Accidental fall claims life of former Arlington Heights resident
Elizabeth Schoepke, a former Arlington Heights resident who came from a long line of production specialists at the Daily Herald, died earlier this month at just 40 years old.
Schoepke, who lived most of her young life in Albuquerque, died Sept. 13 from injuries suffered in an accidental fall.
"She grew up with the newspaper industry," says her father, Mike, who retired in 2014 as manager of computer operations for the Daily Herald. "She was really interested in the technical aspect of it, and of all the technical journals I read just to stay ahead of the industry."
"Liz" Schoepke lived in Arlington Heights until the age of 10, just a block away from the Daily Herald's original offices and press operations in downtown Arlington Heights.
Besides her father, her grandfather, Bill Schoepke, and his three brothers, Art, Butch and Richard, all worked in production for the newspaper, from its days as a weekly to its conversion into a daily with the third largest circulation in the state.
When her parents divorced in 1988, she moved with her mother, the late Karolynn Conley Schoepke, to Albuquerque. There, she attended local schools, including the University of New Mexico, where in 2002 she earned a degree in communications.
Schoepke worked in sales for a variety of companies in the Albuquerque area, including most recently for Stillbrook Homes. She returned briefly to Arlington Heights after the death of her mother in 2009, when she worked for COTG Service in Itasca, selling copiers and print solutions to businesses.
"She was really good at driving more sales - and supporting existing customers," her father said.
But Albuquerque's scenic Sandia Mountains and its high desert climate eventually drew her back. Her father followed after his retirement from the Daily Herald.
"I thought it would be so fun to share the rest of my life with Liz," Mike Schoepke says, "but it didn't work out that way."
A fall in a bathroom caused Schoepke to suffer internal bleeding, and she eventually died on Sept. 13, her 40th birthday.
Besides her father, Schoepke is survived by her son, Trevor Eulenbach of Lubbock, Texas; and many aunts and uncles.
A celebration of life will take place Oct. 12, in Albuquerque.