Theresia Schaefer of Cherry Valley, CA, passed away peacefully on February 21, 2020, after a brief illness. She was 90 years old, having been born on September 14, 1929, in Novi Slankamen, Yugoslavia, to Adam and Anna (Koch) Bittner. She endured the ravages of World War II and ultimately found herself in Austria, where her brother introduced her to Peter Schaefer - the love of her life. They were married on October 15, 1949, and immigrated to the United States in 1951, where they raised three children.
Theresia was an amazing cook and baker, having brought many traditional recipes with her from Europe. Dinner in the Schaefer household was never a simple affair, sometimes taking several hours to prepare. Her children didn’t know how good they had it until they moved away - without her recipes to help them out.
She was especially fond of large family gatherings. For many years, she prepared the Thanksgiving celebration for the entire extended family. It wasn’t uncommon to have 30 or more brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, nephews, nieces, and cousins descend on “the farm” for turkey and all the trimmings.
Theresia also had a dry and quirky sense of humor that she shared with her Bittner siblings, and passed along to her own children.
She was welcomed into heaven by her parents; her sisters Maria and Anna; her brothers Jacob and John; and her daughter-in-law Teresa.
She is survived on this earth by her husband Peter; her children: Anna Miller of Sacramento, Peter Schaefer of Moreno Valley, and John Schaefer of Columbia, Tennessee; four grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
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