Obituary of Dale L. Schroeder

Dale L. Schroeder, age 83, of Melbourne Beach, Florida passed away peacefully on Monday, December 30, 2019 at Avante at Melbourne Rehabilitation Center. Dale was born in Holdrege, Nebraska on November 3, 1936.  His father, Henry died when Dale was 6 years old.  He was raised in Eustis, NE by his mother, Helen, his older brother, Lowell, and his sister-in-law, Martha. Dale joined the United States Army and served for three years.  Upon honorable discharge, he received decorations for sharpshooter and marksman. Dale married Ann Christman in Farmingdale, NY in 1961 as he began his career as an electronics technician.  They raised two daughters in Silver Spring, MD where he and Ann remained until retirement from the U.S. Government, Department of Defense after 33 years. In 1994, Dale and Ann moved to Melbourne Beach, FL where they enjoyed fishing and gardening.  Nineteen years later, Dale was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.  In 2018, he participated in a program in which he traveled numerous times to Orlando for Lewy Body Dementia research. In February 2019, Dale fell and fractured his hip, which led to complications and declining health up until his passing.  We are thankful that he was with his wife and daughters during his final hours. Dale is survived by his loving wife of 58 years, Ann Schroeder; daughters, Karen (Mike) Caselli and Donna (Dale) Clark; grandsons Thomas Caselli and Ryan Caselli; granddaughters, Sadie Clark and Kinsey Clark; nieces Diane, Debra and Donita and his nephews, Dallas and Dennis. He was preceded in death by his parents Henry and Helen (Daiss) Schroeder, brother Lowell Schroeder and sister-in-law Martha (Klein) Schroeder. A memorial service will be held at the Community Chapel of Melbourne Beach, located at 500 Ocean Avenue, Melbourne Beach at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 11, 2020.  There will be a reception following at Terry Center Fellowship Hall. For those who wish, memorial donations can be made in Dale’s name to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (www.MichaelJFox.org) or to the Lewy Body Dementia Association (www.LBDA.org).