Hollister High School and the San Benito High School District want to express our sympathy and share our fond memories about World Languages teacher Travis Schroeder, who passed away on Thanksgiving Day, in the company of his wife and daughter after a long and courageous battle with cancer. He would have turned 51 today, December 20.Mr. Schroeder, who earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo and held a master’s degree in Spanish from U.C. Santa Barbara, began teaching French and Spanish at Hollister High School in August 2011. He also held single-subject teaching credentials in English, Social Science, French, Spanish and Portuguese. During his time at Hollister High, Mr. Schroeder also taught World Studies in Summer School and was a mentor/support provider to new teachers. He and his wife moved from Santa Barbara to Hollister, where they welcomed the birth of their daughter.
In the Summer of 2012, Mr. Schroeder was diagnosed with colon cancer, and after the initial surgery and treatments, he went into remission. In the summer of 2016, his cancer came back as stage 4. Mr. Schroeder endured continuous cycles of different kinds of available therapies (chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and gene therapy) that, as his wife and fellow teacher, Amelia, noted, “by the grace of God and science allowed him to keep doing what he loved the most, preparing his students for a bright future by sharing his passion: teaching and learning languages.” Mr. Schroeder is remembered as an unstoppable language learner who mastered Spanish, Portuguese, French, and Catalan. Mrs. Schroder noted, “He wanted his students to experience a similar satisfaction and appreciation for Spanish, the language of his students’ parents, or the wonders of enjoying and understanding the culture or idiosyncrasy of the speakers of the other languages that he taught and spoke.”
One of Mr. Schroder’s favorite quotes from Ludwig Wittgenstein says: “The limits of my language are the limits of my world.” For many, Mr. Schroeder was demanding and serious, but his mission as a teacher was to expand the limits of his students’ world by teaching them the languages that are relevant for their future. His wife recalls that Mr. Schroder “always said that he teaches ‘like there is no tomorrow’ because the only guarantee we have is the miraculous and beautiful life we enjoy and are blessed with today.”In class, Mr. Schroeder always greeted his class with the phrase, “¡Buenos días estudiantes!” in his distinctive tone. Mr. Schroeder, his wife said, “was and will be an exemplary father and husband, an amazing friend, a devoted Catholic, a good son, a polyglot, a storyteller, a dedicated teacher, a book lover, the best cook, a versatile gardener, and a Jeopardy finalist.”
The entire staff of Hollister High School and San Benito High School District express our condolences to Mr. Schoder’s wife, daughter and family. He will be missed dearly and remembered fondly.
Obituary courtesy of Hollister High School.