Man's love for his dog may aid foundation

Robert Schreffler Jr., a classical trumpeter who played in the orchestra at the Chicago Civic Opera House, was a family man who enjoyed raising Doberman pinschers in his suburban home.

By the end of his life, Schreffler was living in Las Vegas, divorced, somewhat reclusive and estranged from his children. But his love of dogs and other animals never faltered.

Weeks before his April 10 death at age 69, Schreffler called Mary Herro, longtime director of the Animal Foundation of Nevada, and asked if she would find a good home for his only true friend, Sassy, a miniature American Eskimo dog.

A few years ago Schreffler found the puppy emaciated and eating out of garbage cans. He raised her to healthy adulthood.

Schreffler mentioned one other thing -- he wanted to leave his entire estate, valued at about $300,000, to the Animal Foundation, which is trying to raise $5 million to build its new shelter on city-owned land.

When he died at Harbor House Hospice in Las Vegas after a long battle with cancer, Schreffler's gift became the largest bequest ever made to the Animal Foundation. Plans are to use the money to build the Sassy wing at the new facility, which will shelter lost dogs.

"He told me he had no one else to leave his money to," Herro said. "It was sad that he died alone, but he was so self-reliant. And although he was solitary, he was not unhappy. He read books, played music and never felt sorry for himself. He had unreal strength."

In the weeks since Schreffler's death, relatives have surfaced, Herro's attorneys tell her. She has been notified that Schreffler's will, which bequeaths his house and all other possessions to the Animal Foundation, will go through probate on Friday.

"We are not counting the money until we get it," she said. "I just want to see that his wishes are fulfilled."

Weeks before he died, Herro fulfilled Schreffler's most urgent request, that a good home be found for Sassy. Herro found Christine Stanley, a German-born longtime Las Vegas casino hostess, who earlier this year lost her two schnauzers, Heidi, age 12, and Schatzi, age 13. They died of old age within a week of each other.

"I was so very unhappy and I didn't know what to do. That's when I called Mary," said Stanley, who from 1972 to 1979 hosted the Las Vegas weekly German music radio show "Heimat Deine Sterne" (Bells of Home).

Herro arranged a meeting between Stanley and Schreffler. Sassy jumped right into the woman's lap upon meeting her.

"He told me, 'I guess Sassy is yours, I can now go in peace,'" Stanley said, noting that as a bonus Schreffler gave her his other pet, a desert tortoise named Myrtle.

In his final days Stanley and Herro tended to some of Schreffler's needs and provided him with something he had denied himself for so long -- human friendship.

"Five days before he died, I asked Robert if I could help him find and contact his children so he could let them know he was dying and perhaps get together with them one last time," Stanley said. "He answered with a loud and clear 'No!' and I did not bring it up again."

How Schreffler became estranged from his family may never be known. Attempts to locate his children for an interview were unsuccessful.

Herro also has not met them, but has been informed by her attorneys that one of them has signed the paperwork so that Schreffler can be cremated -- another of his final requests.

Schreffler was born March 4, 1930, and was raised in Illinois. Little is known of his early life. A friend in Illinois says Schreffler attended Roosevelt University and had a great love for music -- a gift he was happy to pass on to young, aspiring musicians.

"Bob was a great talent and a great teacher," said Robert Zelek, an attorney and amateur trumpet player in Park Ridge, Ill., who as a teenager studied under Schreffler.

"As a teacher he had a great ear and was a stickler for perfection. To him, a note was a note and there was no improvising. You had to stay focused on what you were doing."

Zelek's older brother, Larry, also studied under Schreffler and today is a professional trumpet player who performed with Guy Lombardo's orchestra and teaches.

The Zeleks were introduced to Schreffler by their uncle, Richard Zelek, a professional trumpet player who wanted his nephews to learn from the best. Schreffler at the time lived in Morton Grove, Ill., where he and his wife raised two sons and a daughter. The Schrefflers also ran a music shop in the Chicago suburb of Northbrook.

"I painted his house one summer and he gave me one of his C-trumpets," Zelek recalled. "I still play it."

That Schreffler left his estate to further the cause of animal welfare did not surprise Zelek, who said: "He always had dogs around the house. When I met him he had two Dobermans."

Schreffler also was known in Chicago music circles for his customizing of horns, especially the mouthpieces where his modifications improved the airflow intake. He made those modifications in a workshop in his home.

In the late 1970s, the Zelek brothers were shocked to learn that Schreffler was divorcing his wife and was moving to Las Vegas, where he is purported to have played in local bands in the early 1980s.

He moved into the Las Vegas home of his mother, Dorothy, who died in 1995 and left the house -- the bulk of his estate's present value -- to Schreffler.

Local friends know about Schreffler's children. His daughter, Robin, lived in Las Vegas for a while, but died several years ago. His sons Robert and Rory survive him.

Herro said that Schreffler's ashes -- and eventually Sassy's ashes -- are to be placed in an urn overlooking the wing of the new shelter. The inscription: "To Sassy, my constant companion who always gave more than she took," will be nearby.

In accordance with Schreffler's wishes, his name is to not to appear on the plaque or anywhere else on the building, Herro said, calling him a "private, unassuming man."

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