Obituary for Ingeborg “Inge” Antonia Niedringhaus Inge Niedringhaus, 91, died at Columbine West in Fort Collins, CO on Monday April 9, 2018. Ingeborg Bauer was born November 1, 1926 in St. Johann, Austria. Her parents were Theodor and Paulina (Pilshofer) Bauer.
On July 6, 1947, she married Kurt Niedringhaus in St. Johann . They lived in Iowa, Kurt’s home state, and then Nebraska, prior to moving to Estes Park in 1978. In 2014, Inge and Kurt moved to Fort Collins.
Inge is survived by Kurt, and 6 children; Rob Niedringhaus (Linda), Will Niedringhaus (Melanie) Paul Niedringhaus (Christin), Maggie Cook (Bill), Monica Reed (Jeff) and Kris Ford (Joel). She is also survived by 15 grandchildren / step grandchildren and 25 great grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her parents and a sister, Margit Eisner.
A Funeral Mass will celebrate Inge’s life on Monday April 23, 2018 at 9:30 AM at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Fort Collins. Burial will take place on Tuesday April 24 at 10:30 AM at Estes Valley Memorial Gardens in Estes Park. Flowers are welcome or donations may be made in her memory to the Pet Association of Estes Park in care of Allnutt Funeral Service 1302 Graves Ave.
Estes Park, CO 80517. See www. allnutt.com to send a message to Inge’s family.
Inge was a much-loved Wife, Mother, Grandmother, and Great-Grandmother with a circle of close friends. She was raised by her parents along with an older sister in an apartment above a bakery in the center of the small alpine village of Sankt Johann. She enjoyed her studies and achieved good marks.
In addition to diligent school work, she studied music and became an accomplished pianist. She lived through the dark days of the Anschluss on March 12, 1938, when Nazi Germany annexed Austria changing her daily life. She saw her family fractured and the beginning of a seven year period of struggle and deprivation until World War II in Europe ended in May of 1945.
Despite the difficult circumstances, Inge managed to complete her education at the Mozarteum University of Salzburg (originally known as the Paris Lodron University of Salzburg). She went to work as a secretary at the office of the U.S. Army, Central Intelligence Corp in Salzburg. There she met Staff Sergeant Kurt Niedringhaus and a romance blossomed.
They were married on July 6, 1947 in the Pongauer Dom Catholic Church in St. Johann. Since Inge’s family were strict Catholics, a special dispensation was sought from the Pope to allow her marriage to a Lutheran. The provisions of the dispensation included a requirement that any children be raised Catholic, which Inge subsequently ensured was the case.
Inge and Kurt honey-mooned on the Jaegersee in Austria and lived happily in St. Johann. In 1948 they sailed to the United States arriving at Ellis Island, and then moving to northern Iowa, where they lived with Kurt’s parents in Sheffield. They began a family with the addition of Maggie in 1949 and Rob in 1950.
When Kurt’s job took them to Davenport, Iowa, Inge furthered her musical education, graduating from the Sherwood Music School. She delivered a third child with the arrival of Will in 1954. When the family moved to Des Moines, she began giving piano lessons in their home.
Her love of classical music extended to her children, who were expected to learn to play the piano or another musical instrument. Inge devoted herself to her children and husband, and the family grew with the addition of Monica in 1959, Kris in 1961, and Paul in 1963. She loved children and her role was instrumental in shaping six children to also love kids, work hard, be determined in what they undertook, and frugal with what they earned.
When Kurt retired, Inge and he moved to Estes Park in 1978. She found a new home town that reminded her of her original home town, nestled in a valley and surrounded by mountains. After many years of referring to Austria as “home”, she found a new place to call home.
She was active in the parish of Our Lady of the Mountains, and prayed for those enduring hard times. She enjoyed her circle of friends and was always fond of the animals, which roamed the hillside around their home. Her devotion to family was constant and she was always the first to hold and cuddle a new arrival of one of her 15 grandchildren / step-grandchildren or 25 great-grandchildren.
She will be missed by many. To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of Ingeborg “Inge” Antonia Niedringhaus please visit our Sympathy Store. Upcoming Events Mass of Christian Burial 2018 APR 23.
09:30 AM St Joseph’s Catholic Church 300 W Mountain Ave Fort Collins, CO, US, 80521-2702 Order Flowers for the Mass of Christian Burial Guaranteed delivery before Ingeborg “Inge”‘s Mass of Christian Burial begins. Burial 2018 APR 24. 10:30 AM Estes Valley Memorial Gardens Estes Park, CO, US, 80517 Order Flowers for the Burial Guaranteed delivery before Ingeborg “Inge”‘s Burial begins.
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