Mildred Magdalene (Boerner) Schneider

Family and friends who wish to, may make a donation to St Boniface Catholic Church in Ft Smith, send flowers, or leave a memory in her Guest Book at the website.

Visitation for Mildred will be held at Edwards Funeral Home in Ft Smith on Wednesday, January 12,2023 from 5:00-7:00pm. Rosary is Thursday at St Boniface at 9:30am with Funeral Mass to follow at 10:00am.

Mildred was born the 6th of January 1930 in Paris, Arkansas to Henry and Frances (Kehres) Boerner. She was the sixth of nine children. She was preceded in death by her husband Alma (Al) Schneider, her parents, and all her siblings, Eugene, James, Mary Frances, Helen, Irene, Chuck, Fred, and Sally. She was also preceded in death by her step-daughter, Deborah Oliver. She is survived by her step-children of 40 years, Iris Titsworth and husband, Pete, of Alma, Linda Husman and husband, Dennis, of Mulberry, Jim Schneider and wife, Marci, of Ozark, John Schneider and wife, Dianne, of Mulberry, and Rose Mitchell and husband, Roy, of Brandon, Mississippi. She is also survived by 31 step grandchildren, 73 great-grandchildren, 8 great-great grandchildren and many nieces, nephews, grand and great-grand nieces and nephews all of whom she dearly loved.

Mildred grew up on the farm at the Subiaco Abbey in Arkansas, where her father was the foreman for the Abbey farm and grounds. When Mildred was 16 years old, she joined the Benedictine sisters of St. Scholastica. At this time, she became Sister DeLourdes, a name she chose because she wanted one that was different from the names that others were choosing and because of her great devotion to Mary. One of her assignments as a sister was to cook for the Bishop in Little Rock. After serving the Lord faithfully for approximately 23 years, Mildred made a brave and difficult decision to leave the order.

She worked at Sparks and St. Edward’s (Mercy) as a scrub/surgical technician. When she left Mercy, Mildred worked for Dr. Gedosh, an ear, nose and throat surgeon as his surgical technician. She loved her work and was dedicated and diligent. During this time of her life, she enjoyed family time with siblings and their families. She loved camping, fishing and cooking with her brother, Chuck, and just being with her beloved nieces and nephews, where she could make each one feel extremely special. She

remained true and faithful to her Catholic religion and St Boniface through-out her life and continued to work in her church as long as she was able.

Mildred married Al Schneider in 1982 at the age of 52. They were married 20 years before his death. They lived on his farm at Locke, Arkansas near Mountainburg. She loved the farm and got acquainted with and loved her very special neighbors in the Locke community.

After learning that she was diabetic, she began walking daily and often mentioned how much she loved being able to walk through the beautiful woods, the pear orchard, and the flat rocks area. She was a hard worker all of her 'healthy' life. Al made the comment more than once that Mildred was always in the best mood after she had worked hard outside. He also mentioned that she would come in and cook the best meal and usually make a pie because she was so happy from the hard work. Her family learned a great deal about diligence and work ethics from her example.

During retirement, Mildred learned to quilt- with Iris' help- and found out she had a real knack for putting quilts together. She made hundreds of quilts, most of which she gave away to lucky family members. After Al's death, Mildred lived alone on the farm for 13 years, after which she moved to Alma to be near her daughter and son-in-law, Iris and Pete. This move made it much easier to work at church and be closer to all her family. She lived there for six years. Her last year was spent at Mercy Crest Assisted Living Center in Barling where she rekindled old friendships and made new friends.

The family would like to thank Mercy Crest for the wonderful, loving care she received there. Also, the family would like to thank Mercy Hospice for their patience and care during her final days.