Irene Eliese Wallace

Irene Wallace was born to Anna D in Stettin in 1935, which during the interwar period was the largest port on the Baltic Sea for Weimar Germany. Stettin is now in Poland. As the Second World War began to heat up in the area, Irene and her mother fled back to Duisburg, Germany, home to the D family. Anna married Richard H, who adopted Irene. Richard went to the Eastern front as a soldier for the German Army but never returned. He was declared legally dead in 1955. During the war, Annie and Irene lived in Mainz, Germany and Irene always considered Mainz her home city. In 1960, she married Sergeant First Class John K. Wallace, an American Serviceman stationed in Germany. Their first daughter, Dorothea was born in Wiesbaden, Germany in 1960. In 1962, John, Irene and Dorothea relocated to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where John was stationed at the Duquesne University ROTC department. In 1963, John and Irene welcomed their second daughter, Ramona. John was sent to Vietnam twice before he retired from the Army in 1973. These were tough years for Irene but she was a tough and resourceful military wife, who worked hard and kept the family together. Irene was a waitress, and she’d be the first to tell you – a good one! Her favorite hobbies were singing and knitting (and knitting, and knitting – KNITTING). When John returned from his second tour in Vietnam, the family moved to Alaska, and drove there and back, not an easy task in the early 1970’s! The family spent much time in Alaska hiking and camping. The family would go on long distance hikes and Irene always motivated her family by singing German hiking songs and telling the children “the end is just around the next corner.” Irene got her GED in Alaska and she was proud to be an American High School graduate. John and Irene retired to Treasure Lake, a community near DuBois, Pennsylvania, where they lived for over 30 years. They lived remotely in a little chalet on top of a hill and had many happy years “at the lake.” John passed away in November 2002, and Irene and her youngest daughter, Ramona, relocated to San Antonio in 2005, to be closer to Dorothea. In the intervening years the little family enjoyed life and holidays together. In 2014, Irene met Walter Wengenmair, a nice German man originally from Augsburg, who has been her constant companion until the day she passed away. Irene had a difficult life as a child during WWII but she had a mother who loved her more than life itself and always kept her safe. John and Walter did the same for her in adulthood. Her last years were spent at Independence Hill Retirement Community, filled with parties, dances and other events that Irene loved. Plus, they had a great pool where Irene spent many hours swimming – she loved swimming. The family would like to thank the staff at Independence Hill who always treated her with dignity and respect. They would also like to thank Irene’s many doctors (Drs. Mangat, Weiss, Leatherman, Reasoner and Katselnik) and caregivers from the Medical Team (Erika, Liza, and Dolores), Holy Savior Hospice and The Enclave, who kept her healthy and comfortable until the end. Irene Wallace was really a one of a kind lady and she will be missed by her family and those who loved her. She sings (and knits) with the angels now.
Irene is survived by her two daughters, Dorothea Wallace (Lee Hampton), Ramona Wallace Beck (Bob Beck), partner and companion, Walter Wegenmair, and a cousin from Duisburg, Germany. Adolf Graber, wife, Helga and daughter Liddy. She was preceded in death by her beloved mother “Annie”, and her wonderful husband of 44 years, John K. Wallace. Irene will be interred with John at Morningside Cemetary in DuBois, Pennsylvania.