Harry Carl Schultz

Harry Carl Schultz, 79, of La Crosse, Wisconsin passed away on January 29, 2019, at Vernon Manor, Viroqua. Harry was born on November 8, 1939, to Henry and Sophia (Thoma) Schultz. He is survived by many cousins from his mother’s side including Sister Ann Jerome Bisek, Edward and Dawne Bisek, Barbara (Bisek) and Stanley Emerson. He has a sister Dorothy, last known to be in Whitehall, Wisconsin. He was preceded in death by his parents, twin brother Herbert who died shortly after birth, Don Betz and many aunts, uncles, and cousins.

Harry was born at St. Ann’s Hospital in La Crosse and grew up on Weston Street. He attended the Webster Elementary School. In his younger days, he worked at the C.H. Betz Dairy located in his neighborhood, fostering a life-long friendship with the Betz Family. Sometime during Harry’s preteens, as were many individuals with intellectual disabilities, he was sent to the Northern Colony and Training School (Northern Center) in Chippewa Falls. Harry spent at least 20 years living at the institution for people with disabilities. His stories of living at Northern Center included good times and bad. He referred to the Center as the “Crowbar Hotel” and had stories of darkness that brought him traumatic memories for all of his days. Harry also talked about the jobs he had at the Center and was incredibly proud of the work he did in the barn taking care of the animals, in the fields farming, helping with maintenance and even driving the tractor.

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Harry transitioned out of Northern Center and moved back to La Crosse County. He lived at Sienna Hall and then at the Lakeview County Farm. In the mid-1980s, through the support of Riverfront, now known as Aptiv, Harry was able to move into his own apartment at 1902 Market Street, the spot where the Betz Dairy was located. Harry also lived independently in an apartment on Avon Street and then in Sauber Manor (La Crosse Housing Authority) from 1999 to 2016. Due to increased medical needs, he moved into the Riverfront Starlite Adult Family Home where he lived until he had a debilitating stroke in 2018. He lived out his last months under the care of Vernon Manor.

Throughout life, Harry had a strong work ethic. He worked for the Don Betz family as a construction worker, on a farm on St. Joseph’s Ridge, at La Crescent Lumber, at St. Francis Hospital in the kitchen, at the Riverfront Production Plant and at Hilltoppers Recycling to name a few. Harry was a proud employee of ORC Industries for over 20 years.

Given Harry’s hard work, he was able to go on many trips through Able Trek Tours and Riverfront’s Recreation program. He went on a cruise to the Bahamas, on an Alaskan train ride, on a trip to Tennessee including a tour of Dollywood, on a train trip to South Dakota, on a tour of New York City and on numerous trips to Milwaukee Brewer games. He also enjoyed going to Fishing Has No Boundaries in Hayward. Harry enjoyed spending holidays with Don and Lois and Mike Betz and family.

Harry’s hobbies included amateur radio (operating nautical and two-way radios), trains, telephones, computers, and electronics. He was proud to have earned his radio operator license. The local railroad and Coast Guard knew his voice well and whenever asked, Harry would always switch the channel so as not to interrupt their business. His favorite place to visit has always been PhoneCo in Galesville, Wisconsin. Harry was also known to enjoy the taste of beer and it is safe to say he considered this one of his favorite hobbies. One of his favorite sayings was “I like to drink beer and shovel snow.”

Harry was a strong advocate for people with disabilities and an avid storyteller. He was a proud participant of ORC and Riverfront and a member ARC of La Crosse. He attended the DD Conference at UW-Stout and the state DD Network training for many years. He rallied at the state capital and spoke to legislators. As Harry was one of the first enrollees into Family Care in La Crosse County (a pilot county), he was chosen to help others understand what Family Care was and traveled the state to speak to individuals with disabilities who were worried about this new program. He was a regular speaker at Western Technical College, helping students learn about his journey to independence and how to better work with individuals with disabilities. The La Crosse Mayor's Office knew Harry well, especially under Mayor John Medinger's tenure. Harry really knew how to "pick up the phone" and ask for improvements to his city. The pedestrian crosswalk at 3000 South Avenue is credited to Harry's advocacy for his community.

Harry has many friends that were incredibly important to him including the Riverfront/Aptiv staff and participants, Mike Betz and family, previous guardian John Pat McHenry and current guardian Samina Grimes. A special thank you to all of Harry's friends who supported him and to the Vernon Manor staff and Vernon Memorial Hospice Program who were with him when he passed on.

Harry will be laid to rest in his family plot in Genoa at the Riverside Cemetery beside his mother Sophia and father Henry, as well as his fraternal grandparents Carl and Theresa (Dietz) Schultz. Anna (Grosskopf) is also laid to rest in the family plot as Carl and Anna started the Schultz Family when they were married in Germany and immigrated to Wisconsin in the 1890s. Carl and Anna are the parents of Robert, John and William Schultz. Anna passed away and Carl later married Theresa, and together are the parents of Henry Schultz.

Funeral services will be held on Tuesday, February 5, 2019, at Schumacher-Kish 200 West Avenue South in La Crosse. Visitation will be from 4:00 – 6:00 pm followed with a memorial service by Pastor David Leistekow of Immanuel Lutheran Church of La Crosse. Burial to be held in the spring at the Riverside Cemetery, rural Genoa.