Christ the Redeemer Catholic Schools recently announced the loss of a longtime trustee and beloved member of the education community.

Ron Schreiber passed away in hospital on September 3 at 65 years of age.

He sat as a school board trustee, first with the Assumption Roman Catholic School Division and later with Christ the Redeemer, for nearly thirty years, and assumed the role of board chair for CTR in 2016

Ron's son Peter, vice-principal at St. Francis of Assisi Academy, says his father's passion for education was a huge inspiration.

"He really advocated and made sure that the choice of education remained for parents in Alberta, and that Catholic schools remained supported to offer a faith-filled learning environment for students and for families who would like to choose that for them."

His dedication clearly left an impression on his kids, with three of Peter's siblings also finding careers within CTR, along with two of their spouses.

He also spent 46 years working with Alberta Government Telephones and Telus, and celebrated his retirement on his 65th birthday, a week before his passing.

Ron received the Telus Legend Award accompanied by a letter from Telus CEO Darren Entwistle for the occasion.

According to Peter, Ron wasn't expecting that sort of recognition.

"He smiled of course, and he was joyed to receive the letter. He wasn't one who wanted any titles, he wasn't one who wanted any of those things, but it definitely was touching. To be completely honest, at first, he did think it was a joke being played on him by some of his coworkers, he didn't quite believe it at first, but it did in fact happen and he was very thankful to receive it."

Despite receiving the rare honour on the day of his retirement, Peter says Ron felt the most solace in just knowing he had an impact on so many people.

That impact is something his family has been reminded of many times over the last few days, with friends, colleagues, and countless others from across the country reaching out.

"They're not reaching out just with messages of sadness and condolences, but they're reaching out just to share how big of a part Ron played in their lives, that he was somebody who was always there to listen, somebody who genuinely cared and had absolute kindness in all his interactions," says Peter.

He continues, "I think, no matter how many words are written about him, no matter how many stories are shared, he was one of those people that you truly had to encounter and feel his joy, his faith, and his love in order to understand who the man was."

Christ the Redeemer's Superintendent Scott Morrison is one of the many people to have shared kind words about Ron in the week following his passing.

"In any school system, a lot of the decisions are operational and they're made by people like me, and trustees are that sober second thought and they're the people that ultimately have to approve some things, but when it comes to faith, we're all on an equal footing and Ron guided our administration and the school board through his example and through his witness. He's a man of integrity, faith, and wisdom. Absolutely, we say Christ the Redeemer has lost one of our favourite sons, he's a beautiful man."

Ron Schreiber is survived by his nine children as well as 20 grandchildren.

A prayer service will be held at St. James Parish in Okotoks this Friday, September 10, at 7 p.m., with a funeral mass at the same location the following day at 2 p.m.

Ron's family is also encouraging those wishing to pay tribute to donate blood or to make a monetary donation to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Canada.

 

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