Obituary of Jean Marie Schultz

Jean Marie Schultz age 87 of Yankton, SD passed away Monday, May 22, 2023 at Avera Sister James Care Center, Yankton, SD.  Funeral services will be 10:30 AM, Saturday, May 27, 2023 at Trinity Lutheran Church, Yankton, SD with Rev. Jeff Otterman officiating.  Burial will be in the Yankton Municipal Cemetery, Yankton, SD.  Visitations will be 5 to 7 PM, Friday, May 26, 2023 at the Opsahl-Kostel Funeral Home & Onsite Crematory, Yankton, SD with a Scripture service at 7:00 PM.  Visitations will resume one hour prior to the service at the church.  Online condolences may be sent at: www.opsahl-kostelfuneralhome.com.  Live streaming of Jean’s service will be found at: https://my.gather.app/remember/jean-schultz. 

Jean Marie Schultz passed away peacefully with her husband by her side on May 22, 2023.     She had been blessed with a full and wonderful life of 87 years, married to her husband Donald Schultz for almost 69 of those 87 years. They were high school sweethearts who met at a basketball game at the Corn Palace in Mitchell, introduced to each other through friends. 

Jean was born on a farm near Salem to Marvin and Regina Schimmel in February of 1936, where she grew up and attended school in Salem.  She competed in sewing for 4H in the State Fair and played in the Salem High School band. Jean was active in the Christ Lutheran Church in Salem as well.

Jean and Donald Schultz were married in August of 1954, and so began the love of a lifetime.  For the first five years of their marriage they farmed south of Salem, then moved to Yankton in 1960 where they raised their family and have lived ever since.  Jean worked as a waitress and a clerk for White Drug before her last position in Gurney Seed and Nursery where she did clerical work before transferring to the print shop where she spent 20 years working with her sister Donna running printing presses.

Jean was a wonderful seamstress and made many square dance costumes.  Don and Jean were members of the National Square Dance Campers Association, Missouri River Jumpers Square Dance Campers Club and Yankton Friendly Square Dance Club. Jean and Don taught square dance lessons and shared their love of square and round dancing with many people throughout the years. They also taught, cued and choreographed round dances. After retirement Jean and her husband traveled, dancing, sightseeing and camping around the country. They became snow birds and wintered in Texas and Arizona.

To this union were born five children, Donald Eugene Jr., Rocky, Veryl, Darla, and Dawn. Jean was a devoted wife and mother, as well as a grandmother to Rocky and Kristi Schultz’s three children, Travis, Cassy and Reanna.  Jean was also blessed with great grandchildren, Travis Schultz and Holly Pederson’s three boys, Garret, Charlie and Thomas and Cassy and Jarrett Brenner’s four children, Amber, Arlo, Shawnie and Marshall.

Meeting Jean in Heaven are her parents, Marvin and Regina Schimmel, children Donald Eugene Jr., Veryl, Darla and Dawn, her sister Donna Lee and husband Larry Lee, sisters in law Lorraine Schultz,  Evelyn Hagemann and husband Gail Hagemann and brothers in law Dwayne Schultz and wife Kathleen Schultz, and Raymond Schultz.

Living with loving memories of Jean are her husband Donald, son Rocky and wife Kristi, grandchildren Travis and wife Holly, Cassy and husband Jarett, and Reanna Schultz and great grandchildren Garret Schultz, Charles Schultz, Thomas Schultz, Amber Brenner, Arlo Brenner, Shawnie Brenner and Marshall Brenner, sister in law Winona Schultz, as well as many cousins, nieces and nephews and many friends.  Thanks to all who loved and cared for our sweet Jean Marie, we shall all miss her.