Randolph Edward Schnabel 1941-2026

Randolph Edward Schnabel 1941-2026

Randy Schnabel passed away peacefully in his home on Guemes Island on October 16, 2026 with his family at his side.

A longtime teacher in the Shoreline School District, Randy taught history in all three of the high schools before his retirement in 2004. 

He always loved history as a subject, and, if anything, loved teaching it even more. Randy believed that studying the past can give us perspective on the present and insisted that future voters ought to know something about our constitutional and political history. 

He also saw history as an ideal means for teaching essential intellectual life skills: how to think critically, how to evaluate source materials, how to synthesize information, and how to formulate a cogent argument. 

He kept as high of standards for his students as he did for himself. Randy was known for his ability to engage students in the classroom and his family can testify to how hard he worked at home on preparing lessons and grading papers. 

He mixed traditional lectures with directed classroom discussions and encouraged his students to participate in larger, outside programs such as Model United Nation, Mock Trial, and, above all, History Day. 

Randy received numerous awards for his teaching, including the Christa McAuliffe Award for Excellence (1998), the Pacific Northwest Historians’ Guild History Award (2012), the Shorewood HS PTSA Outstanding Educator Award (2000), the Heritage Education Award (2003), the WA History Day Larry Lowther Distinguished Service Award (2010), and the National History Day Teacher of Merit Award (1998). His family saw, though, that his greatest satisfaction came on those occasions when he learned that he had made a difference in someone’s life.

A full obituary can be read on Legacy.com.

A gathering will be held on November 15, 2026 2:00-4:00 at the Guemes Island Community Center, 7549 Guemes Island Road, Anacortes, WA 98221