Obituary of Amy Schubert Draxler
Amy Schubert Draxler died December 19, 2023 at home in Seattle, WA, as a result of complications from Multiple Sclerosis. Born November 7, 1957 in Chicago, Illinois, Amy was the third of three children to Jack and Mary Schubert. Her father was a toxicological chemist and professor and her mother an artist. She had the opportunity to live or travel in many different locations as she grew up, including Buenos Aires, Argentina, Germany, Stockholm, and Amsterdam. Amy was smart, funny, compassionate, and generous. She spoke a number of different languages (including fluent Spanish and Dutch) and had a knack for picking them up quickly. She was artistically inclined as a talented pianist, photographer, sketch, and needlepoint artist.
While attending the University of Michigan for a Western European history degree, Amy met the love of her life, Jim Draxler, an engineering student. They were married in 1980 in St. Mary’s Student Chapel in Ann Arbor, MI and, upon graduation, lived in Madison, WI; St. Paul, MN; and ultimately Seattle, WA. Amy and Jim had three children – Lydia, Thomas, and John. In her early thirties Amy was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis and lived courageously with its progressive effects for the rest of her life. Amy had a vaudevillian sense of humor and she loved jokes; the beach and swimming; the theater and acting; and movie comedies. She was passionate about sales and was loyal to her products whether worker placement at Manpower or containers of Tupperware. She had a knack for always having strangers tell her the stories of their lives. She would strike up conversations with people and win them over with her bright smile. Amy fiercely celebrated her cultural heritage of Irish, Norwegian, and Jewish ancestry. She took the baptismal and confirmation name of Mary, like those of her mother and mother-in-law.
Amy is survived by her husband, Jim, and their children, Lydia (Matt) MacDonald, Shoreline, WA, Thomas (Thuy Luong), Seattle, WA and John, Washington, DC; and her sisters Cathie Patterson, Pittsburgh PA, and Ann Schubert, Albuquerque, NM.
A Requiem Mass for Amy will be held at North American Martyrs Church in Edmonds, WA on December 27, 2023, with interment at Holyrood Cemetery afterwards. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Multiple Sclerosis Society.
