LINDSAY

Louise Schad was born February 14, 1924, the second of eleven born to Clem and Amelia Hermes. They were a large, happy family but there was a lot of work to be done, so Louise learned to work hard at an early age, helping on the farm as well as helping her mother with her younger brothers and sisters.

In 1947, Louise and her beau, Ed Schad, began to talk about getting married in a double wedding ceremony to save their parents a lot of money which was scarce at the time. But the double story didn’t end there. Both couples were due to have their first children in early October. Edward Schad came 9 days early and Ellen Hundt arrived 9 days late. Louise didn’t keep up with Elfreda though. She only had 8 chilren, and Elfreda had 11.

Louise’s first job was at Southwestern Bell Telephone Company. She worked there until her marriage. She then stayed busy helping on the farm and raising her family. Throughout her life, she has been an active volunteer. She served as president of the Young Ladies Sodality and the Saint Anne’s Society. She held various offices with the Saint Anne’s Society, North Texas District of the Catholic State League, Lindsay Parent-Teachers Association and the National Counsel of Catholic Women. She volunteered many years as a CCD teacher, and she was a member of the church council that built the Centennial Hall.

Another organization that Louise helped out was the Denton State School. She spent many hours sewing curtains for the dormitories. As a reward, she was invited to a banquet where she got to meet Hubert Humphrey. She also helped with Christmas parties for the residents.

Louise went to work at Linda Jo Shoe Company in 1965 as a home lacer. She wanted to earn enough money to buy a new couch. She worked there approximately 15 years. When her children were grown, she started a business of her own with her sisters. Hermes Sisters caterers started out cooking for their own childrens’ weddings and they went on to cook thousands of meals all over Cooke County. They were famous for their good, old home cooking.

In 1998, Edward became ill, suffering a stroke and beginning a long battle with Alzheimers. Louise eventually had to stop catering, as his disease progressed. She cared for him at home until 8 weeks before his death on June 13, 2004. A short time after Ed passed away, Louise came up with a plan to keep busy. She wanted to cook for elderly people in our community and give them a place to gather and socialize each week. And to it began - the group still meets on Wednesdays each week. The people get a chance to visit, play dominoes or bingo and eat a healthy lunch. Many friendships have formed through this group, not to mention a few weddings! At age 94, Louise still helps cook for the old folks each week and loves every minute of it.