Eileen Cecilia Schmidt

Eileen Cecilia Schmidt (née Ziegler) was born on June 8, 1934 in Collyer, Kansas, and died on April 9, 2020 in Santa Ana, California, at the age of 85. She was born to Leo J. and Sally Ziegler and was raised on the family farm in Collyer. She was the eldest of seven children, including a sister and five brothers. She was always prideful of her upbringing on the farm and had many warm childhood memories that she loved to share. She graduated from Collyer High School in 1952 and soon after moved to Denver with her sister Leona where she met her husband Robert. They married in 1956, and their first son Peter was born in 1957 and daughter Kellie followed in 1963. Unfortunately they lost Peter in 1964. Their son Joseph was born in 1965. Robert was a pilot for Western Airlines and Eileen was a homemaker and the family lived for many years in Los Alamitos. In 1970 they moved to their dream home in the Santa Ana foothills where they settled and lived happily for the rest of their lives. They enjoyed traveling throughout the country in their airplanes and motorhomes while visiting relatives and new places. Some of their happiest years were spent at their vacation home on Henry's Lake in Idaho after Robert retired. Eileen was generous and kind-hearted and always enjoyed doing whatever she could to help others. She made the best pies in the world and her delicious banana nut cake was everyone's favorite. She cherished her relationships with her countless relatives, children, grandchildren, and so many dear friends. Eileen is survived by her daughter Kellie (Jeff) Davidson, son Joseph (Dawn) Schmidt, sister Leona Grippin, brothers Robert (Deanna) Ziegler, Wilfred (Ann) Ziegler, David (Marianna) Ziegler, Louis (Margaret) Ziegler, sister-in-law Helga Ziegler, and her four grandchildren Allyn, Andrew, Nicole and Benjamin. She is predeceased by her husband of 57 years Robert, son Peter, brother Marvin Ziegler, and brother-in-law Jule Grippin.

Her burial will be a private service for immediate family members only on Wednesday April 15, 2020 at 1:00 p.m. Due to the current circumstances, a memorial service to include all family and friends will be scheduled for a later date, yet to be determined.