Dad :: Alan Clare Schnurr

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This was written by Peter around the spring of 2004.

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Al Schnurr was a great Father, citizen and participant in his community. First and foremost his family came first that was evident in the way he loved Teresa. All of us boys grew up knowing of the deep love our Father had for our Mother. As an adult now I look back and can never remember them raising there voices to each other. I am sure they did but they chose not to allow it to influence us as young children and it had become a habit as we matured.

Dad was a strong Catholic and I remember him for so many years going to Mass every morning. As young boy I didn’t have to go to mass on a weekday morning to serve by myself, my Dad would pick me up at 7:45 am coming from work where he had been since 6:30. I think this created an impression that lives with me always throughout my life. I today am most comfortable with the world when I am attending mass on a regular basis. Dad grew up an only son having an older brother who was killed in an accident when he was young. Mother said he told her it was a lonely life and that he wanted a large family so we would always have each other. Well his wish came true as we are all close as brothers and have drawn strength from it many times.

One of the original positive thinkers I can remember in 1960 the Power of Positive Thinking around our house and all of us putting it into action. Dad was very active in the Christopher Leadership Course and became an instructor and taught it for two years. He always looked on this as a powerful course that changed his life. For that matter I became and instructor for the same course and once taught a course as an assistant. My son Jeff has also taken the course. This thread of self improvement that Dad started is evident in all his boys as he used to like to call us.

My Father knew something with a certainty that the fruit doesn’t fall far from the tree so he made sure the fruit of his life was well nourished. He also served on the board of education for several years and participated in other community events.
On his gravestone is the candle of the Christopher’s which represented for the Christopher’s their motto “Better to light one candle than curse the darkness”. I like to think that all of us because of this influence in our lives live up to this every day.

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