Longtime breeder and owner Mary Clare Schmitt, wife of California Thoroughbred Breeders Association Board member and vice chairman George Schmitt, died Jan. 10. She was 77.
Mary Clare was born in Butte, Mont., the second daughter of John Joseph and Patricia Sullivan. Clare, a lifelong practicing Catholic, married George Schmitt on Feb. 19, 1966, in Butte. She had nine brothers and sisters and has a myriad of cousins, nieces, and nephews. She bore three children and was blessed with six grandchildren. Daughter Joan Marie, married to Jeff Hawkins, has three granddaughters, Madison, Noel, and Isabela. Son George, married to Jennifer, also has three children, Mary Grace, George the eighth, and Gavin. Clare's third child, John Joseph Schmitt, died in 1983.
She attended Catholic schools in Butte and college at the Montana lnstitute of Technology and Carroll College. She is an honorary alumna of Saint Mary's College in Moraga, Calif., and was a great supporter of both the men's and women's programs at the school. She attended as many games as she could every season. Clare was an avid sportswoman, skiing and playing tennis, racquetball, and golf. The Schmitt family has two holes-in-one, both by Clare at Castlewood Country Club.
In 1990, she moved to Düsseldorf, Germany, with her husband, who built the first digital wireless network in the world. She became a world traveler and spent time in almost every country in Europe, supporting her husband and enjoying the different cultures.
Among the Schmitts' top horses were Frumious and Izzy Rules, graded-stakes winners in California with trainer Jeff Bonde.
image url="//cms-images.bloodhorse.com/i/bloodhorse-images/2015/05/9130fcead90449a385b0c5567d5ccfea.jpg?preset=medium" alt="Izzy Rules wins the Las Flores Stakes." credit="Benoit Photo"]Izzy Rules wins the 2012 Las Flores Stakes at Santa Anita Park[/image]
Clare was a loving person who enjoyed life and entertaining, but everyone knew to avoid what the family lovingly knew as "Clare's Glare."
Visitation at Graham Hitch on First Street in Pleasanton, Calif., on Jan. 13 from 5-8 p.m. PT, with mass at noon Jan. 14 at Saint Augustine's Church in Pleasanton and burial in St. Augustine's Cemetery near her son. The funeral will be streamed at the following links:
https://www.facebook.com/catholiccommunityofpleasanton
https://www.youtube.com/@thecatholiccommunityofplea3248
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the John Joseph Schmitt Endowment for students at Saint Mary's College. The John Joseph Schmitt Endowment c/o Saint Mary's College PO Box 4300 Moraga, CA 94575.
This press release has been edited for content and style by BloodHorse Staff.
