Obituary of Eva Marie Lorenzen

While everyone saw she had a heart of gold, we who truly know her realized it was a heart of unselfish love. Eva Marie Lorenzen was the beloved wife of sixty-six years to Arfst, mother to five, grandmother to ten and great-grandmother to eight children. She was the soul of her family and her community. She was loved by all and will be missed greatly. Eva was born August 28, 1929 in a small hamlet in the Eastern region of what was then Germany. She lived in the days of horse drawn sleighs and rural ways. She enjoyed childhood with extended family, which enriched her life and became the model for the lives of her family in the following years. She would hide in the rye fields to read, splashed in the Stolp river, frequented family in the adjoining hamlet, and studied in a one room schoolhouse. Stories of her young life were idyllic. “Und dann kamm der Krieg” [And then came the war]. War was hard. Eva did not share the stories of her hardships. When her children asked she deflected and focused on the beauty she could find amongst the horrors. Her early life and faith taught her to see the good. Driven from her home on November 8, 1946, she, her baby brother, mother, both grandmothers and great-grandmother were refugees. Her children heard of her escape from the fall of the iron curtain as a series of adventures. It was not until the children were older that they developed a deeper understanding of the hardships. Despite it all, Eva only focused on the silver lining of the storms she endured. Life turned positive again when, on the second day of Christmas, 1946, she met Arfst for the first time. Arfst’s father, as the mayor of another hamlet, was charged with settling the refugees that were assigned to his region. Back to the rural life, peace returned. The seed of love was planted that holy day, and blossomed into a love that endures beyond the sad death of Eva. Three of Arfst and Eva’s children were born in their home in this rural hamlet. Work, however, was hard to come by so they followed a path worn by others from this area and migrated to New York City in 1957. A typical immigrant story, Arfst came first and earned the needed funds to bring the family over. In time, two additional children were born and embraced into the family. Arfst and Eva worked their way up from being the superintendent of an apartment building and baker to acquiring their first grocery store which they converted into a delicatessen. They built a loyal customer base through their honest dealing, hard work, and delicious German cooking and baking. Retirement to Florida was in 1985. They became members and leaders of Peace Lutheran Church. They served others, formally through ministries and personally through the day to day living of their lives. The joy in how Eva lived her life was displayed through her singing in the church choir, service in the garden club, and Stephen’s ministry (among many other ways). She never forgot her history, making quilts for refugees and sharing her love with those in need. Eva’s life was guided by her relationship with Jesus Christ. She firmly believed that when she closed her eyes in this world she would open them anew in heaven. We, her family, will always remember her boundless energy; her self-less service; her love – her endless, boundless love. Her love radiated through every word and deed. We tried to reflect the love back to her while basking in its warmth. We will miss her greatly and look forward to joining her in God’s time in heaven. Eva passed on February 13, 2017. She is survived by her husband Arfst, and her children, Gabriele, Kirsten, Dirk, Annegret and Christina. Her grandchildren are David, Christine, Christina, Mandy, Erika, Robby, Cameron, Kayla, Carina and Andrew. Her great-grandchildren are Alyssa, David, Anthony, Nico, Isabella, Maike, Sierra and Maya Eva. She is also survived by a brother in Germany, Martin. A Celebration of Eva’s life will be held at Peace Lutheran Church on March 26.  Time to be announced.