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Donald A. Schaefer

1928 - 2015

March 29, 1928 - October 5, 2015

Bettendorf - Donald A. Schaefer, of Bettendorf, passed away in his sleep peacefully. Visitation will be 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday, October 10, 2015, at the Runge Mortuary, with services following at noon in the Runge Mortuary Chapel. He will be buried at Davenport Memorial Park, and the Runge Mortuary is assisting the family with arrangements. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to the Don and Mary Schaefer Science Scholarship fund, administered by the Community Foundation of the Great River Bend (CFGRB).

Don was born March 29, 1928, the eldest of four sons of Emery and Caroline Schaefer of Klemme, Iowa. He spent the first 17 years of his life on his parents’ small farm near Klemme, attending a one-room country school (Liberty 8) for his first eight years and graduating from Klemme High School in 1945. He was selected to participate in the last Army Specialized Training Reserve Program (ASTRP), an accelerated program in pre-engineering and advanced military training at South Dakota State College during the academic year of 1945-1946, where he also excelled in boxing. He later served in the Army at Camp Polk, LA and Fort Dix, NJ, being discharged in the spring of 1947. He then attended college at Upper Iowa University, Fayette, Iowa, (on the G.I. Bill), receiving his B.S. degree in math, physics and philosophy in 1949. It was at Upper Iowa, in 1947, that he met and married Mary E. Freeman of McGregor, Iowa, who was the College Homecoming Queen for 1947-1948. He always said that this was the most important thing that ever happened to him, and Mary was the most important person in his life. They were married in McGregor in August of 1948, and were together for nearly 59 years, until her untimely and unexpected death in April of 2007. On their marriage, Mary said: “It will be my purpose to be an inspiration to you and to any children we have.” She spent the next 58 years, even giving up her lifelong desire to be a teacher to inspire and assist Don. She literally gave Don and her family her life for all their years together.

Don taught math and science at West Union High School from 1949-1956, (where he had done his practice teaching in advanced math). He was one of 50 U.S. math and science teachers selected for the first NSF-sponsored Academic Year Institute at the U. of Wisconsin (Madison), receiving his M.S, in Science Education degree in June 1957 (with work in chemistry, biology and astrophysics). Don and Mary and four sons then came to Bettendorf where Don taught physics, chemistry and advanced science from 1957 through 1990, when both Don and Mary retired. From 1952–1985, Don also did graduate work at Carnegie Institute of Technology, Michigan State University, Reed College, M.I.T., Knox College, Ohio State University and the University of Maryland.

In 1957, Don was selected as one of the first 50 U.S. physics teachers to help develop and introduce the new PSSC Physics course in U.S. high schools, and BHS was one of the test schools. He also helped with the testing and evaluation of the Advanced Physics Topics course, (BHS was on of 12 test schools in the U. S.) and he introduced the Harvard Project Physics course and the CHEM Study chemistry course at Bettendorf High School.

He taught other physics teachers in NSF-sponsored programs at Nebraska Wesleyan University, Knox College, the University of Iowa, and San Diego State University and was one of 13 high school physics teachers selected to do research work at Denver Research Institute where Don did work in x-ray diffraction He and professor Byron Youtz of Reed College introduced the (then) new PSSC physics course into Africa (Southern Rhodesia, Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland by teaching 85 science teachers from those three countries at the University College of Rhodesia and Nyasaland in Salisbury, Southern Rhodesia now Zimbabwe), sponsored by Columbia University, the University Grants Commission of India and USAID. Don also helped introduce the new physics program into India, teaching Indian physics teachers at North Bengal University (with Dr. Wayne Denny of Grinnell College) and at Agra College (with Dr. Joe Schaefer of Loras College and Iowa State University). He participated in the Physics Teaching Resource Agent program in the 1980s, and after being selected as the Iowa science teacher to receive the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science Teaching from President Reagan, in 1985, he participated in a physics program at Fermilab, near Chicago. The teacher selected to receive the Presidential Award for excellence in math teaching in 1985 was a former student of Don’s. Don was selected as a keynote speaker for the 1986 Presidential Award awardees in Washington, D.C. In 1967, he did the first experimental work with both computers and video recording at BHS, and later taught computer usage courses to other Bettendorf teachers and outside of class time, taught Bettendorf Physics students how to program in FOCAL, BASIC and PASCAL.

Don received the Outstanding Educator award from the Bettendorf Junior Chamber of Commerce, both the Excellence in Science Teaching and Excellence in Physics Teaching awards from the Iowa Academy of Science (where he was also selected as a science Fellow), the Outstanding Educator Award from the University of Iowa, Outstanding Alumnus from Upper Iowa University, and in 2001 he was awarded the honorary Doctor of Science degree (the only high school teacher to have received that award from UIU). He always said that any awards he received were also earned by his fellow top science and math teachers at BHS, administrators and board members and top level students who helped provide the science program at BHS and who nominated him for these awards, and more than anyone else, due to the inspiration, encouragement and assistance of his wife, Mary during their 58 years of marriage, where she gave life and the primary loving care for their six sons.

Don wrote a number of articles published in national publications, including The Physics Teacher and Science Teacher magazines and gave presentations at numerous regional and national science and physics teacher conventions. In 1959, Bettendorf High School was selected by the American Association of Physics Teachers as one of the top 10 high school physics department in the U.S.

He designed and did the first programming of the planetarium at BHS, was its first director, from 1974–1990. The planetarium was named in his honor, due to the recommendation of his fellow physics teacher, Pete Sweedy and the support of BHS administration and Board of Education upon his retirement in 1990. He was a member of the American Association of Physics Teachers, the National Science Teachers Association, honorary lifetime member of the Quad-City Astronomical Society, ISEA, NEA, DARSPA and other organizations. He was a long-time member, former newsletter editor and a former officer of QCMUG, being a Mac user since 1984. He served as a resident advocate volunteer for Manor Care Health Services and the Iowa Department on Aging after retirement in the attempt to improve patient care in hospitals and to encourage communication between doctors and other medical people, which he believed could have saved his wife’s life. With the director of risk management, he made a videotape which has been used with a majority of Trinity hospital personnel and medical people at many other organizations, including Georgetown University and medical center in the attempt to improve doctor/nurse communications.

Don and Mary enjoyed supporting their five sons' academic, athletic, musical, dramatic and literary activities, as well as those of their grandchildren (especially Shane, who attended the Bettendorf Schools) though he lived in Davenport. Don and his sons went fishing together from the time they were very young, and Don and his son Steve remained fishing partners as long as their health would permit, owning a bass boat together for many years.

He is survived by his sons Craig (Judith) of Terre Haute, IN, Thomas of Carrolton, TX and Jeffrey (Monique) of Richardson, Texas. Don and Mary had 13 grandchildren and 3 great grandchildren. He is also survived by his brother Harvey (Iola) of Forest City, Iowa, by Mary's sister Zelma/'Percie' and by numerous nephews, nieces and cousins.

He was preceded in death by his sons Randall, Steven and Mark, by his parents Emery and Caroline, his wife's parents Percy and Zelma Freeman of McGregor, his wife's brother-in-law Ken Moore, his brothers Elwyn and Roger 2015, grandchildren (twin sons of Craig and Judy), great grandchildren (children of granddaughter Tammy), and Sister-in-law Charlotte Harlow, Don and Mary's sons Randall, Steven and Mary, his beloved wife of more than 58 years, his lifetime companion and best friend. Don always said his favorite place on Earth was anywhere his Mary was. Now they are together, forever.


source: Quad City Times (Moline, Illinois), 9 Oct 2015

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