Amy Louise Schmidt

Amy Louise Schmidt (née Swanson; formerly Strayer), age 67, of Erie, Pennsylvania, passed away peacefully on Sunday, June 7, 2026, surrounded by her children, following a courageous and extended battle with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease.

Amy was born on October 19, 1958, at Hamot Hospital in Erie, the daughter of Ann Mara Swanson and the late Robert Reid Swanson. She spent her early childhood on Dauphin Parkway before relocating with her family to Boca Raton, Florida in 1966. Summers were spent back in Erie with family at their cottage on Old Sterrettania Road, where Amy eagerly played with her two older brothers and a neighborhood full of boys awakening her indomitable competitive spirit.

A gifted student, Amy attended St. Andrews School in Boca Raton, where she worked just as hard in the classroom as on the volleyball and tennis courts to earn enough credits to graduate early. Amy entered college as a sophomore at age 16, attending Florida Southern College on a tennis scholarship. A year later she transferred to Villa Maria College in Erie to continue her academic and tennis career while simultaneously serving as their Athletic Director; the youngest athletic director in the country. At Villa, Amy was also the Varsity tennis team’s coach, captain, and number one player, compiling a 26-0 record. She graduated from Villa magna cum laude with a Bachelors in Dietetics. 

Amy was also the youngest woman to win the Erie City Women’s Tennis Championship, which she successfully defended for five consecutive years. She won a record seven straight Kahkwa Club Championships as well as dozens of junior and adult championships throughout the United States and Canada. Her two most memorable tournaments were advancing to the National Finals of the Equitable Life Father-Daughter Tennis Championships with her father in 1977, before winning the 1979 Equitable Life National Husband-Wife Championships during the U.S. Open in Flushing Meadows, NY with her then-husband, Bob Strayer.

Amy built a distinguished career as a Registered Dietitian, Clinical Nutritionist, and Educator, serving patients and families at Hamot Medical Center, Lake Erie Institute of Rehabilitation (LEIR), HealthSouth, and GECAC’s Head Start program. While working and raising her family, Amy returned to school, and in 1997, she graduated summa cum laude with a Masters of Science in Biology and Nutrition from Edinboro University. She concluded her career as a Professor of Nutrition at Edinboro University.

Above all, Amy cherished her family. She was a devoted “Momma” to Shelby and Kyle, and a proud “Grams” to her five adoring grandsons. She made her family feel that they were the most important thing in the world. More than her accomplishments, Amy will be remembered for the way she made people feel seen, welcomed, and deeply loved. Her beautiful smile, infectious laugh, and genuine curiosity and kindness left a lasting impression on everyone she met. Amy loved her family, her animals, beach walks, medical dramas, rum and diet cokes, cruise ships, romance novels, and anything involving pasta or chocolate.

Amy shared a remarkable love story with her husband, Troy. Introduced on St. Patrick’s Day at the Erie Club in 1998, where Troy’s drum and bugle corps was performing, they married in 2004 in Key West aboard Royal Caribbean’s Enchantment of the Seas. The couple spent the next sixteen years building a life filled with family, travel, music, bike rides, college sports games, adventure, and unwavering devotion to one another. Their love – which Troy described as “a fairytale” – was evident to everyone who knew them and it remained a source of strength throughout Amy’s Alzheimer’s journey.

Amy was preceded in death by her husband, Troy Kent Schmidt, her father, Robert Reid Swanson; stepfather, Hank Dagit; former husband, Robert Strayer; and his siblings, Hamilton, Scott, and Annie, along with in-laws Wes Schmidt, and Hamilton and Natalie Strayer. Both Troy and Robert, Amy’s father, passed away on December 19 – sixteen years apart -- forever connecting two of the men she loved most.

She is survived by her mother, Ann Swanson Dagit; her daughter, Shelby Strayer Roberts (Brad); her son, Kyle Flynn Strayer (Lally); her brothers, Bobby Swanson (Cheryl) and Billy Swanson (Halle); and her grandsons, John, Sam, and Zach Roberts, and Brantley and Everett Strayer; her sister-in-law Lydia Strayer Haynor (Ed); her mother-in law-Frances Schmidt; her brothers-in-law Bob Schmidt (Terri) and Rick Schmidt (the late Vonnie); and her sister-in-law Cindy Schmidt West (Darrel); and numerous loving nieces and nephews.

The family would like to recognize Amy’s beloved care companions Mary DeLaura and Ena Avdic, and the staff of Parkside at Glenwood (formerly Independence Court).

Friends may call at Burton Quinn Scott Cremation & Funeral Services, 2532 Norcross Road, Erie, on Friday, June 19, from 12:00 p.m. until 3:00 p.m., with a Celebration of Life to follow for immediate family and close friends. Burial will be private in Whispering Pines Cremation Garden.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Amy’s Army for the Walk to End Alzheimer’s: Alzheimer's Association.

Condolences may be sent to www.BurtonQuinnScott.com.