Lise Maria Hofmann

Lise Maria Rubner Hofmann was born on Jan. 11, 1928, in Vienna, Austria, and died on Jan. 17, 2021, at her home on St. Simons Island, Ga., surrounded by family. She was the eldest child of the late Hermoine "Minny" Grund Rubner and Heinrich "Henry" Rubner. She had one brother, Peter, and two beloved aunts, Kathe "Katie" and Mary. Lise outlived them all by many decades. She was a tiny woman, but what she lacked in stature she made up for in determination, independence, wit and intelligence. She had an uncanny zest for life, an infectious laugh and continual smile despite the many trials she faced, especially as a young girl.

Lise knew hardship, but she never let it show or rarely referenced her past until late in life when she wanted her grandchildren to understand their heritage. She always saw the humor in things and the good in everyone and shared with her fellow Brits a disdain for complaining. In short, she was a kind soul with a big heart, who strove to help others and give back through her work with the church, be it St. Stephen's in Armonk, N.Y., where she raised her children, or the Church of the Good Shepherd in Rangeley, Maine and Christ Church on St. Simons Island, the two homes she commuted between in her later years.

Lise's early life in Vienna was idyllic in many ways. The turmoil of World War I had died down and her upper middle class family thrived. Her father, Henry, and his sister Katie, whom she called Auntie, ran her grandfather's textile shop, Joseph Rubner, at 7 Bauermarkt St. They carried the finest fabrics in the city that they sourced on buying trips to Europe's fashion capitals: Paris, Milan, London and more, and catered to Vienna's best-dressed women, one of whom was her mother, Minny, and her beloved Aunt Mary. Lise inherited their sense of style, and always strove to look put together, be it with perfectly coiffed hair and lipstick or one of the beautiful silk scarves she loved to wear. At her 90th birthday party, held at the Lodge at Sea Island with more than 50 attendees, she was the image of Coco Chanel in a black sheath with a pearl-lined collar and kitten heels. She was the toast of the party.

On Nov. 9, 1939, "Kristallnacht" or "Night of the Broken Glass," Lise's world changed. Nazis and mobs burned synagogues and Jewish businesses, and rounded up Jewish citizens, sending them to Dachau concentration camp. Her father, Henry, was one of them. Being a mischlin, or half Jewish, Lise was rushed to England with a family acquaintance and left with two women from the Quaker Organization that ran the Kinder Train. Her younger brother, the late Peter Rubner, was a toddler and stayed behind with her mother, who was not given asylum because she was a Catholic. Lise spent the early days of the war living with the women until she was evacuated from London to a convent near Harrow on the Hill, where she finished school.

She survived the Blitz and later was reunited in London with her father, brother and Aunt Katie. Her mother died in Vienna when Lise was 12. She'd written to her every week through the Red Cross. In one early dispatch, she wrote to Minny that the English ate grass for breakfast (the ladies were giving her Shredded Wheat). She never saw the mother she adored again.

When Lise first arrived in England, she spoke only German and had to learn English quickly on her own. Her language ability served her in the convent school where she studied Latin, French, and later, Spanish. After graduating she went to secretarial college in London and parlayed the skills she learned there with her affinity for languages into a career at the United Nations in New York, where she worked as secretary to the Director of UNICEF. Soon, she met the love of her life, John, at a cocktail party. They married, moved to Armonk, N.Y., and raised three sons. She passed just a few weeks shy of their 62nd wedding anniversary.

Though she left work to raise her three rambunctious boys - often on her own as John's work took him on long trips overseas - she fed her keen mind. Lise loved books and was reading right up to her last days. She loved to travel internationally and made it her mission to visit her sons David and Steven, in Beijing, Hong Kong, Japan, or Europe, wherever they lived. On those trips, she hit all her favorite world-class museums and served as a French or German interpreter for family when the need arose. She had a passion for gardening and Ikebana flower arranging and belonged to the garden club in Armonk.

Most importantly, Lise was an avid sports woman who played tennis and belonged to the Ladies Golf Niners at the Whippoorwill Country Club in Armonk. She had season ski passes at Saddleback Mountain in Rangeley, Maine, where she skied into her 80’s and continued to improve her golf game in Rangeley and St. Simons until her final years; her nickname amongst golf friends was "Mighty Mouse."

Our dearly departed Lise leaves behind her loving husband, John; sons, David, Philip and Steven; grandchildren, Chasen, Jonathan, Caitlin and Clayton; daughters-in-law, Tara and Georgia; nieces, Katie and Sally; great-niece, Marisa; as well as many friends both at home and abroad. The light she emitted will be sorely missed by all, and we take joy in knowing that she is reunited with those she has lost and will look down on us and keep us in her prayers.

In lieu of flowers, please make donations on her behalf to Christ Church Frederica.