Paul Erich Schirmacher, 91, passed away at home on July 7, 2025, with his wife at his side. He was born in Passaic, NJ to the late Paul Schirmacher and Elisabeth (Hillen) Schirmacher.

After graduating from Westwood HS, Westwood, NJ, he joined his father in the nursery business. Paul was an incredibly hard worker his entire life and grew the original nursery into a thriving business, where he was a gifted expert at landscape design and had an immense knowledge of plants. He also started Middle Valley Nursery, an 80-acre growing area in Long Valley, NJ, where he restored the original circa 1740 barns on the property. In 1981 he and his wife, along with their two daughters, had a house built on the adjacent property and it became their family home. The development rights were later sold to the state of NJ to keep it as perpetual farmland and to help preserve the valley.

Paul met his wife Gerri in 1960 when she attended a Garden State Ski Club meeting, of which Paul was one of the founders. He arranged to drive her home - a great idea, as they were married for 64 happy years! They shared a love of skiing that continued throughout their marriage, and which they passed down to their two daughters. Later, they were members of the Ramapo Ski Club, which had a lodge at the base of Mad River Glen Ski Area in VT. They spent many weekends skiing there as a family.

Paul and Gerri loved traveling, which took them to 55 countries and much of the U.S. After retiring, golf became a new pastime. In 2000 they moved to Savannah, GA, where Paul achieved a memorable hole-in-one. Cycling was fun as well, and many hours were spent riding with CBTC (Coastal Biking Touring Club). They continued to ski many areas out west, often driving out to CO with their cat for a month-long stay, and sometimes meeting up with family to ski. Wonderful memories were made on the slopes!

Paul loved his family. He is survived by his wife Geraldine (Chess) Schirmacher, and daughters Jennifer O’Neil (Jack) of Beverly, MA, and Kristina Ashton (Stuart) of Morristown, NJ. He is also survived by four grandchildren: Erich O’Neil, Scott O’Neil (Ellie), Emily Ashton Grzybowski (Johnathan) and William Ashton, as well as two great-grandchildren. Paul was predeceased by his parents and by his sister, Ursula Farm.

A private celebration of life is planned for a later date.

Donations in memory of Paul may be made to skidawayaudubon.org