MACHIAS – Rosemarie Kynast geb. Alker, my beloved mother, was called to the glorious peace of eternal life in the house of the Lord. Born on April 28, 1939, in Ratibor in Upper Silesia, she survived the horrors of the war and displacement to settle with her parents in southern Germany. As a young woman, she entered the healthcare profession, working in cutting-edge research and eventually earning her MD from the Goethe University in Frankfurt. Happily relinquishing her career for her family, she became a devoted mother and eventually followed her daughter to America, where they settled together in Machias. Here, she started a second career as a teacher for Machias Adult and Community Education, teaching biology, chemistry, mathematics and German to countless students, a job which gave her great fulfillment. She always was an outdoor person and had climbed in the Alps in her youth, became an expert alpine skier in Austria, a skill which she continued to use until last winter, and greatly enjoyed sea kayaking in Maine. She also loved to hike, swim, cross-country ski, ice skate and bike and even joined her daughter on a long-distance boat trip. At home she gardened, knitted, read, wrote, listened to music, helped her daughter with her turtle research and cared for her extensive menagerie. She was a person who always gave it all never asking for anything in return. Refusing to give in to her disease, she fought an incredible fight and lived her life to the fullest until this fall. Her great faith carried her through the last hard days and into the open arms of the Lord as she departed with the first rays of the morning sun on Nov. 10, 2004. In addition to her daughter, Susanne, she left behind her brother, Dietrich Alker and her sister-in-law, Rita; her nieces, Rut and Margit; her nephew, Felix; and her extended family in Germany, as well as her many friends, especially Bonnie Fortini; her coworkers, her students, her church family, and her beloved pets, especially Iggy. A celebration of her life will be held Sunday, Nov. 14, at St. Aidan’s Episcopal Church, Machias, with visitation starting at 2 p.m. and the funeral service at 3 p.m. Her interment will be at a later date. Arrangements by Greenlawn Funeral Directors, Bangor. Until I see you again Mami. Ich hab’ Dich so lieb, Susanne. When the dead rise… they will be like the angels in heaven (NIV)
ROSEMARIE ALKER
