"Gabi" Gabriele Renate Stiven

GABRIELE RENATE STIVEN

Gabi was born July 15, 1936 the only child of Helene and Rudolf Lachmann

1945 in February bombing attacks destroyed Dresden and she and mother were forced to flee their burning home.

1949 she and her grandmother escaped across the East German border to join her mother and father in Frankfurt

1951 she, her grandmother and her parents immigrated to the United States with help of relative sponsors and lived in Chicago.

1954-1958 she attended the University of Illinois, obtained her secondary teaching degree and started teaching in the Niles Township H.S. District for 35 years. Within five years she earned her Master’s Degree from Northwestern University

For six summers she worked for the Foreign Study League as Head Instructor in the German speaking countries American High School students participated in travel/study programs lasting 6 weeks. She authored a textbook for 4 – level -6 week course for the Foreign Study League which was used on the German travel /study campuses. She authored several sets of tests for Deutsch: Verstehrn und Sprechen for the publishing company Holt, Rhinehart Winstonand she also obtained her Illinois real estate license

For 10 years she was a volunteer for retreats and the St. Joseph Mass League at the Redemptorists ‘Provincial House and Retreat Center in Glenview, Illinois.

In 1982 she married her long-time friend Robert Beckwith Stiven. She has four step- children including a Godchild whom she loves dearly, their spouses, grandchildren, nieces and nephews and cousins, as well as two brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law.

Gabi retired in 1992 and in 1993 she and her husband moved to Hot Springs Village.

Since living in Hot Springs Village which they consider Paradise, they spent many hours together volunteering with the Boys' and Girls’ Club, Kiwanis of HSV and Good Samaritan. It was always a pleasure to have family and friends visit the Village and I enjoyed playing Scrabble with my dear husband Bob.

Gabi is survived by one cousin living in Hot Springs Village, Hildegard (Hilde) Ronning.