Sonia Schubert
She’s looking out for her neighbors
It was a way to help out a fellow neighbor.
Last year, Sonia Schubert and Verne Folkmann wanted to help a neighbor whose home had been struck by lightning. She helped by collecting money from the neighborhood.
“As neighbors, you want to do something,” said Schubert, 46. “We gave him a gift certificate so they could go out to eat or whatever.”
Helping others and bringing the neighborhood together has been a way of life for Schubert since she moved to Coralville more than 20 years ago. For example, she and her husband, Paul, regularly bake cookies and treats for neighbors.
“My husband and I bake a lot of cookies, so we give them to the neighbors,” Schubert said.
Schubert also has made her mark at University Hospitals, where she is a nurse in the clinical research center. She routinely will get a card and organize a collection for those who either have lost a loved one or are moving to a new job.
“I get it going, but everybody keeps contributing to it,” she said.
At home, she will lead the neighbors in buying flowers or a card for someone in the hospital.
“It doesn’t have to be big,” Schubert said. “It’s just so they know you’re thinking of them.”
After growing up on a farm near Clare in the Fort Dodge area, she and Paul have raised their two children, Joshua and Andrea, in Coralville. During the years, she has encouraged her family to reach out to others, with the children regularly doing things such as making Christmas ornaments for the neighbors. They also help out regularly with tasks such as snow removal and grass cutting when needed. Both children also have volunteered more than 200 hours at University Hospitals and given time to the Coralville Public Library and the Girl Scouts.
“We just like to do nice things for other people,” Schubert said. “(Our children) were always treated right, and they just wanted to give back.”
— Rob Daniel
