John Schmitz 

After his family, one of the great loves in John's life is bowling, and the Council can certainly be grateful for that.  It is when he is bowling that John manages to sell raffle tickets and he is apparently so good a salesman that he unloaded 111 tickets, ranking as the second highest seller in the Council.  Every time he would sell out whatever he had with him, there were four or five other guys who wanted tickets.  He recalls calling Raffle Chairman Leon Janowski several times for more tickets until he finally said, "Gimme all you got."

 

John got involved in the Knights of Columbus at the suggestion of his father Eugene, our booyah guru and one of the most active members of the Council.  Prior to that time he admits to knowing nothing at all about the Knights.  Since becoming a part of the Council he has taken part in the familiar food stands, and of course, selling raffle tickets.  Since the booyah sales have taken on the added attraction of Belgian pies, John gets involved in their preparation as well.  It's a real family affair--his brother and their wives all get in on the project.

 

A native of Fond du Lac, John lived in that city until his dad was moved to Green Bay when John was about seven.  Except for a short stint in Francis Creek, Green Bay has been home ever since and he considers it to be his hometown.  He has also been a member of St. Bernard parish for many years, including the time he lived in Francis Creek.  He is active in the ministry at the parish, serving as a Minister of the Eucharist and, when drafted by his dad, as an Usher.  He has worked for the past several years at Proctor & Gamble as a technician, and handles a rather large paper machine.  He oversees the mixing of paper, pulp, chemicals and sending rolls out to for processing.  Although the twelve and a half hour shifts can be somewhat gruesome, he appreciates the time off and he has figured out the mechanics of the swing shift.

 

In addition to spending time with his family, John occupies his time with fishing, golf and yard work as well as coaching little league.  He also likes camping and has a sister near Tomah and they meet up every summer for some time at Jellystone Park near that city.  He started bowling at an early age and eventually got talked into coaching.  He is now a certified coach and coaches junior bowling and serves as a member of the Green Bay Junior Bowling Board of Directors, a position which has him running tournaments and looking for sponsors for events.  Coaching has helped his own game--he had a 225 average last year and has had two 300's.  But for him, the greatest value is spending time with his family.  Coaching has also given him the opportunity to see some young people who have little family life, and it serves to remind him of the really important things in life.  John and his wife Julie have been married for fifteen years now and they have two children--Tyler (age 10) and Jenna (7).

 

August 1999