John Louis “Duke” Schneller

John Louis “Duke” Schneller, 89, of Custer, S.D. passed away peacefully surrounded by family on February 4, 2026. A man of deep faith, ingenuity, and humor, Duke lived a life dedicated to his Catholic faith, his country, his family, and his profession.

John (Duke) Louis Schneller was born in Dennison, Iowa on March 23, 1936 to William Schneller and Marie (Cermac) Schneller. He passed away on February 4, 2026, in Custer. A viewing will be held Friday, February 13, at 6:00 p.m. followed by the wake service and rosary at 7:00 p.m. His funeral will be on Saturday, February 14th at 10:00 a.m. with both services held at St. John the Baptist Church in Custer. Internment will be held at the Black Hills National Cemetery- Sturgis, on Monday, February 16th at 9:00 a.m.

John was the second of four children. He served in the US Air Force from 1954 to 1958, where he picked up the nickname “Duke”. He earned the title “Airman of the Year” and a faculty position at the US Air Force Academy for developing a prototype communication tester for American pilots that is still being used today.

After his military service, Duke earned his doctorate in Dental Science from Creighton University where he also met and married his beloved wife, Mary “Peggy” (Blomstrom), in 1961. The couple eventually moved to Belle Fourche. Here was born to them five children: Jean, Joe, Ann, Dan and Tom. Two children, Elizabeth and David, sadly died before birth.

During this time, Duke and Peg shared their Catholic faith in many remarkable ways. Duke also obtained his pilot’s license and brought much-needed dental care to the remote communities of Faith, Kadoka, Bison, Buffalo, and later, Martin. This also inspired later trips to Mexico as a medical missionary.

In 1977, the family moved for a short time to Tempe, Arizona where their sixth surviving son was born, James Michael. In 1979, they returned to Rapid City--always with the intent of serving the Lord and living their faith.

In 2000, Duke retired from private practice and moved to Custer. He renewed his dental license and began to work with the state and federal penal system, first at Star Academy and then in Rapid City. When he finally retired from dental practice, he had a cumulative record of over 53 years in healing and helping people smile.

After over fifty years of marriage, Peg died in 2012. It was shortly after this, that Duke found love again. He married Gayle Kocer (Lessert) of Martin in November of 2013. Both Duke and Gayle have been active members of St. John the Baptist parish in Custer where, until his death, Duke attended daily Mass and Morning Prayer, was active in the pro-life prayer group, led the weekly Sunday Rosary, prayed ardently for the souls in Purgatory, and was a member of the Knights of Columbus.

He is survived by his wife, Gayle Schneller; his children: Jean (Kent) French, Brenda (widow of Joseph) Schneller, Ann (John) Dvorak, Dan (Jill) Schneller, Tom (Bobbie) Schneller, and James Schneller; his step-children: Joan (Rock) Risse, Jean (Jay) Peterson, Kathy (Julio) Medeiros, and John Kocer; his grandchildren Sarah, Christine, John, Steven, Michael, Katherine, Rachael, Joshua, Jacob, Bridget, Joseph, Matthew, Josie, Dominic, Kylee, Heidi, Hans, Luke, Lance, Blaze, Eric, Ian, and Ethan; and a large, loving legacy of great-grandchildren. His step-grandchildren Elie Risse-Goings, Sam Risse, Chelsey Risse, Jimi Risse, Ben Risse, Roy Risse, Mary Risse, Isabel Risse, Lexie Sobolewski, Justin Peterson, Carlie Armstrong, Sylvia Smith, Dean Smith, Brandon Jensen, Taylor Rains, Jaxon Phillips and Dillon Phillips.

Christian Funeral Vigil will be held 7:00 p.m., Friday, February 13, at St John the Baptist Catholic Church in Custer.

Christian Funeral Mass will be held 10:00 a.m., Saturday, February 14, at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Custer.

Christian Funeral Committal will be held 9:00 a.m., Monday, February 16, at Black Hills National Cemetery near Sturgis.

Arrangements have been placed in the care of Chamberlain McColley’s Funeral Home in Custer.