Charles Lee Schaben

Charles (Lee) Alvin Schaben age 77 years, was called to heaven from his home in Yucaipa, California, with his wife Renate by his side on February 26th, 2021. He was born August 19th, 1944, in Los Angeles, California and grew up in Bazine, Kansas. He is preceded in death by his father, Wayne E. Schaben and his mother, Marjorie B. Schaben. He will be deeply missed by his beloved wife Renate, daughter April and her husband Doug, son Ben and wife Nicole, daughter Christine and her husband Pat, and son, Patrick, 5 grandchildren; Erika, Karsen, Jack, Luke, and Kate, and 1 great-granddaughter; Stella, as well as 3 sisters; Karen, Cheryl, and Joni and brother; Butch and many aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, and nephews.
Lee was an incredibly hard-working man who loved life, his friends, riding motorcycles, anything with a motor (typically broncos), playing pool, and most of all, his family. And, oh ya, Trump. He was a true patriot as well as a rebel (yep, both) and he wasn't shy about sharing his opinion on the state of our nation. He may have inadvertently offended a few people, but his intentions were never vile. He simply felt people should be informed... and they should be informed that he was right.
He was also so funny. He loved a good joke. His face would take on a giddy anticipation that we all remember as he told the punchline with a twinkle in his eye and waited anxiously for a reaction. His laugh was infectious, his stories were larger than life, and his heart overflowed with the love he felt for his family and friends.
Many times in his rowdy life, Lee found himself in a precarious situation, sometimes resulting in hospitalization. Motorcycle accidents, stray bullets, even the audacity of the 5000 pound machine that fell on him (twice) couldn't bring him completely down. Though it was that last accident that forced him into retirement and slowed him down (some), his spirit remained fierce. again, he worked hard and fought his way back to us and was able to ride again, play again and laugh again.
It was only the last year that he finally wasn't able to climb on his Goldwing, or make it out to play pool. His sense of humor was still intact though. He joked that he liked going to Costco, because riding the scooters was the closest he was going to get to riding his motorcycle. But the day did come. His strong spirit could not keep his body going any longer, and he passed with the love of his life by his side, as she always was.
We will miss his smile, his laugh, his twinkle. We will watch the night sky to see the silhouette of him riding his motorcycle against the light of the full moon. Pony-tail flying. Cowboy hat. No helmet. (Thank you Chrissy, for that amazing visual).

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