Margaret A. Schad

MADISON/STEVENS POINT-With those she loved surrounding her, Margaret M. Schad, age 81, died peacefully Monday, Nov. 12, 2012 at UW Hospital in Madison. Marge was born to Robert and Alberta (Isensee) McCoy in Sparta. She graduated from Sparta High School at age 16 and from UW-La Crosse with a teaching degree at age 20. She then taught English and Spanish at high schools in Viroqua, Plymouth and Wisconsin Rapids. On June 7, 1958, she married James E. Schad, her partner in love and life until the end. The couple welcomed a daughter and son in Wisconsin Rapids. In 1965, they moved to Stevens Point where they made their home until relocating to the Madison area in 2010. Community service to others was central to Marge’s life. When her children were young, she volunteered in their activities at school and church. She also held leadership roles in the Stevens Point League of Women Voters and the Stevens Point Park and Recreation Commission. In 1975, Marge became the first woman to serve on the Portage County Board of Supervisors when she was appointed to fill a vacancy in the city’s 12th ward. She was re-elected in 1976 and 1978. She represented the county’s 19th district (Village of Plover) on the Board of Supervisors from 1982 until 1988. During her 11year tenure on the Board, she served on almost every committee and chaired many. After leaving the Board, Marge continued her civic involvement by serving on the Portage County Condemnation Commission, the Board of Directors for the Wisconsin Ice Age Trail, the Northern Area Agency on Aging and volunteering as a poll worker on election day. During her retirement years, Marge’s passion and attention turned to her four grandchildren. She and Jim enjoyed visiting their grandchildren and encouraged them in their classroom activities, on the stage, and on the athletic field. The couple also enjoyed exploring the United States along the Lewis and Clark trail, at the battlefields of the Civil War, the pioneer sites of Laura Ingalls Wilder and relaxing on the beaches of Gulf Shores, Alabama. When not on the road, Marge and Jim participated in library book clubs, Lincoln Center programming and walking at the CenterPoint Mall. Those cherishing Marge’s memory include her husband, Jim; her daughter, Susan and her husband, Greg and their sons, Trevor and Ethan of West Des Moines, Iowa; her son, Jay and his wife, Celia and their children, Elliot and Natalie of Fitchburg. Also surviving are her sisters, Mary Ellen Kennedy of Phoenix, Katherine and husband,Richard Steel of Libertyville, Illinois; her brother, Alan McCoy of Sparta; her sister-in-law, Marjorie Schad of Corvallis, Oregon; and numerous nieces and nephews. Preceding Marge in death were her parents; her brothers, Robert McCoy and Stuart McCoy and his wife, Shirley; and her sisters-in-law, Nancy McCoy and Ann Westberg. A memorial service in celebration of Marge’s life will be held at MEMORIAL UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST, 5705 Lacy Road, Fitchburg, at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 17, 2012. The family will greet relatives and friends at the church from 9 a.m. until the time of service on Saturday. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Wisconsin Ice Age Park and Trail Foundation or Wisconsin Public Radio. For their kind and compassionate care, the family wishes to thank the Attic Angel Community, her team of private caregivers and the doctors and staff at UW Hospital. Online condolences may be made at www.gundersonfh.com.