Cynthia Schultz

On Saturday, October 27, Cynthia Croker Schultz passed away at home surrounded by her family.

Cindy was born July 2, 1954, and is the second daughter of Patricia Schwartz and Rolfe Croker.  She grew up in San Rafael and had a happy childhood filled with bike riding, sailing, and softball. She built strong friendships with her siblings Connie Croker, Patsy Couto, and Mitsch Croker as well as her cousins Pam Abel and Nancy Crawford who were like sisters. 

Cindy discovered her passion at an early age - Art and Design. While at San Rafael High, she loved designing and building homecoming floats and was the first girl to take wood shop. At Cal Poly, she pursued graphic arts and she had a career in graphics and publishing. While raising her children, she got her teaching credential in industrial arts. She taught at West Elementary School, Taylor Middle School, and Altimira Middle School.

Cindy first met her future husband Art Schultz when visiting her cousin in Chicago, who was a close personal friend.  Art’s business frequently brought him to San Francisco and the relationship flourished. Six months later, Cindy moved to Chicago.  While there, she worked for two large publishing companies designing and producing many textbooks. She loved her time living in the city and made many lifelong friends. Art and Cindy married in San Francisco in 1983. John was born 1984, Stephanie in 1987, and George in 1989.

The family moved to San Mateo, California in 1990 so the children could be raised closer to their families. They lived there for 22 years before moving to Sonoma in 2013. Cindy was the heart of her family and made a lot of sacrifices to raise her children.  Her family is so thankful for her unconditional love and support.

In January 2015, Cindy was diagnosed with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer. Thanks to the amazing personal efforts of Gary Sheimano and Al Jamieson, the doctors and staff of UCSF performed life saving emergency surgery following complications from her original surgery. She outlived the odds and spent the next 3 years and 9 months renewing her interests in painting and ceramics, visiting new places, and spending time with family. At the Sonoma Community Center, she renewed her lifelong passion for ceramics and developed a network of friends. She was always positive and exhibited a compelling love for life and appreciation for each day.  Through her surgery, recovery and ongoing treatment, the doctors and staff of UCSF were both friends and caretakers. We are immensely grateful to their team.  Over the past year, Rosie and Sonya have been Cindy’s companions and caregivers. Their presence and compassion were a great help to Cindy. The family is very grateful to them.

A Celebration of Cindy’s Life will be held at the Depot Hotel Restaurant, 241 First Street West, in Sonoma on Saturday, November 17, 2018 from noon to 3:00 p.m. 

Memorial contributions may be made to Sonoma Community Center Ceramics where Cindy found inspiration, friendship, and joy while working with clay. To donate, mail checks to Sonoma Community Center Ceramics, 276 East Napa Street, Sonoma, CA 95476.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Cynthia Schultz, please visit our floral store.