Charles Edward Schaaf

CHARLES E. SCHAAF, born in Chicago in 1928, died peacefully at home in Edmonds, WA on April 28, 2020, of complications from cancer. Son of Clarence W. Schaaf and Hortense Ebeling Schaaf, Charlie attended Highland Park High School in Illinois. He graduated cum laude from Williams College in Williamstown, MA in 1950 where he was President of the Williams Outing Club. He was Captain of the Tennis Team and he won the New England Intercollegiate Doubles Championships in 1949. While at college, and by vote of his peers, he was chosen to receive the school’s most prestigious award, that of a Gargoyle. During the Korean conflict, Charlie was drafted and spent 2½ years in the Army, during which he went to Officer Candidate School and became a Second Lieutenant in the Finance Corps. In 1953, Charlie started with the Florsheim Shoe Company. After stints in many parts of the business, he foresaw the growth of shopping centers, at which time he became Director of Real Estate for the Florsheim Shoe Company–Retail Division. Charlie became well known for the expansion of Florsheim Retail Stores throughout the U.S. and parts of the world. If there was a prime store location either in a prominent downtown area or shopping center, it was likely that Charlie had negotiated the lease. From 1979 to 1986, Charlie served as Chief Operating Officer for the Florsheim Retail Division. He took early retirement after more than 35 years with the business. For the next 23 years he ran his own real estate business, either with one or several partners, or by himself. There were 54 regional, national or international businesses that outsourced his real estate services during those years. Charlie was a lifelong sports fan — he enjoyed skiing, tennis and table tennis. In 1942 and 1945 — at ages 14 and 17 — he won the Illinois State Singles Table Tennis Championships, both in the Boys and Junior Divisions. His rankings and titles were even greater in tennis — 1st in Singles and Doubles in the Chicago District — and 1st in Singles in the states of Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan and Ohio in 1945. He was a member of the Chicago Junior Davis Cup Team in 1945 and 1946. In subsequent years, Charlie was ranked #1 in the Chicago District Senior Men’s tennis doubles at least three different years, and he continued to play tennis doubles and table tennis singles and doubles well into his eighties. He was honored by being selected in 2009 to the Sports Hall of Fame at Highland Park High School for his achievements in tennis and table tennis. In 1956, Charlie married the love of his life, Gail Rittersporn, and they recently celebrated 64 years of marriage. They raised four daughters, and as a family enjoyed many ski trips, especially to Colorado and Utah. In later years, Charlie and Gail took many adventure travel hiking trips to practically all parts of the world. Charlie and Gail were members of the Winnetka Presbyterian Church from 1962 to 2011, and Charlie was proud to have started the Celebration of Life program at the church. He was a founding member of the Winnetka Tennis Association in 1962 and President of the Chicago District Tennis Association in 1971. Charlie and Gail raised their children in Winnetka, IL before moving to Edmonds, WA in 2011. Charlie leaves behind his beloved wife, Gail, and daughters, Margot Barker, Robin Cook, Amy Massey, and Julie-Annabel Bailey, 11 grandchildren, two great-grandchildren, and brother, Richard (Mary-Lynn). Charlie is remembered for his integrity, compassion, sense of humor, love of mountains, and devotion to friends and family. In lieu of flowers, as Charlie always said, “Leave the world better than you found it.”