James Schmitt Sr.

James Edward “Ned” Schmitt, age 84, died on November 9, 2020, at Agrace Hospice in Madison, Wisconsin. He was born on June 10, 1936, in South Bend, Indiana, to Herman A. and Sophia I. (Madarasi) Schmitt. His father’s employer, Frank E. Hering, gave him his nickname when he was a young boy, and for the rest of his life he introduced himself: “Call me Ned.” Ned graduated from Holy Cross School and Central High School, where he was a good student and participated in wrestling and football. He attended the University of Cincinnati before returning to South Bend where he worked for the Sherwin-Williams paint company.

Ned married Margaret Lucille “Dolly” Toomey on April 27, 1963, at St. Leo the Great Church in Chicago. They moved to Madison, where Dolly taught at Randall Elementary School and Ned worked for the Glidden paint company. Dolly’s sudden illness and death in 1968 left Ned a widower struggling to raise their two young sons while working a job that required frequent travel. With the support of family and friends, especially Ann (McCormack) Buckley, the boys’ nanny, Ned moved forward with his life, eventually meeting Dolores (Delphey) Holmberg, a widow raising her young daughter.

Ned and Dolores married at Our Lady Queen of Peace Church in Madison, on August 6, 1971. They joined their two families by adopting each other’s children, and later had a daughter together. Ned owned The Wallpaper Shoppe and later worked for the Wisconsin Department of Transportation as a paving marking specialist, taking great pride in his paint test strips that adorned highways all over Wisconsin. He often joked that after decades of mixing custom paint colors, he ended his career with only yellow and white.

A resident of the Westmorland Neighborhood for 52 years, Ned was active with his neighbors in fostering the Westmorland youth hockey program. He was a longtime member of the Madison West Kiwanis Club where he helped establish the All-City Hockey Banquet. He flipped countless pancakes at fundraisers, and there was never a shortage of volunteers in the sweltering Queen of Peace kitchen due to the bottle supplied and passed around by Ned. He joyfully performed in a variety of skits for the Edgefest Follies.

Ned loved and cared for his in-laws, Edward and Mildred (Hogan) Delphey, as his own parents. Their home in Harpers Ferry, Iowa, was the most common destination for the Schmitt “minihome,” and he felt grateful to his father-in-law for introducing his sons and him to the Mississippi River. Ned cherished his Hungarian heritage, and he especially enjoyed preparing and sharing family recipes that he had learned as a young boy in his grandmother’s kitchen. Above all, he will be remembered as a good friend to many people who needed one.

Ned is survived by his wife, Dolores; children, Mary Lynn (Michael) Kessenich, James (Carol) Schmitt, Jr., William (Susan) Schmitt and Kathleen (Jeffery) Kline; grandchildren, Harrison and Drew Kessenich, Molly and Curtis Schmitt, Liam and Aidan Schmitt, and Oskar and Delphey Kline; sisters-in-law, Mary Ardith Claussen, Catherine Toomey and Marlene (Harold) Payne; brother-in-law Charles Rollins; several nieces and nephews; and his dear friend since childhood, Michael (Judy) Graf. He was preceded in death by his parents, wife Dolly, sister, Marguerite Rollins; brothers-in-law Kenneth Claussen and Bernard, Jerome and Kevin Toomey; and cousins, Marguerite (August) Cifelli, Thomas Varga, Gerald Hessler and Donald Hessler.

A private Mass of Christian Burial will take place at Our Lady Queen of Peace Church in Madison. Interment of ashes will be in St. Joseph’s Paint Rock Cemetery, Harpers Ferry, Iowa.

The family thanks the caring staff at St. Mary’s Care Center and Agrace Hospice, who sent him on his journey home to the tune of the Notre Dame Fight Song. Memorial donations may be made to the Catholic Multicultural Center (1862 Beld Street, Madison, WI 53713) or the Agrace Care for All Endowment (c/o Agrace Foundation, 5395 E. Cheryl Parkway, Madison, WI 53711). Please share your memories at www.cressfuneralservice.com

“So live that when you die, the poor, the sick, the outcast will mourn the passing of a friend.”

-  Frank E. Hering