IRENE NEUMANN

NEUMANN, IRENE REFLECTION ON LIFE 1951 - 2021 Irene Neumann, a wonderful, beautiful, fascinating woman left us on June 11, 2021. Irene passed away peacefully at home in her 70th year with her daughter Natalie Neumann Butler and husband Brad Jay Butler by her side. Irene was kind, principled, generous, considerate, always giving freely of herself while asking for only common courtesy and decency in return. Those who needed help and support, whether family, friends, colleagues or anyone she met, found a sympathetic ally and a willing listener. Irene encouraged us to be our best selves and helped us in many ways. Good humoured and usually cheerful, she told stories with wit, sincerity and humorous observation. She had a clear sense of morality and the strength of character and will to make a difference. We are grateful and thankful to have had her by our side all these years. Irene was born in Zell, Germany to Hans Neumann and Magdelena Ostrovsky. Her parents were displaced from East Prussia near the end of WWII. Irene was only three years old when the family migrated to London, Ontario, Canada. She had two brothers, Peter and Jack. After her father Hans passed away, the 18 year old Irene was suddenly cast into the role of director at the Sunshine Daycare and Nursery which was the business her father founded and operated for many years. By mid-1970, Irene had begun her career in healthcare. She worked as executive assistant to psychologist and professor Dr. Boyd at the University of Western Ontario hospital. She married an auto worker and remembered the good times she and her first husband had with friends, a house with a pool, dogs, car trips to Florida and elsewhere. We don't know why they split but eventually they did and Irene left for Mexico City alone! There she met a friendly couple and stayed with them for a few months before she returned to Canada and began to work for the Canadian Armed Forces at the London base. Her friends in the army gave her the nickname, "Spice". Over the years, Irene returned to Germany for several extended stays. During one stay she worked for the American Armed Forces at their base in Lars, West Germany. During another trip in the early 80s, she lived near Heidelberg. While in Germany she developed her fluency in German and connected with her aunts, uncles and younger cousins Heike, Antje, Ute, Michael. She moved back to Canada in 1983; this time to Toronto where she stayed with her aunt Elfie and uncle Hermann and their two children, Heike and Roland. On Labour Day weekend in 1983, Irene met Brad at the Belair in Yorkville. There was enough 'frisson' to last a life time and the pair continued the conversation after the jazz band at a cafe called "A Piece of Cake". Irene and Brad lived together in Toronto for several years before they married in 1990. That same year, daughter Natalie was born. Ever since, our family of three always seemed to be together, there for each other and close-knit. Sadly just two of us remain. Irene enjoyed a social life. She was open, friendly and freely engaged with the people she met whether at work, at local restaurants, coffee shops, or in the neighbourhood. She had a natural storyteller's affinity for remembrance of the past. She was deeply interested in spoken folklore and stories passed on by family members. Irene had a lifelong interest in education and was a graduate of the University of Toronto, where she earned an honours Bachelor of Arts in English literature. She also studied German language and literature. During the first decade of this century, Irene worked as an executive assistant to the Chief of Cardiac Surgery at Toronto General, then worked at the University Health Network and the University of Toronto's medical school, where she was a project coordinator for the Clinician Investigator Program. She met her best friend Lynne (Lin) Alexander at the medical school. Irene paused her career for many years to raise Natalie who is very proud of her mom's accomplishments. Irene's interest in education combined with her fascination of human health and the intricacies of the natural world, led her to become an adult educator in medical administration. She developed her own course material and wrote online articles, blogs and essays. She eventually earned a Master of Arts degree in rhetoric and communication design from the University of Waterloo. She then pursued a credential in cyber security and obtained a Private Investigators license. Even before the pandemic, our family was inclined to vacation at resorts in Ontario. Over the years, we visited Jackson's Point, Grand Bend, Niagara on the Lake, Bracebridge. Despite the responsibilities of work, education, establishing and maintaining a household, and caring for our lovely pet dogs and cat, our family managed a few vacations in other parts of Canada and Europe. We visited Quebec City, Montreal, Mount Tremblant, Holland, Germany, Spain, Italy and France. Irene loved Europe and made several more trips there on her own for special family occasions or just to visit. Irene is an 'old soul' and we faithfully believe we will meet again. We believe and hope Irene has peacefully reunited with those who passed away before, with best friend Lin, with her mother Magdelena, father Hans, father-in-law Ross and mother-in-law Joyce, younger brother Jack, aunt Elfie (Hermann), Erika, Krista, and uncles Jurgen, Dieter, Waldimar and her aunt Ruth. She will be missed by her brother-in-law Ross Butler and his wife Belinda, nieces Rachel, Charlotte, Charlotte's wife Lauren and their three children. She will be missed by her aunt Eve and Eve's family in London, cousins Sabine Neumann, Claudia and by her brother Peter who often made Irene laugh during our summer stays in St. Jacobs, or at Christmas gatherings, or over the phone. She will be missed, too, by Peter's wife Diana. Upon her passing we recall the poetry of Dylan Thomas to describe our prayers: "the sound about to be said in the two prayers / for the sleep in a safe land and the love who dies / will be the same grief flying." At Irene's request, cremation has taken place. A celebration of life will be held at a later date.