Vern H. Schulz, 84, of Wayne, died Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2024 at his home at Kinship Pointe in Wayne.
Memorial services with military rites will be held at 11 a.m. Monday, March 11 at Our Savior Lutheran Church in Wayne. Visitation will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, March 10 at Our Savior Lutheran Church in Wayne. Burial will be in Greenwood Cemetery in Wayne at a later date.
Memorials may be directed to the Schulz family for later designation.
Arrangements are with Hasemann Funeral Home in Wayne.
Vern Harry Schulz was born Jan. 17, 1940 in Wayne to Harry and Rose (Daum) Schulz. Vern attended country school and then Wayne High School as well as Wayne Prep and graduated in 1958. Upon graduation, Vern enlisted and served in the United States Army stationed in Fort Carson, Colorado. In two years time, Vern returned to Wayne and resided on the family farm 6 1/2 miles South of Wayne. On top of helping with the family farm, he also worked for Einung Concrete Products and Ready Mix.
Vern married Dolores Marie “Dee” Doescher on June 1, 1963 at Grace Lutheran Church in Wayne. On July 5, 1964, their son Rocci was born and in 1964, the family moved to Wayne where Vern took employment with the City of Wayne as Public Works Director. On Nov. 18, 1966 their other son, Terry, was born. Vern continued working for the City and the couple also started and operated a taxi service called “Wayne Yellow Cab” for a number of years before Dee began babysitting out of their home. They expanded the business into “Kiddie World Day Care Center” which she ran for many years until she retired. While with the city, Vern was also in charge of the Water and Sewer Department, Parks and Recreation, Transfer Station and the Pool. He took pride in his job and was Street Superintendent when the last gravel road in Wayne was paved. Vern retired from the City of Wayne in 2002 after all his 38 years of service to the City of Wayne keeping the streets clear of snow and well maintained.
Vern and Dee always had a large garden in their back yard but also enjoyed spending time at the River and Demolition Derby’s where he earned the chance to drive in the World Championship Race at Islip Speedway in New York City showcased on ABC’s Wide World of Sports. We watched him on TV wreck a ’57 Chevy which he wished he could’ve brought back home. The family were members of Redeemer Lutheran and Our Savior Churches.
After retiring, the two of them enjoyed traveling with family and friends and following their grandchildren’s activities and accomplishments. They also spent 13 years as “Winter Texans” in Edinburg, Texas where they made many new friends, played lots of games and made several trips across the border to Mexico. Vern always enjoyed the outdoors hunting or fishing with the boys, taking scenic drives with Brother Don and their dad, Harry, or tending to his garden. Vern may be remembered for the “Tight Ship” way he ran his crews, but his staff respected how he did it. He will also be remembered and missed for his “Vernisms”…he had such a sense of humor that made us all laugh and cry on a regular basis. If we could all try to recall some of your favorites and share them, that really would be enough.
Survivors include his sons Rocci (Nannette) Schulz of Spring, Texas and Terry (Teresa) Schulz of Wayne; grandchildren Jaci (Jordan) Whittaker, Kyli (Patric) Schulz-Youngman, Nathan Schulz, Ande (Jake) Schulz-Tynan and Aliah Schulz; great grandchild Miles Aaron Whittaker; sister-in-law Donna (Gordon) Miller of Norfolk; brothers-in-law, Keith and Donovan Doescher of Wayne, along with many other nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Dolores, in 2020; parents, Harry and Rose Schulz; brother, Don (Sandra) Schulz; father-in-law, Leslie (Mary) Doescher; brothers-in-law, Darrell (Evelyn) and Kenny Doescher and niece, Angela Pfeiffer.
