|
Horst and his wife Margo used to live in the Foothills. We met them through our Unitarian Universalist church, if I remember right. We enjoyed our visits to their cozy home, filled with Margo's landscape paintings. Sadly he is no longer with us in flesh. Horst was such a fascinating story teller. He was good at both written and oral story telling. I'll let my old journal entries speak now.
From Journal Entry November 14, 2007:
Horst (with a little help from his wife Margo) gave a talk tonight about WW2, life under Hitler, and Communism. He's a very good story teller, with lots of vivid details. Alot of people can write well, but not tell stories well; he does both well.
I came armed with a sketch book, hopeful to get a good quick sketch. I tried, but his thin, wirey body didn't stay still long enough. His feet, however, stayed fairly still, and so that is why you see a sketch of his feet!
He ended his talk by reading one of his short stories, a favorite of mine called, "My Window".
He used to have a website called bookandpoems.com, which no longer exists as of November 2017. Fortunately, I saved
a copy of "My Window".)
There's an interview with him at the Yuma Sun, by Darin Fenger, Nov 26, 2005. One has to be a paid subscriber to see the whole article, but this is the excerpt available to anyone with an account there:
"HORST SCHNEIDER places his name tag on his park ranger shirt as he gets ready to pose for a photograph. Schneider has lived a full life from working as a chemist, dishwasher, U.S. intelligence officer, a park ranger and even an author.
PHOTO
Horst Schneider says he still feels used by Adolph Hitler.
That's because 85-year-old Schneider will never forget the day he first saw photographs fresh from the death camps of Hitler's holocaust."
From Journal Entry March 26, 2011:
Our friends Horst and Margo will be moving soon. They are in their 90s and finding it hard to manage. So they will be living with one of their daughters, where they'll be very secure. We will miss them, but know it is a necessary move. Horst loves to tell stories, and I tried to capture him remembering happy times, during a visit before they move.
April 5, 2013
I have sad news to report. I was looking through a website of houses for sale, and came to one on Hummingbird Lane. Julia noticed it, and asked, "Isn't that Horst and Margo's house?" I got out the address book, and yes, it was their house. They'd gone to live with one of their children back in 2011. But then late last year, we got a call from Horst. He said he'd returned to Yuma. We tried to call back several times, but were never able to reach him.
Having confirmed the house, I did a bit of research and found the sad news:
"Horst Karl Schneider, 92, died Feb. 8, 2013, at his Yuma home. Born June 22, 1920, in Darmstadt, Germany, he was an author and poet.
"A celebration of life [was held] 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday at AmVets, 8889 E. South Frontage Road. Desert Valley Mortuary is handling arrangements, including cremation. Published in The Yuma Sun on February 14, 2013"
His autobiography: Rising Up Again and Again: How Life Can Be Fun If You Want It To Be
 
Their photos that are on the cover.
I just wish we'd known in time to go to the celebration of his life, to visit with his wife Margo. Meanwhile, I'm grateful for all the visits we did get to have with them!
|
