Obituary of Donald Russell Schifferl

Donald Russell Schifferl, 85, of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, passed away Saturday, February 6, 2021 at UNC Hospital. 

Don was born March 5, 1935 in Chicago, Illinois, to Marie Winkler Schifferl and Louis Schifferl.  He grew up in south Chicago with his older brother, Louis W. Schifferl, where his father and grandfather worked at the cattle stockyards as the trains brought steers to market.  Don liked to tell stories about his childhood adventures in Chicago, how smelly his father and grandfather were when they came home from the slaughterhouse, and Sunday family dinners when his dad would invite cowboys to the house for a home-cooked meal and some lariat games in the street.  During the Cold War, he met his first love and they settled in South Bend to raise a large and rambunctious family.  He joined the Air National Guard where he was a radio and electronics specialist for P-51 Mustangs.  This path led him to Bendix Corporation, a missile and rocket company, where he tested electronics for flight trajectory and aerial dynamics.  When Bendix lost their US Navy contract, Don quickly found a position at the University of Notre Dame in the Department of Chemistry working in nuclear magnetic resonance.  Life evolved as he and his wife raised six children and he became more involved in the community and the university life.  As his faculty colleagues often said, Don was a highly recruited member of the department and two different faculty tried to take him with them when they moved to other universities, including Ernest Eliel at UNC-Chapel Hill.  It was ironic to him that he landed in Chapel Hill 40 years later.  Don felt good about these heady experiences being wooed by high-profile chemists, but Don was a true Midwesterner, and no one tempted him to leave the heartland until true love struck late in life.  Love you today. Love you tomorrow. Love you forever.  His devotion to his “sweetie” was inviolable. 

Don loved little children and could spend hours telling tales and simultaneously illustrating the story at the kitchen table with a four-year-old grandchild on his lap.  His grandchildren loved their Opa.  His artistry was a fun hobby when he was younger and became a true calling when he retired after 39 years of service at Notre Dame.  He joined an artist guild in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, that led to displaying his work in local art shows and galleries.  He also volunteered for the Louisiana State University track team. During meets he worked as an official for the high jump, which suited his tall, lean frame and his sense of truth and fairness.  In his spare time, he helped build airplanes with a local flying club, tended his beloved Camaro, Corvette, and Nissan 300ZX (in succession), and never missed an opportunity to discuss flying, planes, or art with anyone who was interested.  And, everyone loved to talk to Don.  He was a great conversationalist with a sense of humor, an incorrigible flirt, and absolutely loved to dance any chance he got. 

Don is predeceased by his parents, his brother, and his first wife, Willa Mae O’Neil Schifferl.  He is survived by his beloved wife of 27 years, Ilse Elisabeth Hertel (Cable) Schifferl.  He is also survived by his children Donna Fields (Tony), Debra Tepe (Steve), Donald Schifferl (Melissa), Doris Tepe (William), Daniel Schifferl, David Schifferl, Peter Cable (Jaye), Tamara Cable, 14 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren. 

A memorial service will be held at Walker’s Funeral Home in a small, socially distant, invitation-only ceremony on Saturday, February 13, 2021.  Internment will be at Old Carrboro Cemetary in Carrboro, NC.  In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made in Don’s name to the US Marine Corps Toys for Tots Program.

The Schifferl family is under the care of Walker's Funeral Home of Chapel Hill.