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Lois Souder Obituary
Lois Eileen Souder, 88, resident of El Castillo in Santa Fe, died peacefully Sunday July 5th at St. Vincent's Hospital.
Born November 4, 1926 in South Bend, Indiana to Bertha and Merlin Hawbaker, Eileen obtained her BA from Manchester College, a MA in History and Masters of Library Science from University of Missouri.
She had a long career as a librarian for the Kansas City (Missouri) libraries, and with two librarian friends, founded Trilogy Books in Kansas City.
Eileen was active in the League of Women Voters, various Unitarian churches, and Santa Fe's Courthouse Monitors Program. At El Castillo, Eileen was active in the community choir and several book groups. She was a lifelong fan of Frank Lloyd Wright's architecture, and went on many road trips to visit his buildings.
Eileen was married to Arnold Souder for 65 years.
She is survived by her children, Mark Stephen Souder of Seattle, WA; Jon Arnold Souder (Norma Kline) of Charleston, OR; daughter-in-law Jennifer Jehl Pruett (Kennan Girdner) of Santa Fe; grandchildren Emily Sutro Souder (San Francisco, CA) and Karen Rose Girdner (Santa Fe); and brother Lyle Hawbaker (Cape Coral, FL).
She was also "mother" to 4 foreign exchange students: Hans Bistrup Larsen (Denmark), Reha Erzurumlu (Turkey), Obrad Kekanovic (Yugoslavia), and Isa Riederer (Germany).
Eileen's husband, brother Maurice Hawbaker, and son, Karl Cameron Souder, predeceased her.
The family would like to thank the staff at El Castillo, Christus St. Vincent Hospital, and Dr. Jill Rhymes for their thoughtful and supportive care of Eileen over the last several years.
A Celebration of Life for Eileen will be held at El Castillo's Community Room, 250 East Alameda Street in Santa Fe on Monday July 13, at 2:00 p.m.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the New Mexico League of Women Voters (1472 S St Francis Drive, Santa Fe, 87505) or the New Mexico Environmental Law Center Karl Souder Award (1405 Luisa, Santa Fe, 87505).
To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.
Memories and Condolences
for Lois Souder
2 Entries
Dr. Cynthia Willis-Esqueda
July 10, 2015
I am very sad to hear about the passing of such a wonderful person. She was kind to everyone and was witty and fun. I will keep you in my thoughts.
July 9, 2015
Carol & Lyle Hawbaker, Cape Coral, FL
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