William Schuchardt Obituary

William Schuchardt Jr., MD

Nov 24, 1947 - Feb 4, 2026

Williamsville, NY

Alzheimer's came for our father in 2020, taking him from us piece by piece, memory by memory, over the course of too many years.

Born in St. Augustine, Florida, Billy grew up in Wyoming, Ohio, where his parents, Bill and Rusty, owned Mayfair Ice Cream. A graduate of Wyoming High School, Yale University - Davenport College, and Case Western Reserve University. He met our mother in Cleveland, and they started our family there before settling in Sandusky, where he had a longstanding general surgery practice. His famous phrase, "Way to go, hell of a job," was emblazoned on a coffee mug as a parting gift from his colleagues in Sandusky. He finished his career as Chief of Surgery at the VA Hospital in Erie, Pennsylvania.

We grew up sailing Stardust on Lake Erie with him, hanging our legs over the side, never forgetting his number one rule, "One hand for you and one for the boat." A loving but tough dad with often outsized expectations, Alzheimer's softened him - the one thing the disease gave us, in exchange for taking absolutely everything else.

He retired to Buffalo, where he loved walking to the lake and standing on the shore, which had been a constant companion for most of his life as he moved from Cleveland to Sandusky, then Erie, and finally Buffalo.

He loved his kids, Key West, Ben & Jerry's Cherry Garcia, and pink flamingos in the yard. We miss him dearly, but are relieved his days of "just plugging along" are over.

Bill is survived by his sister, Barbara; his children, Matt and Stephanie, Gwen, Emily and Mike, and Ted and Alisha.

A private family service will take place when the lake thaws.

In lieu of flowers, have a margarita. Hug your loved ones and ask them all the questions, the important ones, the mundane ones, the silly ones, every last one you can think of, before there are no longer answers.