Bob Schnell, Association’s Previous Executive VP, Has Died

Robert K. Schnell, who was executive vice president of this Association from 1984 to 2009, died Wednesday, Feb. 28. He was 74.

Schnell joined the Association staff in 1968 and oversaw membership and meetings. When he succeeded Harold Halter as executive vice president in 1984, he became only the second person to serve in the role.

During his tenure, membership grew from about 330 to about 600, and the Association added vital member services such as the no-cost consultations with attorneys, expanded insurance offerings from Sentry, and online resources.

Executives from member companies and industry colleagues described Schnell as gruff but big-hearted.

“He could come across as tough or unmovable,” said Paul Kindinger, who has served in several consulting and association roles for agriculture, “but when an issue called for a compromise, if one was possible, Bob would find it. He had a gruff exterior but a big heart.”

Association presidents who served during Schnell’s tenure say when he retired, he left the organization stronger than he found it. They also remember his affection for member companies and the shortline industry. In Schnell’s farewell address to members in 2009, that affection was evident.

“It has been the members that have made these four decades the most rewarding,” he wrote. “It's been my pleasure working for you, and I look forward to seeing each of you somewhere down the road.”

Schnell is survived by wife Marcie, their children and grandchildren. His funeral is Saturday in Kirkwood, Mo. Memorials may be made to the American Lung Association and Crossroads Hospice.