C.
Deem Schoenfeld, 96, died on May 19, 2024, at Porter Medical Center
in Middlebury. He was born on April 12, 1928, in Bruin, Pa., the son
of William Wayne and Mildred (Deem) Schoenfeld.
After
Deem’s early years in Bruin, the family moved to Butler, Pa. Having
never seen a football game prior, Deem became a captain of the
football team in his senior year and lettered in golf.
His
sense of adventure emerged at an early age and included an impromptu
hitchhiking trip to California at age 17. He spent early years
working jobs that included washing dishes at Chautauqua Institution
in New York, working shifts at the Armco Steel Plant in Butler and
delivering mail at Christmas.
Three
days after getting a summons to join the U.S. Army in April 1946,
Deem enlisted in the U.S. Navy, in which after high school graduation
he became a hospital corpsman, stationed at naval hospitals in St.
Albans, N.Y., and Oakland, Calif. He graduated from Allegheny College
in 1952, where he was a four-year letterman in football. During
college, he married J. Carol “Toots” Robb, whom he had met years
earlier, when — having seen her excellent softball-throwing skills
— he decided that she was the girl for him.
Deem
graduated from medical school at the University of Pennsylvania, and
after his internship at Geisinger Hospital in Danville, Pa., he spent
five years in general practice in Butler. Deciding he wanted more
time with his growing family, Deem moved the family to Jericho, Vt.,
where he spent three years in radiology residency at the University
of Vermont before settling in Rutland. He spent 25 years at the
Rutland Hospital, including several years as head of the radiology
department. He took pride in the hundreds of technicians he helped
train, as well as in his early specialties in mammography and nuclear
medicine.
In
1990 Deem and Carol moved from Rutland to Middlebury, where Deem
retired in 1994.
Deem
and Carol have five children, and they spent years attending
countless sports games and concerts. They passed on to their children
a love for travel, sports, music and the arts, adventure, learning,
great meals, and engaged conversation. They loved traveling, taking
many trips across the United States and to Europe, Canada and Mexico.
They delighted in their many grandchildren and great-grandchildren,
traveling often to visit them and welcoming everyone home for beloved
holiday gatherings. His immediate family includes 37 people — each
of whom he delighted in gifting a book of their choice each
Christmas, ardently supporting independent bookstores by shopping
exclusively at the Vermont Book Shop in Middlebury.
His
love of sports included years of skiing, hiking, cycling, running,
tennis and, most importantly, golf, especially in his 32 years of
retirement, where he was a long-time ringleader of weekly matches at
the Ralph Myhre course in Middlebury and courses around Vermont and
New York. He helped organize group golfing trips to Scotland and
Ireland. He shot his most recent hole in one in his nineties and
regularly shot his age. His competitive fervor extended to duplicate
bridge, which, along with golf, he played with dedication and focus
until his death.
He
is predeceased by his wife. He is survived by his sister-in-law, Mary
Ann Monfre of Butler, Pa.; children, Michael Schoenfeld (Jane
Schoenfeld) of Middlebury, Vt., Susan Schoenfeld (Larry Kupferman) of
South Burlington, Vt., Robin Schoenfeld-Fox (Mark Fox) of Rutland,
Vt., John Schoenfeld (Laura Schoenfeld) of South Burlington, Vt., and
Mary Margaret Schoenfeld (David Low) of Arlington, Va.; 10
grandchildren; and 11 great-grandchildren. He is also survived by
dear friend Pat McCafferty of Butler, Pa., and countless golfing
friends who live in and around Middlebury.
A
memorial service will be held at a later time, and the family
requests no flowers. Deem’s family is grateful for the excellent
care he received from nurses at Porter Medical Center, especially
Blair, Rachel, Grace and Julia. To send condolences, visit
sandersonfuneralservice.com.
If
you want to honor Deem, go buy a book from an independent bookstore!
This article appears in The Summer Preview 2024.