Frank Schreiner

Frank Ora Schreiner, lifelong golfer, passed away peacefully in Bloomfield, NM on January 6, 2024, following a brief hospitalization in Farmington, NM. He was 83.

Born January 31, 1940 in Norfolk, NE, the second child of oral surgeon Dr. OC Schreiner ("Doc") and homemaker and painter Cleo (Sprague) Schreiner, "Tim" as he was known then, excelled at football, basketball and especially golf, winning many state golf tournaments individually and as a father-son team. "Tim" graduated from Norfolk High School in 1958, having lettered in all three sports. He graduated from The University of Nebraska in 1964 with a major in chemistry and minor in math, having been the #1 ranked player on the university golf team for years. He served in the US Navy 1964-68 as an engine-room instructor and operator, prior to a 25+ year career as a safety engineer for the construction and insurance industries, all of which enabled him to pursue his passion in life - playing golf. For six decades Frank's many golf-buddies marveled at his golf game, but he remained a quiet, humble gentleman on and off the links.

Frank was never happier than in the 1950s, growing up in a small town on the Great Plains, surrounded by a close-knit community, excelling in high school sports, working part-time in a sporting goods store, developing a lifelong love of Hollywood Westerns depicting fiercely independent protagonists. For the last 30 years of his life, he greatly enjoyed the friendship of his many golf buddies at Piñon Hills Golf Course in Farmington, NM.

Frank married a single mom in 1968 (Zarifah Sadak) in the Washington, D.C. area, adopting her 9-year-old son, Rob. Frank taught Rob how to throw a football, swing a golf club, solve algebra problems, and hunt quail. Frank and Zarifah ("Zee") were married 25 years, living in Tennessee and Alabama, while Frank worked in the construction division of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA).

Frank was troubled by heart and kidney disease for the last 10 years of his life, yet he never let it get him down, playing golf 4 days per week right up to his passing. He lived the life he wanted every single day. His soul belonged in America's west.

A celebration of life will be held soon in Littleton, CO. Frank's ashes will be interred in his parent's burial vault in Wheatridge, CO.

Frank is survived by his sister Sharon Witt, nephews Doug, Tim, Brad and Max, and his niece Heidi, all in Colorado. He is also survived by his adopted son, Rob Schreiner of Dunwoody, GA, and Rob's children Tessa (Aspen) and Tate (San Francisco).

In lieu of flowers, you can honor Frank by contributing time or money to a youth golf club in your town, or by watching a Hollywood Western with your family.