National Guard leader Schaefer, dead at 83
Special to The Advertiser
Longtime O'ahu resident Frederick A. Schaefer, III, 83, a retired brigadier general who led Hawai'i National Guard troops into Vietnam in 1968, died June 30 in Medford, Ore.
Schaefer, a decorated hero in World War II, played a lead role in organizing the guard after the war. He returned to active duty in 1968 at the request of Gov. John A. Burns and led the 29th Brigade to Vietnam.
Schaefer
During World War II, Schaefer won the nation's second-highest combat award, the Distinguished Service Cross, for valor in the battle of Guadalcanal.
The citation reads:
"Under heavy machine gun fire at close range, Lieutenant Schaefer displayed outstanding leadership and bravery. Though wounded twice he continued to lead his platoon in the assault on enemy positions and the battalion was aided greatly in reaching its objective."
After recovering at a hospital in San Francisco, Schaefer, by then a captain, went to Europe with the 66th Division, which was being sent to fight in the Battle of the Bulge in December 1944. One of the ships, carrying 2,200 infantrymen, was sunk by a German submarine as the division approached Cherbourg, causing the division's mission to be changed.
Schaefer was a fifth-generation resident of Hawai'i, raised in Nu'uanu. He was a graduate of Punahou School and Cornell University, where he lettered in football and wrestling.
He was plantation department manager for Theo H. Davies, overseeing its sugar operations. Later he worked for Aina Malu Corp., which had diversified business interests such as cable TV and warehousing.
After retirement in 1986, he and his family and friends enjoyed many years of hiking in Switzerland and other places around the world. In 1999 he and his wife moved to a retirement home in Medford.
He is survived by his wife, Evelyn; daughter, Susan James; sons, F.A. Schaefer IV and David; sister, Joan Brown; brother, Rob Schaefer; seven grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
Private services will be held at O'ahu Cemetery.
A memorial service will be held at Thurston Chapel, Punahou School on Friday at 4 p.m. The family suggests aloha attire and asks that in lieu of flowers, contributions be made in his memory to Punahou School or Christ Episcopal Church in Kealakekua, Hawai'i.
