Henry John Schlitzer's Obituary
Henry John “Hank” Schlitzer went home to meet his Savior on August 31, 2025,
after a long fight against the effects of several strokes. He passed in peace,
surrounded by his family, secure in the finished work of Jesus, ready to take up his
new residence in heaven.
Born in Baltimore in 1943, Hank graduated from Polytechnic High School (and
kept his Poly cowbell by his side until the end) and proudly served our country in
the Army National Guard. After starting with State Roads, he eventually rose to
senior business leadership in the Knott Remodeling Company.
Throughout the 80s, 90s, and 2000s Hank was a pioneer in the videoconferencing
industry, both as a sales executive and a project manager, working all over the
world with ESI, VSI, Ezenia, Trinity Videoconferencing and HJS Consulting. If
you ever worked with Hank, you may remember his famous exclamation “Look at
all these opportunities!” when walking into a disastrous situation.
Hank was married to his beautiful and faithful wife, Joan, for 61 years, and some
of the last words that he ever spoke addressed the key to their successful marriage:
“don’t argue”, and “never say a disparaging word about your spouse – you are on
the same team!” Henry & Joan were a beautiful and dynamic couple; they served
the Lord together with intention and profoundly impacted many lives.
Hank is survived by his wife Joan, brothers Russell (Marie) and Bill (Linda),
sister-in-law Pat (whose husband Gary preceded Hank in death by just a few
weeks), son Michael (Tracey), daughter Beth (Ian), and 6 grandchildren: Logan,
Rebekah, Ethan, Abigail, Andrew, and Elizabeth, and many nieces and nephews,
all of whom were able to be with him until the very end.
Hank was a generous man: he lived out the gospel by sharing what he had with
those that he loved and with many people whom he would never meet. To be his
friend was to become a part of his family and Hank could always find an extra
space at the table for a family member.
One of Hank’s favorite phrases was “making memories” and in his final days we
all enjoyed remembering the gift that he was to us.
What’s your fondest memory of Henry?
What’s a lesson you learned from Henry?
Share a story where Henry's kindness touched your heart.
Describe a day with Henry you’ll never forget.
How did Henry make you smile?