Nelli Schneider

Nelli Schneider (née Weber) In loving memory:

Love does not dominate; it cultivates.

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Nelli Schneider (née Weber), age 87, of Richfield Springs, New York passed away at Mary Imogene Bassett Hospital in Cooperstown, New York on June 13, 2024, after a long period of cardiovascular disease and its complications. Her remains will be cremated and laid to rest next to her deceased husband Franz Schneider at Richfield Springs Cemetery.

Nelli immigrated to the U.S. in 1955 at age 18 as a newlywed. She had just finished her apprenticeship as a hairdresser a couple of months earlier.

She was proud to succeed in building up a life for her family and making sure that her children were well educated and successful in life in line with the means available. Nelli was the middle child from a working-class family of nine. She didn't see any prospects of education and access to healthcare for herself in Germany in the post-war period of the 1950s; there was a shortage of everything you could imagine.

Originally from the village of Seckbach (Frankfurt) Germany, Nelli developed an adventurous, social, "love of gardening, dance, and music," spirit. Living in the two-bedroom attic apartment of the local church with eight siblings, "something was always going on."  She loved attending the theater throughout the years, swims in Canadarago Lake and Cooperstown's pool, Keyboard Conversations in Munson Williams Proctor Art Institute, and sharing that enjoyment with others.

Nelli, apprenticed as a hairdresser in the 1950s and married at a young age. Along with her husband, Franz Schneider, traveled throughout Europe on a war surplus motorcycle eventually reaching Rome, Italy. Recognizing that education opportunities were limited during post-war Germany, Nelli traveled with her husband to the United States. They sailed into New York City Harbor on the USS General Langfit in September 1955, after spending eight days at sea. They found the view of the statue of Liberty exciting. They often recounted, "making their first dollar on board."

They quickly settled into a new life in the Bronx. Working as a hairdresser on Manhattan's 86th Street (Sauerkraut Avenue.) Nelli loved the fashion of NYC and hairstyles of the time; attending dances with her husband and cafe bakeries. She often talked about her love of strolls and picnics with family and young daughters in the New York Botanical Garden and the Bronx Zoo.

Nelli, along with her young family, eventually made their way to Upstate New York and settled into a life of owning and managing Baker's Beach on Canadarago Lake. Throughout her life, it was important to Nelli to give to her community wherever she was. She worked for many years as a home nursing aide, hairdresser, and nursing aide in Cooperstown Bassett Hospital; as a sales rep for Avon and Shaklee; and regularly collected for the American Red Cross and the Children's Cancer Foundation. Nelli made many journeys to visit family and to her childhood home in Germany, occasionally traveling with her daughters and son throughout the world; including a trip to Asia.

Nelli had her beauty shop on Main Street. Customers came from as far away as Rochester and New York City because she was well known for her lasting hair permanents.

Nelli had a cheerful, intrepid and friendly disposition and felt most comfortable with others.  She found comfort after a snowstorm when everything was quiet outside and the freezer was full of food.

May she rest in peace.

Nelli Schneider is survived by her three children and son-in-law:
Nelly Thomas, née Schneider and Robert Thomas, Germany
Susanna Schneider, New York State
Franz Toni Schneider, New York State

…along with her surviving siblings, and eighteen nephews and nieces.

Nelli's children thank their aunts, uncle, cousins, neighbors, colleagues and friends for their continuing support during the trying times of the past few months.

Funeral home:

J. Seaton McGrath Funeral Home
40 West James Street
Richfield Springs, NY 13439
p: (315) 858-1810

Memorial service:

Friday October 11, 2024

9:00am St. Joseph The Worker Church

305 West Main Street

West Winfield, New York

Saturday October 12, 2024

11:00am in St. Joseph Cemetery Richfield Springs

Donations instead of flowers:

https://womensheart.org/

Cardiovascular disease is the primary cause of death in women in the United States and Europe. Let's solve this health issue together.