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The family is moving to Kingsport, Tenn., to be near "the grandkids," his mother, a retired Western Carolina University professor, said. Her daughter, Mary de Wit, and husband have two children, Daniel and Warren.
"I'll have my own apartment there," Schulz said of his new Kingsport home, which will be attached to his mother's house. "It's big... it's got a living room, dining room, bar and my own washer and dryer."
While he is "happy" with the move, Schulz said he is sad to leave his many friends. "I have good friends here," he said of the library employees.
And the friendships are lasting. Even those who retired before Schulz came back for his farewell party.
Like Billie Jo Bryson, who said, "Billy really got good at his job. I know he is worried who will be able to do his job when he leaves. He made each of us aware of how important our jobs are... no matter what our position."
"Here, I need a hug," Schulz said as he reached out for friend after friend during the party at Colima's Restaurant.
"Billy is really famous for his hugs," Hill said. "We're going to miss them."
"We're going to miss our movie buff, too," said a co-worker. "Billy knows all the movies and who acted in them." "Absence of Malice" and "Batman Returns" are two of his all-time favorites. He's also partial to the soap opera "All My Children."
"We're going to miss those pumpkin pies," a friend told him. Quite the chef, Schulz is well-known for his barbecuing and pie-making skills.
Freddy Jones, library technical assistant, said she will miss seeing Billy head to the coffee pot first thing every morning. "He's got to have that first cup, with cream and sugar," she said. "He also has a fondness for chocolate."
"Billy has enriched all our lives in so many different ways," said friend and reference librarian Becky Kornegay.
Right before his party, Schulz gave Hill last-minute instructions on how to "strip." As the serials department stripper, Schulz's job was to place magnetic strips in magazines and in bound volumes. Those strips serve as a magnetic detection devise, so materials can't be taken from the library.
"It's an easy job and I like doing it," said Schulz, who always arrived promptly each morning at 8 a.m. via a Jackson County Transit van. Another of his jobs was to stamp the date on all the magazines.
"He's such a conscientious worker, and he gets along well with the students," said one of his supervisors.
When he moves to Kingsport, Schulz hopes to get a job there, too. "Maybe in the library," he said. "I like libraries and they have one there a big one."
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