Posted on 02/05/2018
Robert (Bob) Ashton Schade, Jr. (Capt. Ret.)
Captain Robert A. Schade Jr., USN (Ret.), died due to complications of a stroke in Houston, Texas, on December 2, 2017. He was 83 years old.
“Bob” was a native of East Rockaway, Long Island, NY, where he was valedictorian of his high school prior to entering the Academy. He was in 23rd Company and graduated 13th in the Class of 1956.
Upon graduation, he entered the Civil Engineer Corps, and earned a B.S. in Civil Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in August 1958. While there, he married the love of his life, Cecelia McShane of Hopkinsville, Kentucky, and started a family. He followed this with a M.S. in Civil Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in June 1960.
Following post-graduate school, he was the Resident Officer in Charge of Construction of a new Air Station in Meridian, Mississippi. He then served a tour in Cambodia as the only naval officer with the Army Military Advisory Group. He returned to Washington, DC, for a tour at the Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) Headquarters. He was deep selected for the rank of Commander before assuming command of Mobile Construction Battalion Five (MCB-5) and being deployed for three tours in Vietnam. He was the recipient of three Bronze Stars, having been shot down in helicopters in enemy territory at least twice.
After Vietnam, he again returned to NAVFAC in Washington, DC, in 1973 as the Director of the Operational Facilities Construction Division, then attended the Industrial College of the Armed Forces, where he graduated in 1976. He was assigned a hardship tour (without family) in Guam as the Assistant Chief of Staff for Base Support and the Force Civil Engineer. He then returned to the DC area as the Officer in Charge of Design and Construction of the new National Medical Center and the Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences in Bethesda, MD, which he considered to be one of the highlights of his career. He retired as the Vice Commander of the Atlantic Division NAVFAC in Norfolk, VA, in 1983 with the rank of Captain.
He was always extremely humble and gave little mention of his accomplishments, choosing to express the importance of hard work and a “job well done” rather than the awards he received, so we will do it for him. His awards include the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal (3), Navy Commendation Medal, Army Commendation Medal, Navy Unit Commendation, Meritorious Unit Commendation, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal, and the Vietnam Service Medal.
Upon retirement from the Navy, he was a Vice President of The Maguire Group, an architectural and engineering firm in Norfolk, VA. In 1988, he suffered a stroke, retired from professional life, and moved to Cele’s hometown in Hopkinsville, Kentucky.
He is survived by his wife of 60 years, Cecelia McShane Schade; three daughters, Teresa Schade-Lugo (spouse David Lugo), Joanne Schade-Boyce (spouse Thomas H. Boyce (USNA ’81)), and Susan Vander Werff; his sister, Janet Schade Wefer; and six grandchildren: Marcus Keith Pruitt, Brandon Kyle Pruitt, Robert Heyward Boyce, Susan Leanne Kay, Emilee Cecelia VanderWerff, and Matthew August VanderWerff.
As a family, we feel his message to his men in MCB-5, fundamentally represented his life as a person:
THE SIX MOST IMPORTANT WORDS - “I admit I made a mistake.”
THE FIVE MOST IMPORTANT WORDS - “You did a good job.”
THE FOUR MOST IMPORTANT WORDS - “What is your opinion.”
THE THREE MOST IMPORTANT WORDS - “If you please.”
THE TWO MOST IMPORTANT WORDS - “Thank You.”
THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT WORD - “We”
THE LEAST IMPORTANT WORD - “I”
Bob’s daughters note that nothing rang truer about their father than what this poem expresses:
Anyone can be a “Father.”
It takes someone special to be a “Daddy.”
A joint Memorial service will be conducted at the USNA Columbarium following the passing of Cecelia, his “Baby Doll,” wife, and best friend.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be designated to the Robert A. Schade, Jr., Memorial Fund, for stroke research at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston at: https://giving.uth.edu/memorial. Please leave your thoughts and photos for the family at: https://www.forevermissed.com/robert-ashton-schade-jr
https://www.forevermissed.com/robert-ashton-schade-jr#lifestory