William James Schaffer Jr.

William James Schaffer, Jr. – born September 22, 1918 to a family who lived in Mobile, AL since 1849. A lifelong resident of Mobile, Mr. Schaffer died Tuesday, May 14, 2013. Mr. Schaffer was a 1937 graduate of McGill Institute and graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree from Spring Hill College in 1947. He was employed as a special postal investigator with the U.S. Postal Service and after his retirement worked for ten years at Merchants Bank. A faithful, lifelong Catholic, he was a member of St. Dominic Catholic Church for thirty-seven years. He was a World War II veteran of the U.S. Navy serving from 1943-1946. He was a member of the Retired Federal Employees Association, the American Legion, the Knights of Columbus Council #666, the Jubilee Club at St. Dominic’s and the Reisse Club at St. Pius X. He was also a member of the Alabama Peace Officers Association, the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick, Spring Hill College Alumni Association, and for nearly fifty years was a member of the Crewe of Columbus Mystic Society. Mr. Schaffer survived the depression and World War II and was an avid University of Alabama sports fan and New York Yankees Baseball fan. He was preceded in death by his parents, William James Schaffer, Sr. and Victorine Murphy Schaffer; his brother, George Francis Schaffer; his sister, Mary Eleanor Schaffer Payne; and his brother-in-law, Willis Thomas Ford. Survivors include his wife, Alice Ford Schaffer; two daughters, Alice Fitzgerald Schaffer (Timothy) Mitchell and Rebecca Ann Schaffer Minto; three grandchildren, Meghan Mitchell (Adam) Spuler, Emily Minto (Robert) Head, and Kathleen Mitchell (David) Cawley; four great-grandchildren, Gavin Spuler, Liam Spuler, Caden Spuler, and Robert William Head, III; two sisters-in-law, Marietta Nelson Ford and Joyce Schaffer; nieces, nephews, cousins, and other relatives. Mr. Schaffer loved his family and thought of them as the center of his world. Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 11 A.M. on Thursday, May 16, 2013 at St. Dominic Catholic Church. The family will receive friends from 10 A.M. until 11 A.M. on Thursday at the Church. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Brothers of the Sacred Heart, McGill-Toolen Catholic High School or Catholic Charities. Interment will be in Pine Crest Cemetery.