by Dennis Dalman
Ann L. Scherer, a woman who worked hard for so many years to make the St. Joseph Community Food Shelf an ongoing success, has been chosen to be the grand marshal of the upcoming Fourth of July Parade.
When sidewalk crowds wave and applaud, Scherer will be waving back while riding in a snazzy, classic Ford Mustang convertible, driven by her husband, Chuck.
This year’s annual St. Joseph Lions Fourth of July Parade will begin on the city’s main street (Minnesota Street) at 10 a.m. Friday, July 4.
“I thought it was an honor,” said Scherer when she was told she’d been chosen as the parade grand marshal. She also thinks the award reflects well on the people and businesses of St. Joseph who are so generous.
“She (Ann) earned that award many times over,” said husband Chuck, with a smile on his face.
Ken and Mary Stommes were the ones who notified Scherer of the very special honor. After she was nominated, members of the Parade Committee and others, such as some Y2K Lions members got together and heartily agreed Scherer was an ideal choice.
In an April 21 telephone conference call with the Newsleaders, Ann and husband Chuck Scherer, along with Ken and Mary Stommes, shared their thoughts.
“When we talked about Ann being honored, everybody would tell us, ‘What a good choice!'” Mary said. “And many we talked with told us so many good stories about Ann, her family and in-laws.”
Scherer worked for 25 years with the St. Joseph Community Food Shelf, helping feed families and individuals who were food-insecure because of financial constraints.
“I like my work there because I was able to meet and greet so many good people,” Ann said. “And those people were so thankful because they were so hard up and hurting. They were working but just couldn’t make ends meet. We would get thank-you letters from some of them, and those letters would just make you cry.”
For 22 years, Scherer did a variety of hands-on food-shelf work – collecting donations from businesses and churches, buying food and helping stock and distribute it to those in need – about 1,000 people every year.
After Scherer retired, for the past three years, she has served on the food shelf’s seven-member board of directors.
Through the years husband Chuck would help unload items during busy Christmas and Thanksgiving times, and their grown children and even grandkids would enjoy helping too.
Scherer is proud and happy the St. Joseph Community Food Shelf has been 100-percent funded locally, without governmental help. The generosity from residents, businesses and churches is what made all the difference. That generosity led to the food shelf earning a matching grant this year from the Norman Skalicky Foundation – a matching grant of $30,000.
Scherer’s Life
Born in Prescott, Wis., Ann Schommer’s father, Bernie, was a traveling salesman specializing at that time in hospital supplies. And that is how the Schommers arrived in St. Joseph when Ann entered the third grade, attending St. Cloud’s Westwood Elementary and then Kennedy Elementary School in St. Joseph.
She married Chuck Scherer 48 years ago this coming August. They have three children: oldest son Bill (wife Trina) of Jacob’s Prairie, who have two children; daughter Jennifer (husband Josh) Fiedler of Richmond, who have three children; and son Bradly (wife Emi) of Sartell, who have four children.
During her St. Joseph years, Ann worked at St. Cloud Fingerhut for a couple of years, then she did babysitting in her home for seven years and after that job she worked at Scherer Trucking in St. Joseph now and then on jobs that needed to be done but with no one else to do them – jobs like polishing company trucks by hand.
Ann’s husband, Chuck, is a member of the Scherer Trucking family owners. Chuck’s oldest brother, Bill, now owns the company.
Ann L. Scherer is happy her grand marshal honor reflects on the people in the St. Joseph city and area – on the individuals, the volunteers, the residents, the businesses, service organizations, the churches and all others who help feed local people in need.
“Without that generous support,” she said, “the food shelf would just not be possible.”
Ann L. Scherer has been selected to be the Grand Marshall of the 2025 St. Joseph Lions Fourth of July Parade. She has been a driving force for the St. Joseph Community Food Shelf for many years. Beside her is her husband, Chuck Scherer.
