Gertrude E. Rehbock

1938 - 2021

Gertrude Evelyn Trudy Rehbock, 82, died peacefully Monday, March 1, 2021, in her home at Chatham Village in the Mt. Washington neighborhood of Pittsburgh. Gertrude was born Sept. 15, 1938, in Brooklyn, N.Y., daughter of Rose Baer and John Baptiste Menhart. She married Andre Roger Andy Rehbock on Sept. 2, 1961, at the Church of St. John and St. Mary in Chappaqua, N.Y. Preceding her in death, in addition to her parents and husband of 33 years, are her sister and brother-in-law, Theresa Rose and Erich Schoepf, both of Armonk, N.Y.; and nephew, John Erich Schoepf, of Hopewell Junction, N.Y. She is survived by her son, Andre Robert Bobby Rehbock and his wife, Suzanne, of Greensboro, N.C.; a daughter, Lorraine Rehbock Halsted and her husband, Reed H. Beck Halsted, of Basye, Va.; a niece, Ann Marie Schoepf, of Armonk, N.Y.; and a cousin, Gunther Unflat and his wife, Margaret, of Hawley, Pa. Trudy was a loving mother, a career nurse and prolific artist. She blessed all her friends and family with her kind, compassionate heart and artistic works, which she shared with everyone as a way of bringing joy and beauty into the lives of those she loved. She was born to German immigrant parents and spent the first few years of her life in Brooklyn before moving to Armonk, N.Y., with her family. She graduated from Pleasantville High School in Pleasantville, N.Y., in 1956, and graduated in 1960 from New York Universitys Bellevue and Mills Schools of Nursing in Manhattan. Trudy started a career as a registered nurse in the maternity ward of Astoria Hospital, and then spent the majority of her 35-year career as an operating room nurse at Sewickley Valley Hospital in Sewickley, after moving with her husband and kids from Astoria to Independence Township, Pa., in 1977. After her husband passed away on Nov. 18, 1994, she moved to Chatham Village, where she made many good friends and enjoyed being part of the community. In addition to devoting her career to nursing, Trudy was a talented artist with a passion for watercolor painting and colored pencil drawing, which she pursued throughout her adult life. She had displayed her art at various venues around Pittsburgh over the years, including Phipps Conservatory, where she was an active member and studied botanical drawing. She was also a member of the Pittsburgh Watercolor Society, the Allegheny Botanical Artists Society and the Associated Artists of Pittsburgh. Every year, for the past 10 years, she traveled to KauaI, Hawaii, to study under well-known botanical artists at the National Tropical Botanical Garden. She was a member of the Botanical Garden Florilegium Society and always looked forward to drawing in the gardens beautiful surroundings alongside her fellow artists and good friends. A graveside service will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday at Mt. Olivet Cemetery in Hopewell, and a celebration of life will be held in the Pittsburgh area at a later date. A donation in Gertrude Rehbocks memory may be made to Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, 1 Schenley Park, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, www.phipps.conservatory.org/donate, or the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank at 1 N. Linden St., Duquesne, PA 15110, or go to pittsburghfoodbank.com. Arrangements were entrusted to WM SLATER & SONS INC., Mt. Washington, 412-318-3345. www.slaterfuneralhome.com.