Milton Clarence Schroeder
Milton Clarence Schroeder, 89, of Cornelius, N.C., died June 12, 2012 at Levine & Dickson Hospice House. He was born January 9, 1923 in Lawton, N.D. to the late Clarence and Edna Fifer Schroeder.
Mr. Schroeder enjoyed relating the circumstances of his birth: His parents lived on a small farm in North Dakota – truly a “little house on the prairie.” He was born in his aunt’s home in a small nearby town that had a physician. After a brief recuperation, mother and baby went by branch train on a short trip to Lakota, N.D., where they were met by his father who had come from the farm by horse and sleigh (in January all roads were blocked by snow). Then father, mother and baby traveled by sleigh 10 miles over snow-covered fields to their tiny home on the desolate N.D. prairie.
Mr. Schroeder’s college education was in chemical engineering – he earned a Bachelor’s degree from the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks, in 1947, and a Doctoral degree from Case Institute of Technology (now Case Western Reserve University) in Cleveland, Ohio in 1950. After graduating from the U.S. Army Air Corp. Officer Candidate School in Miami Beach, Fla. in 1943, Milton was assigned to Wright Field in Dayton, Ohio.
He married Mary Catherine Long in Dayton on December 15, 1945 and was discharged honorably from the service in 1946. Milton worked as a chemical engineer for several companies and in 1970 founded M.C. Schroeder Company, an industrial equipment sales representative company covering several states from its Charlotte office. When he retired in 1989, his youngest son, Philip, took over the company.
Milton is survived by his loving wife of 66 years, Mary (Kay), and their sons and wives: Terry (Paulette) of Sanford, N.C., Stephen (Margie) of Ijamsville, Md., and Philip (Debbie) of Stanley, N.C. He also is survivied by seven grandchildren, six great-grandchildren and a sister, Rae Schroeder Paulson of Eugene, Or.
A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Friday, June 15, at Davidson United Methodist Church, 233 South Main St. in Davidson, with Rev. Jody Seymour officiating. Following the service, the family will host a reception for attendees at the church.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the church and/or Levine & Dickson Hospice House, 11900 Vanstory Dr., Huntersville, NC 28078.
Raymer-Kepner Funeral Home and Cremation Service is assisting the family. Friends may offer condolences to the family at www.raymerfh.com
