Dr. Frederick Dolezal Schirrmacher

Frederick Dolezal Schirrmacher

December 7, 1941- December 18, 2023

Frederick Dolezal Schirrmacher, an 82-year-old resident of Washington, D.C., passed away on Saturday, December 18, 2023, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He will be fondly remembered for his exemplary service to his country, community, friends, and family.

Funeral services, officiated by AJ Dolezal, will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Thursday, December 28. The burial will follow at Grace Hill Cemetery, where he will rest beside his mother and father, with military graveside rites provided by the United States Army. Arrangements have been entrusted to Dighton-Marler Funeral Home.

Born on December 7, 1941, in Washington, D.C., to Mildred Dolezal Schirrmacher and Fred C. Schirrmacher, Frederick grew up in the capital but spent summers on the family farm in Perry, Oklahoma. This experience fostered a deep connection to the land and his mother’s Czech heritage. In D.C., he attended Paul Jr. High and Coolidge High School. An alumnus of Johns Hopkins University and George Washington University Medical School, Frederick earned his medical degree as a general practitioner.

Throughout Frederick’s life, he consistently pursued excellence in all his endeavors, demonstrating remarkable selflessness. His first notable contribution was in the field of medicine, where he practiced at Greater Southeast Hospital, delivering hundreds of babies. He also served two distinguished tours in Vietnam, earning several honors including the Vietnam Service Medal, Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal, Combat Medical Badge, Army Commendation Medal, Bronze Star Medal, and National Defense Service Medal.

Upon returning from Vietnam, Frederick embarked on a multifaceted journey, acquiring expertise in various domains. He showcased his skills as an expert machinist, mastering tools such as lathes, cameras, watches, and model trains. An active member of CAMS (Chesapeake Area Machinist Society) and PATINA (Potomac Antique Tools and Industry Association), Frederick was passionate about building and detailing model trains and layouts. His love for learning extended to literature, theater, and orchestral music.

A staunch advocate for learning history, Frederick believed, “You need to understand the past to make sense of the present.” He actively participated in organizations like the Rockville Society of Model Engineers, the Montgomery Preservation Organization, and the Smithsonian Institute. Notably, he contributed significantly to a model train display for National Geographic, now featured at the Historic Silver Spring B&O Railroad Station in Silver Spring, Maryland. Frederick also dedicated time to research family history, preserving valuable documents now housed at the Cherokee Strip Museum in Perry under the Dolezal name.

Above all, Frederick generously shared his time and expertise, offering care, assistance, and guidance to those around him. What a gift it was to sit and talk to, learn from him. Survived by his cousins Albert J. Dolezal, Ernest L. Dolezal, AJ Dolezal, Allan Dolezal, Emily Bingham, Alice Dwyer, Andrea Rains, and Brad Dolezal, along with numerous other relatives, Frederick Dolezal Schirrmacher's legacy endures through the excellence and kindness he fostered in others.