Ilse Stauffer

EVENTS. 1

Celebration of Ilse Stauffer's Life

Jul 11, 2021, 11:00 AM US/Eastern

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Ilse Stauffer

April 01, 1934 - February 08, 2021

Please help us celebrate the remarkable and joyous life of Ilse Stauffer by joining us for a virtual event on Sunday, July 11. There will be lots of time for sharing stories and memories. In the meantime, click on the heart to let us know you were here and to receive email updates. We look forward to gathering with you.

OBITUARY

Ilse Stauffer died peacefully on February 8, 2021 at the age of 86, after a stroke. Born in Wolfsburg, Germany, a fortune teller once told her she would marry a handsome foreigner, travel across the ocean, and have three children. Not one to leave her future to fate alone, she moved to Munich for a career as a simultaneous interpreter and teacher. When she met Tom, it was love at first sight and the prophecy was fulfilled. Tom whisked... see moreIlse Stauffer died peacefully on February 8, 2021 at the age of 86, after a stroke. Born in Wolfsburg, Germany, a fortune teller once told her she would marry a handsome foreigner, travel across the ocean, and have three children. Not one to leave her future to fate alone, she moved to Munich for a career as a simultaneous interpreter and teacher.

When she met Tom, it was love at first sight and the prophecy was fulfilled. Tom whisked her off to travel with the Qashqai nomads in Iran, and they continued to journey together the rest of their marriage. When not in Ecuador, Russia, Austria, Yemen, Oman, Germany, Norway, Turkey, or other corners of the globe, Tom and Ilse lived in the Boston area, where she earned her American bachelor’s degree at Harvard, taught German, directed buses through the narrow streets of Boston as a city guide, played the recorder, sang with her three children and in her church choir, and grew vegetables – including some famously good crops of corn. An adamant ambassador for her adopted country, she was committed to showing European family and friends that America was steeped in history, culture, and delicious fresh (not just frozen) food.

In 1989 she and Tom moved to Washington, DC, where she worked as the middle-school librarian at the Washington International School and was a decades-long volunteer at both Hillwood Estate Museum & Gardens and the Christ Child Opportunity Shop. A lover of languages, reading, decorative arts, and music of many genres, she was an outstanding cook (introducing her family and guests to Middle Eastern dishes before hummus and falafel became typical food court fare), as well as an elegant and welcoming hostess.

She was preceded in death by her beloved Tom and is survived by her children and their spouses, Barbara (Brian), Anne (Norton), and Michael (Jen); her grandsons Nathaniel and Nico; and an extensive network of family and friends in the U.S., Germany and around the world. In her last years, she found a home with lovingly supportive caregivers and staff at Forest Side Memory Care in D.C. She will be greatly missed by all, and a celebration of her life will be planned later. Please consider supporting The Washington Revels (revelsdc.org) or Christ Child Society (christchilddc.org) in her honor.

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mary gene myer:

July 12, 2021

Memories of Ilse
written for the celebration of her life July 11, 2021
I'd hoped to read this at the wonderful event but didn't get my hand up in time. You'd think that by now I could manage zoom but - sigh - it seems not. It was really... more
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Julia Stickler

July 11, 2021
Victoria & Franklin Wassmer:

July 11, 2021

Holiday Times with Ilse on Hobart Street
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Victoria & Franklin Wassmer:

July 11, 2021

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Times with Ilse Stauffer - 1
Times with Ilse Stauffer - 1
Victoria & Franklin Wassmer:

July 11, 2021

00:02

Short clip
Ilse, Anne & Barbara
mary gene myer:

July 9, 2021
mary gene myer

July 9, 2021
Kirsten Rodine Hardy

July 8, 2021
Elizabeth Overstreet

July 8, 2021
Terri Brown Preuss

July 1, 2021
Ellen Nunnelee

June 27, 2021

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