In Memoriam: Georgina Chessmore Kraus
The obituary below was provided by Georgina’s husband Rudi, who also noted that Georgina’s father, Charles Chessmore, died in the summer of 2006. The “special friend, Liesel Martinez” mentioned in the next-to-last line is Georgina’s dog. Rudi also provided the three pictures of Georgina.
Georgina Ray Kraus
Georgina Ray Kraus, a longtime resident of Cortez, passed away Jan. 7, 2006, after a long illness. She was 58 years old. Memorial services are scheduled for 2:00 P.M. Thursday, Jan. 12, 2006 at St. Barnabas’ Episcopal Church in Cortez.
She was born Georgina Ray Chessmore to Charles and Eva Chessmore (nee Wiffen) at St. John’s Hospital in Tulsa, OK on February 5, 1947. On her father’s side, she descended from Oklahoma pioneers; on her mother’s side from generations of weavers in Halstead, Essex, England. Her father, a Lieutenant Colonel in the Air Force, moved the family frequently, depending on his military station. Georgina lived in many places during her childhood but enjoyed Scotland and Albuquerque above the rest. Eventually, the family, which also included a younger sister, settled in Stillwater, OK. She attended Stillwater High School and graduated with honors in 1964.
In the turbulent late sixties, she lived in Madison, Wisconsin. In 1969, she moved to Germany. While teaching English at a technical college in Idar-Oberstein, she met and married Rudi Kraus. They moved with their two daughters to Bremerhaven, where Rudi was in the German Navy. In 1979, they returned to live in the United States.
Georgina’s diverse background was the basis of a life-long interest in world cultures, world religions, and world languages. She received BA, MA, and Mphil degrees in French, Spanish, and German from the University of Oklahoma, Ole Miss, and the University of Utah. She was also a student of Russian, Arabic, and Swedish.
After a brief period of graduate work and teaching at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, Georgina moved with her family to Cortez where she taught at Montezuma-Cortez High School. She was head of the Language Department and taught classes in German, French, Spanish, and English during her tenure.
In addition to being an exceptional linguist, she was also a gifted painter and quilter. Anyone who visited the home she and Rudi shared would know the numerous paintings on display. Most people never knew she was an artist. She would never volunteer that information. She favored an impressionistic painting style and had a talent for interpreting the image to make it her own. She also learned to quilt by teaching herself to sew at a young age. She made countless quilts, the majority of which were given as gifts to friends and family.
She was always a student of life and different cultures and enjoyed corresponding with several pen pals from all around the world. Even though, she lived in Cortez, CO, she felt she was contributing in a small way to world peace through the friendships that were formed.
Georgina was an extraordinary person who will be missed dearly by her husband, Rudi Kraus of Cortez; her father, Charles Chessmore of Stillwater, OK; her daughter, Katya and husband Bryan Archambo of Owasso, OK; her daughter, Sibylla and husband Todd Thompson of Spokane, WA; her grandson, Keena Thompson; her granddaughter Kassidy Archambo; her sister and niece, Saxon and Tiffeny Vandagriff of Edmond, OK; and her many friends in Cortez and around the world. She will also be missed by a special friend, Liesel Martinez. Memorial contributions can be made to SOS Children’s Villages, PO Box 1337, Toms River, NJ 08754.
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©2009 Stillwater High School Class of 1964