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Obituary

Teacher's focus: kids, family, fundraising

St. John Greek Orthodox Middle School teacher Cynthia Schember showed a passion for education and a knack for raising money.

By MARTY CLEAR
Published March 31, 2006

SOUTH WESTSHORE - Cynthia Schember used to tell her students at St. John Greek Orthodox Middle School that she was always in their corner.

Two weeks ago, while she was battling cancer, those students made a huge banner for her classroom. It read: "We're in YOUR corner, Mrs. Schember.''

"That was the way they felt about her, and that was the way she felt about them,'' said Marsha Quinn, the school librarian. "She was outrageously popular with the students.''

Mrs. Schember died March 21 at age 59.

"To us she was bigger than life,'' Quinn said. "It didn't seem like cancer could beat her. I still come in every day expecting to see her.''

Mrs. Schember was born into a military family and lived all over the country as a child. The closest thing she had to a family home was a cottage in Grand Haven, Mich., on the shores of Lake Michigan.

"No matter where they lived, they would always try to come every year to that family cottage, which was built in the late 1800s by the great-grandfather,'' said her husband, Tampa attorney Steve Schember.

Steve Schember's family lived in Grand Haven, where he met his future wife on the beach in 1968. He was a law student at the University of Michigan, with plans to move to New York City. She had recently graduated from the University of Western Michigan and planned to teach in California.

"Then we met that day on the beach and, well, I never went to New York and she never went to California,'' he said.

Instead, he joined a small law firm in Michigan and she began teaching in a local school. Their first home was on the beach where they met.

The Michigan winters were difficult for Mrs. Schember, though, and in 1978 the couple moved to Sarasota. He practiced law, and she devoted herself to raising their two children, daughter Meredith and son Andy.

She didn't teach in Sarasota, but she started doing fundraising work for a private school called the Out of Doors Academy.

"She didn't know anything about fundraising,'' her husband said, "But it turned out she was a genius at it.''

Before long, other nonprofits were asking her to organize fundraising events. She seldom declined and kept a hectic schedule of black-tie parties and other charity events.

"She became sort of a legend down there,'' her husband said. "At first it was all on a volunteer basis, but then she turned it into a bit of a business, although she never made much money at it.''

In 1990, Steve Schember's career brought him to Tampa. Mrs. Schember loved her life in Sarasota but considered the move another adventure.

Soon, she started as a substitute at St. John, a few blocks from the couple's first home in South Tampa. She soon became a full-time teacher of history and English.

"They even asked her to join the board of trustees,'' said her husband, who now lives in South Westshore. "That's not something a teacher usually does.''

She served on the St. John board for a few years but resigned because she felt uncomfortable taking part in discussions about salaries and evaluations for fellow teachers.

She continued to teach until earlier this year, even as the cancer wore her down. Before she died, she helped establish the Cindy Schember I Hate Vegetables and I Can't Do Math, but I Love to Read English Scholarship Fund at St. John.

"She was awesome,'' Quinn said. "It's so hard to walk through these halls without her here.''

In addition to her husband and children, Mrs. Schember is survived by two sisters. A memorial service is at 11:30 a.m. Saturday at St. John Greek Orthodox Day School, 2418 Swann Ave.

[Last modified March 30, 2006, 14:43:16]