Anneliese "Lisa" Verlsteffen

Anneliese Verlsteffen age 96, of St. Lucas, IA, died on Friday, May 13, 2016, at the Ossian Senior Hospice in Ossian, IA. Memorial Mass will be held at 10:30 a.m., Saturday, June 4, 2016, at St. Luke’s Catholic Church in St. Lucas, IA, with Rev. Nick March presiding. Burial will be in the Church cemetery. Visitation will be held after 9:00a.m., at the Church on Saturday morning. Anneliese “Lisa” Augusta Verlsteffen was born on February 14, 1920, the daughter of Ewald and Augusta (Hilbers) Baumeister in Münster, Germany. Anneliese was united in marriage to Konrad Verlsteffen on June 5, 1943 in Münster, Germany, while Konrad was on leave. Konrad was transferred in 1944 to Belgrad Yugoslavia. Meanwhile Anneliese was drafted and worked for the Ground Observe Corps with her job being to warn people to go air shelters during air raids. Anneliese did not hear from Konrad after the war until February 1947. She received a postcard saying he had been captured and was working in a coalmine in Croatia for the Communist Party under Marshall Tito. This was her first communication after 18 months of waiting and not hearing from him. In February 1948, Konrad escaped from the Croatian prisoner of war camp and was on his way home after five long years of waiting they were re-united. Konrad “Konnie” and Annegret “Annie” were both born in Germany. In October 1952, Anneliese and Konrad took their two children and sailed to the United States to settle on a farm near St. Lucas, IA. After they settled in at the farm, Rosemarie “Rosie” was born in New Hampton, IA. Together they farmed until Konrad died in 1974. In 1975, Anneliese moved to Decorah for a year and in 1976 moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida. She enjoyed her years in Ft. Lauderdale. In 1983, she met Jack Patterson from Hope Town, Bahamas. They shared their life together until 1997, when Jack passed away. While in Ft. Lauderdale, she worked at Margo Fashions. Anneliese continued to live in Fort Lauderdale until 2008 at which time she returned to Iowa and lived at Traditions in West Union, Aase Haugen Nursing Home and then to the Ossian Senior Hospice in Ossian, IA. Anneliese enjoyed boating, swimming, snorkeling, knitting, crocheting, dancing, playing bingo and going to Casinos. She also loved socializing, traveling, taking trips to Europe, Mexico and the Caribbean and going on cruises with her sister, Uschi. Anneliese is survived by her three children: Konrad “Konnie” (Jeanne) Verlsteffen, Coral Springs, FL; Annegret “Annie” (fiancé, Jim Winters) Savannah, GA; and Rosemarie “Rosie” (Ken) Kuhn, Decorah, IA. Eleven grandchildren: Kurt (Amy) Verlsteffen, Korey (Heather) Verlsteffen, Ryan Verlsteffen, Chad (Theresa) Verlsteffen, Katie (Michael) Tinsley, Derek (Kate) Schemmel, Garrett (Lauren) Schemmel, Nick Schemmel, Tyler Schemmel, Gene (Karen) Kuhn and Tom (Karen) Kuhn. Great grandchildren: Konrad, Corbin, Kyle, Karis and Kendall Verlsteffen, Megan, Madison, Dylan, Kylee and Emma Verlsteffen, Ava Verlsteffen, Addison and Brody Tinsley, Colin and Charlotte Schemmel, Kaelyn, Alison and Parker Kuhn. One sister: Ursula “Uschi” Dirksen, Munster, Germany, along with numerous nieces and nephews in Germany. Anneliese was preceded in death by her parents: Ewald and Augusta (Hilbers) Baumeister. Her husband: Konrad in 1974. One granddaughter: Heidi Schemmel and one great-grandaughter: Natalie Rose Kuhn. One sister: Tesy Nagel and two brothers: Ewald and August Baumeister. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that memorials may be given to St. Croix Hospice, 951 N Linn Ave Ste 5, New Hampton, IA 50659.