Francis Fran Anthony Tschida

Passed away April 28, 2011 in Scarborough, Maine.

He was born in St. Cloud, Minnesota, March 30, 1944, to Frank and Cecelia Tschida, during a snow storm. He attended elementary school in Holdingford, MN, and graduated high school in Remer, MN, in 1961. He graduated from Wahpeton State School of Science, in North Dakota, and enlisted in the Navy in 1965. He was on active duty for training until retirement in 1985, which also included tours of Southeast Asia in 1968 and 1971. He continued his education at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and graduated in 1971. His career focus was in computer engineering.

He gave generously of his time to the Albuquerque community when he served as Chairman of the Executive Board of the University of New Mexico Hospital and Children’s Hospital of New Mexico, gaining recognition awards in 1991 and 1992. He also served on the NM State Economic Development Council in 1986. He was a frequent volunteer for fund raising efforts for KNME Public Television.

He married Charlynn Majeski in 1994 in Corrales, NM. He has two daughters, Britte Groves and Ashley Reed, from a previous marriage to Margaret Charlson.

Fran was always cheerful and upbeat, whether he was answering the phone, meeting people, or saying his first “good morning” of the day. People always were attracted to him. He made everything more fun with his unique sense of humor, quick wit, camaraderie friendship and stories. He always brought a little extra to the party.

He was adventurous, dreaming about new places to visit and things to do. He was drawn to sports that required wind – hot air balloons, small aircraft and sailboats. He flew hot air balloons many years and was considered one of the most experienced pilots. His motto was “chickens live longer”. He also loved to sail, owning a Cortez sailboat company at one time, but then moved on to bigger boats, like the Chrysler and the Gemini Catamaran. He and his wife, Charlynn, purchased a Gemini in 1998 and went sailing to the Bahamas for a year. It was a 30-year dream fulfilled. In the most recent years, he finally obtained that private pilot’s license he wanted and flew the coast of Maine out of the Brunswick Naval Air Station.

When he wasn’t flying or sailing, he was designing sheds, a dream house or two, and short term around-the-house projects. He was the consummate history buff, reading many history books besides watching the history channel. He was a well rounded handyman, do-it-himself kind of guy.

He liked cold dark ale beer in the summer, always stating that “life was too short to drink cheap beer”. No matter where he lived, New Mexico, Maryland or Maine, he always had a monthly lunch date with “the guys” he knew along the way. He liked to plan surprise events. For his daughters’ birthday one year, he took them on their first plane ride and adding to that, he also took them to Disneyland.

He liked to cook, especially breakfast. He would create new dishes, whether on the stove at home or out camping. The food was always good. He is famous for the Voortrekker III frittata. He would also take recipes and tweak them for his tastes. He became famous on the waterway when he created a bread dough recipe designed for successful baking in the small oven on the Gemini sailboat. There wasn’t anything he couldn’t cook on that tiny 2 burner galley stove.

Survivors: He is survived by his wife of 17 years, Charlynn Tschida, his daughters, Ashley and Britte, his four grandchildren: Miles and Bailey Groves and Schuyler and Annika Reed; brothers Elmer Tschida of St. Paul, MN, Kevin Tschida of Remer, MN and sisters Elsie Stock of St. Paul, MN and Darlene Peterson of Minneapolis, MN.

A memorial service will be celebrated at Lindquist Funeral Home on Thursday May 5, 2011 at 10:00 AM with Father James Brewer officiating. All are invited to the funeral home for a time of gathering beginning at 9:30 am. A brief reception with light fare will follow at the funeral home. Burial will be at a later date at the Maine Veterans Memorial Cemetery on Mount Vernon in Augusta.