YALE Renee Schultz, age 96, of Yale, passed away on Sunday, February 16, 2025, at Stoneybrook Suites in Huron. Services will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 22, at Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church with fellowship and lunch immediately following the service at the church. Internment will be held at Trinity Lutheran Cemetery, Yale. Her service will be live-streamed at https://www.mtcalvaryhuron.org/livestream.
Visitation, with her family present, will be from 5 to 7 p.m., on Friday, Feb. 21, at Welter Funeral Home in Huron; or one hour prior to the service on Saturday morning. A prayer service will begin at 6:30 p.m. on Friday at the funeral home.
Renee was born on March 15, 1928, in Kingsford, Mich., to Orville Charles and Clara Eva (Rowley) LaPorte. She grew up in Michigan where her father worked for the Ford Motor Company.
At her neighbors encouragement she wrote letters to Herbert Martin Schultz when he was in the Army during WWII serving on Okinawa in the Pacific theatre. When Herbert returned stateside, he traveled to Michigan to meet Renee; they married on February 3, 1946, in Iron Mountain.
They settled in Yale and dedicated themselves to their family and community. Renee was a member Trinity Lutheran Church in Yale, where she was active in the Ladies Aid Association and the Lutherans Missionary League. She was also active in the PTA at the local K-12 Yale School.
After she had successfully raised her own children, she became a foster parent, nurturing many children with love and wisdom. In 2004, she was recognized for her service, receiving the prestigious Tradition of Caring Jefferson Award from KELO television.
Renee was a talented crafter, working in textiles, beadwork and crocheting. She was also a voracious reader and fond of puzzles and collecting dolls in her later years.
Renee was the consummate nurturer, showing love, care and respect for all who knew her. Many of her foster children maintained a relationship with Renee into the next generation of their own families.
Renee was preceded in death by her husband and parents, a daughter Amy Clara Schultz, siblings and spouses Leo and Lois Laporte, Herb and Betty (LaPorte) Johnson, step-daughter Heidi Hautala and son-in-law Arnold Gene Hemmingson.
She is survived by children Linda (Gayland) Davis of Sioux Falls; Connie (Gary) Cleland of Oacoma; Susan Hemmingson of Spearfish; Herbert J. (Peggy) Schultz of Buhl, Minn.; Joan (Ross) McCanles of Rogers, Minn.; and Ginger (Matt) Moeding of Huron; grandchildren: Jamie Larson, Joy Harrison, Brian Larson, Dana (Lori) Davis, Jennifer (Daniel) Flores, Desi (Steve) Van Dam, Leah (Scott) Shockey, Dustin (Amy) Hautala, Joshua Schultz, Nate Gross, Elias Gross, Amber (Justin) Bell and Mason (Jennifer) Moeding; nieces and nephews Danelle Brown, Danny Laporte, Kathy Isaacs and Cheryl Bye, all of Washington state; 19 great-grandchildren (soon to be 21) and six great-great-grandchildren as well as two grandsons of the heart – Tristan and Sebastian Cardona.
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