Bill Schnippert

Married to Suzi (Berger) for almost 30 years ...she went home in Novenmber 2008 - Lung disease. Yes, she smoked... 35+ years. She was battling hard and was headed for a lung transplant until complications shut down that option and we decided to live the life as God intended us too. The lung disease was plateaued until Lung cancer reared it ugy head in July 2008 sped up the slow lingering process by way too many months.

Three months before she died she CHOOSE the woman that she felt should be my new wife. She told family, and very close friends of her plans before and after she revealed this to us.

As she was sick for 20+ years and I had 'nursed' her, she prayed in the hospital in July 2008 for God to reveal to her someone who would 'take care' of me...someone I could break out of the caregiver mold and have fun with...

She knew us so well... Suzi and I (Elder Bill) had helped counsel one of the couples from our church who was going through a divorce (unsuccessfully.) The divorced lady was now very, very close friends with my Suzi and Sheila [and my ASIL Donette] was over constantly helping me with Suzi'sdaily care in the last 8 months of her life. Suzi told me one afternoon that Sheila was the woman that was going to be the perfect wife for me after she was home in heaven.

Well ... the three of us spent a lot of time the last three months getting to know each other better. Some days the girls would relegate me to the den on the other side of the house and some days they'd throw me out of the house so they could talk and some days Suzi would sit quietly while Sheila and I would talk;and some days Sheila would sit quietly while Suzi and I would talk.

Suzi and I spent the last few months of her life living and reliving the JOY that God had blessed us with over the years. She went home on the morning of 11/06/08 and her Celebration Service was held on Veteran's Day 11/11/08...she had earned her rest...Suzi had been through the war ... several to be more exact, had the scars to show and now was home with her Father and Lord.

Sheila and I got married 4 months later and the whirlwind has not slowed (nor cooled) down since... Suzi was sooo right... God is so GOOD!

I'd been with JSO DOC for 34 years and retired in March 2015.

Sheila and I are full timing on our 31 foot Class C motor coach. Travelling the country taking in this beautiful country and sharing God's glory with our friends.

Jimmy Reynolds and I getting tossed out of Mr.B's office by the intern for 'mirroring' the Girls Glee songs [severla octives lower] during lunch.

Pinning the heavyweight from Englewood in '73 at the last second after being way behind on points. Winning my first two matches in the district over guys who had beat the stuffing out of me during the year; one match went to OT. Winning my match at the District Christmas (wresting) Tournament in '74 and never going back to the sport and also not cutting my hair for two years...me, who'd had a flat top for 16+ years!

Larry Mastrogianakis, Dale Krystle, Robert Russell and I were leading the league in Junior Bowling atPlaza lanes and then getting asked to leave the bowling league for wearing 'beer' shirts in defense of Richard Ryals who almost got tossed the week before for wearing one.

I was such a rebel ...RIGHT!