Rita (nee Brauninger) Schmidt, age 90, of Pennsauken, New Jersey passed away quietly in hospice care on February 8th, 2020.  She was preceded in death by her husband William Samuel Schmidt. She is survived by her children Diana Schmidt Romano (Donald Romano), Nancy Schmidt Pisecco (Jack Pisecco) and William Schmidt. She is survived by 9 grandchildren and 8 great-grandchildren. Rita was an adventurer and a feminist ahead of her time. She graduated from Hahnemann Hospital with a BSN degree in nursing, completed her mid-wife certificate, assisting in the delivery of 33 babies, and achieved her MS degree in Education. Prior to being married, she worked as a Public Health Nurse in Alaska for 2 years, as well a nurse in hospitals in Las Vegas and San Francisco. After marrying William Schmidt, she settled in Pennsauken, NJ to raise her family and continued her nursing career by developing a nursing assistant's program run through the Pennsauken Adult Education Program taught with her dear friend and colleague Rosemary Clements.  She loved to travel, including with her grandchildren, taking each of them to the travel destination of their choice when they turned 10.  She was a wonderful grandmother and a gentle friend to many on Whitman Terrace. Services will be held at Alloway Funeral Home, 315 Maple Ave, Merchantville, NJ on Wednesday, February 19th from 7pm-9pm. A shortened viewing time will be Thursday, February 20th from 10am-11am followed by a service and burial at Lakeview Cemetery. Always thinking of others she requested that in lieu of flowers, contributions may be sent to St. Jude's Hospital for Children.