bill Gehrig and Sharon S. Richardson Community Hospice for allowing him to comfortably spend his final time at home.