David John Schoen

David is survived by his loving wife Tracy and sons Walter and wife Kayla; Benjamin and wife Morgan; and stepdaughter Kasey Smith. He also leaves the sweetest and most adored grandchildren Houston, Hudson, Sophia, Drake, and Tate. David is also survived by his loving mother Jane Shudde Schoen, his brother Robert and wife Lu; in-laws Howard and Roberta Williamson; brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law Dan and Michelle Williamson; Bill and Vernessa Williamson; Don and Melinda Hogg and all of their children. David was preceded in death by his first wife, Tamra Hogg Schoen, his father Robert Schoen and his beloved Uncle John Shudde of Uvalde. He also leaves behind many more beloved aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins, family, friends and former students, all of whom will miss David dearly.

David was born at St. Joseph’s Hospital in downtown Houston, Texas to Robert and Jane Schoen. David started in band at TH Rogers Junior High and then on to play trumpet and be a Drum Major at Lee High School. David headed to Texas A&M to play in the Aggie Band. He spent a year in College Station and returned home to finish his Music degree at Houston Baptist University. That opportunity enabled him to be near family and most importantly, to Tamra, who he married in 1983. They were both schoolteachers and very passionate about what they did. They had Walter and Benjamin, and the family embarked on numerous adventures and trips with Walter and Ben over the years to Washington DC, the Grand Canyon, South Dakota, Alaska, Mo Ranch and many camping trips. They were married 29 years before Tamra passed away in 2012.

Aldine ISD was blessed to have had David’s presence as a Band Director for middle school kids for 28 years. His love of music transcended all else as he worked diligently to find low-cost instruments to help his kids purchase. Weekends would often find David in pawn shops or garage sales looking for those instruments to help his students save money. His retirement in 2014 led to the best part time job ever, as the “man in left field”, flipping numbers on the manual scoreboard for the Houston Astros. You could often see him (if you knew to look!) peeking out between numbers watching the game and listening to and watching scores across the leagues. When not behind the board, he was in his favorite seats on the 3rd deck as part of his teacher ticket group enjoying a game. He was blessed to receive a World Series ring with the win in 2017 and again with the American League Championship in 2019. His acceptance of that ring was such a great source of pride to him!

You would frequently find him in West University with his mom Jane at the Buffalo Grille, eating breakfast and visiting with her, then hanging out to shop. After Tamra passed away, David made it his mission to get to Oklahoma as much as possible to visit with the boys, their wives, and little by little, grandchild by grandchild. He was there for Sophia and then Houston’s birth and it meant the world to him.

Tracy and David were best friends in high school, and they reconnected via Facebook in August, 2016, after Tracy watched a TV show about a married couple that had been best friends in high school. After their first date, they knew destiny was at play. Tracy fosters rescue dogs, and almost immediately after they met, a dog with a local rescue was saved after being hit by a train. David volunteered to take Jack under his wing after reconstructive surgery - a broken hip, and two broken femurs - and take care of him, waking him every 4 hours to walk him a bit. Tracy knew right away that David was the one! David asked Tracy to marry him in November of 2016 in Fredericksburg under the big oak tree at the “barn”. They married on March 4th, 2017 with the entire family at the ceremony. In that first year, they stayed busy visiting the kids in Oklahoma, helping Kasey finish her senior year in high school, rescuing and fostering dogs, a trip to Alaska, Fredericksburg and Mexico. David was diagnosed with Primary CNS Lymphoma of the Brain in early 2018 and after surgery and treatment was in remission for two more years. During those years there was more fun and laughter, diving deeper into dog rescue with a house full, and hanging out during Covid and more travel as soon as they could. In 2021, David spent all year fighting various Lymphoma issues and tumors and when David had reached a point of no return, he fought the good fight until the end.

The family wishes to thank Dr. Ivo W. Tremont and Dr. Sai Pingali of Methodist Hospital for their years of care and valiant efforts for David.

In David’s memory, donations can be made to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Foundation, Reggie’s Friends, or Houston K911.

A memorial celebration for family and friends will be held on Wednesday, April 6th from 5pm – 8pm at Forest Park in the Woodlands, 18000 Interstate 45 South. On Thursday, April 7th, there will be a church service at 1pm and reception/celebration of David’s life at Northwoods Presbyterian Church at 3320 Cypress Creek Parkway (1960), Houston, TX 77068.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.forestparkthewoodlands.com for the SCHOEN family.