Clara J. Kaufmann

Clara J. Kaufmann 1919 - 2008 WEST DOVER, VT. Clara J. Kaufmann, affectionately known as "Oma", of Crosstown Road, died peacefully on Sunday, March 23, 2008, at Prospect Nursing Home in North Bennington. Born in Lohr am Main, Germany on May 4, 1919, daughter of Josef and Clara Wirth Schmitt, she grew up in Germany where she received her education. She continued her education in Wurzberg where she studied Pediatric Nursing. Clara used her nursing training in many orphanages during World War II and, following the war, she cared for her ailing parents. In August of 1955 she emigrated to the United States where she married Urban Kaufmann at St. Joseph's Church in New York City on Sept. 26, 1955. They had been corresponding by mail for several years prior to their marriage. Mr. Kaufmann passed away Nov. 24, 1968. They had made their home in The Bronx, N.Y., for many years and in January of 1972, Clara relocated to Happy Haven Road in Wilmington, Vt., along with her son, Richard, and resided there until October 1983 when they moved to their present location on Crosstown Road. A devout Catholic, Clara was a communicant of Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Church in Wilmington, where she was a member of its Ladie's Guild. She was grateful for the presence of the Moover bus which enabled her to be active with the Senior Meals Program, which she thoroughly enjoyed, and the Retired Volunteer Senior Program where she volunteered with the blood pressure clinic. Clara enjoyed all types of crafts, including knitting, and loved to cook and bake. She will always be remembered for her famous cakes, Christmas cookies and her abundant Halloween trick or treat bags. She is survived by her son and daughter-in-law, Richard and Catherine Kaufmann of West Dover; a daughter, Justine Bajardi of O'fallon, Mo.; grandchildren, Christine and husband Christopher Presley, Elizabeth Bajardi and fiancé Christian Daley, Bernard Bajardi II and his wife, Ryanne, and Mary and Thomas Kaufmann, and two great grandchildren, Alexis Bajardi and Lawrence Willis. In addition to her husband and parents, she was predeceased by her brothers Michael, Franz and Josef, and by sisters Else, Anna and Maria. FUNERAL NOTICE: A Mass of Christian Death and Burial will be celebrated Saturday, March 29, 2008 at 10 a.m. at Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Church in Wilmington. Interment will be held later in the spring in the family lot in Gate of Heaven Cemetery in Hawthorne, N.Y. Visiting hours will be held Friday, March 28, from 7 to 9 p.m. at COVEY& ALLEN FUNERAL HOME, 44 East Main St., Wilmington, Vt., when the family will be in attendance. If friends desire, gifts in Clara's memory may be made to Prospect Nursing Home Patient Activities Fund or to the Deerfield Valley Senior Meals Program, c/o Covey & Allen Funeral Home P.O. Box 215 Wilmington, VT 05363. For directions or to send the family personal e-mail condolences please visit www.sheafuneralhomes.com.