Irene Karle Findorff

Irene Karle Findorff died Tuesday, September 10th after an extended month-long hospital stay. She was 89. Mrs. Findorff was originally from Buffalo, NY where she attended South Park High School. She was a talented violinist performing with the Orchard Park and Buffalo State University symphonies. She left Buffalo to earn her undergraduate degree from Cornell and her graduate degree from the University of Iowa. In Iowa, she began teaching at the collegiate level and after a medical research residency in Nutrition, she brought those skills to Tulane Medical School in 1961. She would continue to teach and research at both Tulane and LSU Medical and Nursing schools over the next 20 years. In addition to teaching, she was a Nutrition consultant to local nursing homes as well as working on grants utilizing emerging computer technology programs, through the 1970s, for advanced nutritional menu planning for use in school systems and the Navy. She would finish her career working for the State of Louisiana in Public Health roles. She was most proud of her work helping to create, expand, and support the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) and the Archdiocese Commodity Food programs throughout the State of Louisiana. She loved cooking, shopping, decorating and gardening, as well as being a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) and the RedHat societies. She always enjoyed making others happy, and those that knew her, likely will remember a gift of fruit, Christmas cookies, or candy from her at one point in time. She was a permanent resident of Metairie, after marrying her husband, Alvin Findorff in 1967. Before that she lived in the French Quarter drawn by the allure of Canal Street shopping in the early 1960's. She was preceded in death by her husband Alvin R. Findorff, sister Diane Karle Boyce, and parents Albert F. Karle and Julina Perkins Karle. She is survived by her son Karl (Anna) Findorff and granddaughter Estelle. A memorial service will be held Friday, October 18th, at 12pm at Lake Lawn Metairie Funeral Home, 5100 Pontchartrain Blvd. Visitation will be held from 10am-12pm. Inurnment will be private.