Esther Irene Schmidt

At age 97, Esther Irene Schmidt passed away peacefully on December 30, 2024 surrounded by her family. Esther was born on April 18, 1927 on the family farm to her parents Sylvester and Leona (Richter) Epping in New Munster, Wisconsin, the third of eleven children. Although her high school education was interrupted for two years to help raise her youngest siblings, in 1947 Esther graduated from Wilmot High School in 3 years and was class Valedictorian. In her high school year book, her classmates said she was “bubbling over with brains”! Esther fell in love with her life partner, Richard Schmidt, and married him on July 21, 1951. They first lived in Monroe, Wisconsin before moving to Waunakee in 1956. Over the first eleven years of their marriage, they had their five boisterous and healthy children (Bruce, Steven, Jacquelynn, Dale, and Kimberly). They navigated their life together until 2010, when Dick passed away. During the early years of their marriage, Esther and Dick leaned heavily on their Catholic faith, particularly drawing inspiration from The Sacred Heart of Jesus. 

Esther had a career as a school administrative assistant, first at Wilmot High School after graduation, and then in the Waunakee schools from 1957 until her retirement in 1992. At the Waunakee Middle School, she had quite the reputation for running a tight ship! Ultimately, her retirement required the school district to hire two people to do the job she managed to accomplish alone. After retirement, Esther took classes to learn IRS tax preparations. While unintended, she used this knowledge to audit the books for one of their investments, where she exposed fraudulent bookkeeping practices. 

Esther is survived by her loving family: son Bruce (Mary) and their sons Jared (Nicole) Schmidt and their daughters Olivia, Ellie, and Savannah, Derek (Amy) Schmidt and their daughter Nora, and Aaron Schmidt; son Steven (Nancy) and their children Stephanie Schmidt and Brad (Kelly) Schmidt; daughter Jackie (Dennis) Sweno and their children Jessica (Pete) Nash and their children Mason and Harper, Joshua Sweno, and Kimberly (Trevor) Listol and their son Aidan; son Dale; and daughter Kimberly (Timothy) Andryk and their children Brian (Hannah) Andryk and their son Theodore and Dr. Samantha Andryk. She is also survived by her sisters and in-laws Lillian (Ed) Roberts, Judy Schmidt, Barbara (Mark “Mike”) Wisnefski, Betty Epping, Jeanne Epping, and Roger Zeihen. Esther was preceded in death by her husband, parents, and siblings and in-laws Eleanor (Gene) Robers, Marjorie (Elmer) Ketterhagen, Chuck (Sally) Epping, Claude Epping, Norman Epping, Romayne Zeihen, Dale (Gladys) Epping, and Leroy Schmidt. She was also preceded in death by her Schmidt brothers-in law and their wives, Robert (Emily), Don (Cindy), Gordon (Patsy), George (Willy), and James.

Among other things, Esther was a very accomplished seamstress. Some of her sewing projects included creating quilts for all of her children and grandchildren, sewing bridesmaid dresses, doing alterations for family and friends, and reupholstering several pieces of furniture. While Mom’s final years were clouded with age-related dementia, up to the very end she maintained a very sunny disposition as well as her ability to play a mean hand of Euchre. We feel so very lucky to have had this wonderful woman as our mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. The family would like to thank the staff of Home Again Living, both in assisted living and more recently in memory care for their excellent care. Also, big thanks to SSM Health at Home for their end-of-life hospice care, especially RN Charlie and Sr. GeorgeAnn.

Friends and family will be received from 9:30 to 11:00 a.m. on Saturday January 18, 2025 in the narthex of St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, 209 South Street, Waunakee. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11:00 a.m., followed by her burial in St. John’s Cemetery. A reception to celebrate her life will be held after the services. To reflect Esther’s faith, memorial gifts can be made to St. John the Baptist Catholic Church Chapel Restoration Fund (https://www.saintmax.org/funerals).

Please share your memories at www.cressfuneralservice.com

Winn-Cress Funeral Home

 5785 Hwy Q

 Waunakee, WI