Colleen Schroepfer

Colleen was born in Oakland, California with her twin sister, Arlene, and moved to Visalia as an infant. She passed away on her half birthday at the age of ninety-six. Her twin, Arlene, died as a child. Two sisters, Anna and Viola, followed. Her parents were deaf, but she could hear well. Her childhood in Visalia often included socializing with the persons of the deaf community. She attended Visalia schools and graduated from Visalia Union High School in 1944. She first encountered her future husband, Richard Schroepfer, in high school as he was in the Class of 1941. World War II intervened and they reconnected at College of Sequoias after his service in the Navy. Colleen received an AA degree. One thing led to another, and Richard Schroepfer and Colleen Sherman married in 1948. Then came the baby boom. Four children, Richard Michael, Terry, Cynthia, and Scott followed between 1950 and 1955. Her early years were spent parenting and supporting her husband, first on the farm and then in his job at Knudsen Creamery. Colleen made parenting and supporting her children’s activities a priority in her life. During those years she enjoyed her bridge club and taking rides with the family in the car. As the kids grew older, she began working in retail sales, first at JC Penney, when it opened at the Visalia Mall, and then at Togni-Branch Stationers on Main Street. She was well-known among the many clients that did business with Togni. After retirement and the passing of her husband in 1987, she stayed in downtown Visalia volunteering for the Discovery Shop. Colleen made many lifelong friends through her bridge club, Class of ‘44 graduates, and other activities. She had a passion for travel in her early retirement years. She visited many places around the world and the United States. When home, she enjoyed cruising to the coast and lunch dates with her best friends. Genealogy became a hobby in her retirement years. She compiled booklets documenting her family and her husband’s families. She also liked doing crossword puzzles and could always be found at the computer playing solitaire. One of her proudest achievements was attending the college graduations of each of her eight grandkids from California to the east coast. Those eight grandchildren have led to six great-grandchildren (with one more on the way). She specialized in taking her grandkids shopping, shopping all year for “Grandma Bags” to be opened the night before Christmas.