Anita Hilda Trautmann

Anita St. Louis Hilda Trautmann Anita Hilda Trautmann (nee Roesener), a devoted and loving mother, grandmother, great grandmother and dear friend to many, passed away peacefully and with grace on Friday, July 28, 2023 at age 99. She is survived by her children, Rebecca, Claudia (Theodore Christner), Robert (Debra), Sylvia Rogers (Mark), and Alan; her grandchildren Leila Erskine, Adrienne Nash (Matthew), Jonah (Arielle), Naomi (Calvin Elmore), Micah (Kiara), Hannah, and Tess Rogers; and her great grandchildren Clara and Julian.

Anita was born in 1923 in New Palestine, Indiana to Edward and Hilda Roesener. She and her beloved husband, Rev. Robert Trautmann, who passed away in 2005, spent 20 years in South India as missionaries and boarding parents to children of missionaries studying in the small hill station of Kodaikanal. The stories, oh the stories she would tell. Stories about her early years in newly independent India, and stories about the later years as a mother to dozens of children who passed through her care. And she would laugh through the telling and remembering of the challenges, successes, and wildly entertaining experiences as a young wife and mother of five in a strange land so unlike the Midwest farm life in which she was raised. Her laughter and those stories are now our memories too.

After returning to the United States in 1968, Anita managed the offices of several St. Louis medical practices until her retirement in--we are actually uncertain when that was because she kept retiring and then going back to work. In her delightfully mischievous way and with a twinkle in her fading eyes, she admitted that once she turned 97 she was finally ready "officially" to retire. She stayed actively involved in church and community life, participating in causes large and small. Those who were fortunate to know Anita knew that all friends were family and family was everything to her. She saw and did so much in her lifetime and no matter what the circumstances, no matter how dark the moment might seem, her lighthearted smile shined through it all. She was a simple, good and kind person. That was all and that was everything. Her memory will always be a blessing.

All are welcome to join in a celebration of Anita's life at Christ Lutheran Church, Webster Groves, Missouri on Saturday, August 5, 2023 at 11:00 a.m., with visitation at 10:00 a.m. Contributions in Anita's honor may be made to Bethania Kids India and Webster-Rockhill Ministries.