Irene von Kluge Dey

Irene von Kluge Dey 1923 - 2008 In her own words: ”For myself, I slowly try to put the summertime in perspective, day by day. Those lovely visits, talks, seeing everybody, including dogs and cats, and of course kids big and small. To be honest, I love you all.” Irene von Kluge Dey was born in Juterbog, Germany, January 19th, 1923 to Ruth and Wolfgang von Kluge. She was the oldest of four, followed by Brigitte, Christian, and Hubertus. After high school, she attended cooking school, and later changed her profession to nursing. She graduated in 1943 from the Rudolph-Virchow hospital in Berlin, Germany, worked as a civilian nurse in Berlin during WWII, and helped evacuate her patients to Czechoslovakia. She also worked as a nurse in US Military hospitals in Austria and in Heidelberg, Germany. Irene married Colonel John R. Dey of the US Army. They had one daughter, Jeanette Dey. In addition, she had her husband’ s children, John Dey, Mike Dey, Bob Dey and Joan Kraft, whom she loved as her own. Irene continued her nursing career in the United States, at Virginia Mason Hospital in Seattle, where she worked as a Registered Nurse for twenty years. Eventually she returned home to Luebeck, Germany, an old Hanseatic City, where she passed away from cancer June 21, 2008. She is survived by her daughter, Jeanette Oliver; brother, Hubertus von Kluge, his wife Vera and their two children, Leontine von Kulmitz and Hannes von Kluge; her nephews, Caspar and Ingo Heidborn, Detlef and Barbara Mathis; her sister-in-law, Hannelore von Kluge and her two children Frank von Kluge and Iris von Kluge and her husband Michael Gorn and their daughte,r Rosalie; and her close friends, Mr. and Mrs. Erick Gravenstein, Claudia Bockmann and Family, and her dear friend Sybille Weise. Irene was incredibly strong, and proud of her heritage. She was a free soul, a wonderfully eccentric lady. She helped bridge two continents and two cultures, and taught us all so much. Irene lived her life with passion, purpose, and destiny, and will be dearly missed.