John went to be with his Heavenly Father on Thursday, October 19, 2023. Family and friends were constantly by his side during the final journey supporting and loving him until the end.
John was born December 15, 1929, in Hennessey, OK to Ethel and William Schwartz. He met the love of his life Della Strickland (Schwartz) while attending Hennessy High School. Their families lived across the street from each other, and they were married December 25, 1950. They were married 62 years.
John received his master’s degree from Oklahoma State University and pursued his love of baseball by
becoming a baseball coach. Baseball has been an integral part of John’s life for than a half century. In that time, he had significant positive influence in the lives of coaches and players. While he was a high school coach there were 31 All State players from his teams. John was Coach of the Year in 1971 and President of the National Baseball Coaches Association in 1993. He was honored as the National High School Baseball Coach of the Year in 2003 and notably, was only one of two coaches to have received this national award. He was elected and inducted 9 times into various Halls of Fame. In 2006 he received the Babe Ruth/Lou Gehrig’s Founders award for his part in forming the Oklahoma Baseball Coaches Association. He was one of the founders, the chairman and director of the prestigious Sun Belt Classic All Star Series for 32 years. Many of the young men who were fortunate enough to participate in this elite opportunity went on to become great coaches and players. Two notable names of these players are OSU Coach Mike Gundy and Coach Cale Gundy. There were also 114 All American players and 437 players who have signed professional contracts. Of these, 154 players went on to play in the Major Leagues. This also includes five-time Cy Young award recipient pitcher, Randy Johnson and Quarterback Troy Aikman.
John shares his philosophy in one article as follows. “I’ve been around baseball for a long time. To me it’s still the greatest game. I love baseball, and I’ve always believed that if you can get ball players to really understand and love the game, success is almost sure to follow.”
John and Della lived in Edmond for 62 years and were active long-time members of Henderson Hills Baptist Church.
He was a fan of Herman comics, and loved to make people laugh with his antics and orneriness. He and Della had epic Chinese Checker battles and he was a fierce competitor at family gatherings in dominos and Old Maid.
John has three surviving children, Martha New and her husband Bayne, Marvin Schwartz/Karen Schwartz, and Marilyn Jones. He also has four grandchildren: Crystal Stone, Jill Schwartz, Libby Schwartz and Hannah Schwartz and he also was blessed with eight great-grandchildren.
He is preceded in death by his loving wife Della Rose Schwartz, granddaughter Jennifer New, brothers Bill Schwartz and Jay Schwartz, sisters Roseanna Green and Katy Barkley.
Come-and-go visitation will be held at Baggerley Funeral Home on Friday, October 27, 2023 from 12 p.m. until 8 p.m. with the family to greet friends and a reception from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. Funeral services celebrating the life of Coach Schwartz will be held on Saturday, October 28 at 10 a.m. at the Baggerley Funeral Home Chapel with burial to follow at Memorial Park Cemetery in Oklahoma City, OK.
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.baggerley.com for the Schwartz family.
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