Shirlie C. Schmidt

Shirlie (Allen) Schmidt was born February 3, 1918 to Miles and Stella (Birch) Allen on a farm in the Scottsville community. Shirlie left this earth on January 27, 2008, one week short of her 90th birthday, at the Mitchell County Hospital Long Term Care Unit, where she had resided since 2005.
She is survived by her five boys: Paul and his wife Roberta, and Noel, all from Beloit, Jim and his wife Maria from Delphos, Mark and his wife Beverly from Live Oak, Florida, and Pat from Peoria, Arizona. She is also survived by her sister Bobbie Quakenbush of Beloit; 10 grandchildren; and 7 great grandchildren.
She was preceded by her husband Paul in Decmeber 2003, her sister Marjorie Schaffer in January 1994, and her daughter-in-law, Josephine (Jody) Gengler in November 2007.
Shirlie grew up in the country with her two sisters, attending Scottsville Grade School, and then as a senior attending Beloit High School, graduating in 1936. She began work part-time as a cashier and a bookkeeper for JC Penney at 16 cents and 17 cents per hour. She also worked half-days in the office of the Clerk of the District Court for $30.00 per month.
Shirlie met Paul Schmidt through his younger brother, to whom she was giving music lessons. They dated for four years and then in 1940, Shirlie married Paul in St. John's Catholic Church at 7:00 AM, and then left immediately on a honeymoon to the Black Hills, Yellowstone Park, and Salt Lake City. A short time later, she began full time employment with JC Penney as cashier and bookkeeper.
In 1943, Paul was drafted into the service. Shirlie remained in Beloit and continued to work. She left JC Penney to work for JM McDonald Company as a cashier and bookkeeper until 1950.
In the late summer of 1950, Shirlie and Paul took five of Paul's nephews into their home after the sudden death of their mother, Anna Schmidt Gengler. The boys ranged in age from two to 13. The boys were reared, loved, and treated as their own by the entire family. All the boys graduated from Beloit High School. In September of 1958, Shirlie began employment with the First National Bank, where she remained as Assistant Cashier until retiring on June 1, 1983.
Her time has always been kept full with sewing to tailoring – making her own clothes and those of the family, and quilting. In her later years, Shirlie, her sister Bobbie, and a close friend learned to rubber stamp greeting cards. All three became very proficient and additionally had great fun "stamping".
At Long Term Care, Shirlie loved to play drums in the rhythm band, and loved the friendly competition of baseball.
Shirlie was a member of the St. John's Catholic Church in Beloit.

Funeral services will be at 11:00 AM Friday, February 1, at the McDonald Funeral Home in Beloit with burial at Elmwood Cemetery.
Visitation will be from 9:00 AM to 8:00 PM Thursday at the funeral home.