Winifred Stutz

Winifred Sutter Stutz, our wonderful mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, cousin, and friend passed away in her sleep on June 30, 2022, while residing at Wesley Glen in Columbus, OH. She was born Winifred Helen Sutter on June 13, 1925 to Walter Hoffman Sutter and Martha Catherine (Fallon) Sutter, in Cleveland, Ohio. She is preceded in death by her parents, Walter and Martha Sutter, sister Katherine Hangen, brother Robert Sutter and husband David Eugene Stutz. Winifred is survived by her five children - Paul (Gayle) Stutz of Oakland, California; Anne/Andi (Art) Prince of Westerville, OH; Mary Stutz (Gerard Nervig) of Custer, South Dakota; Emily Shipman (John) of Columbus, OH; and John Stutz (Michele) of Kansas City, KS. She is survived by her nine grandchildren: Amy Stutz, Michael and Laura Prince, Christine Nervig, Katie Shipman, Rachel, Daniel, David, and Benjamin Stutz. She is also survived by many nieces, nephews, and cousins who will miss her.

Winifred (also fondly called “Nean”, “Freddie”, and got used to being called “Winnie”) grew up in East Cleveland and attended Shaw High School. She spent two years at Allegheny College and then completed two years at Western Reserve College in Cleveland earning degrees in English and History in 1947. During WWII she helped in the war effort and worked two summers at the Fisher Body Plant where B 29 parts for aircraft were being assembled. Following college graduation she worked at University Hospital in Cleveland. She was a lifelong Lutheran attending Hope Lutheran Church of Cleveland. It was there that she met her future husband, David Eugene Stutz, who had attended Case Institute of Technology. They married in 1949, and shared 62 years together before David died in 2011. They lived in the Beechwold and the Clintonville areas of Columbus for almost all of those years together.

Winifred was a very talented and hardworking mother. She was always willing to help out in any way she could with our school activities or any projects that we were involved in during our school years. Mom was very active at North Community Lutheran Church and served on church committees, helped with church luncheons, and taught Sunday School. She sang in the choir and played in the bell choir there for many years. Mom made sure that we all took piano lessons and played well herself. She really enjoyed playing piano duets sometimes with family but for many years with her good friend and neighbor, Bootsie.

Winifred volunteered at the Ohio Historical Museum leading tours of school groups through the exhibits. She also worked in the Ohio Village at the weaver’s shop, dressing in that era’s clothing and demonstrating weaving on the loom. She was an expert on the lives of the First Ladies and gave many informative slideshow presentations in public about them.

She was very passionate about the many, many crafts she created: quilts, sewing projects, bead work, cross stitch, flower arranging, basket weaving, knitting, crocheting, and making dolls, stuffed animals, stationary and jewelry. She made so many personal things for us and our children; she decorated our home with her work; and gave her handiwork away as gifts.

Mom was always experimenting with something new. She even took Japanese classes at Otterbein as a senior citizen. Mom also was an avid reader until her eyesight made that difficult. She was a “puzzler” doing jigsaw puzzles, and the crosswords and the Jumble in the daily Dispatch. She was a good bridge player and played bridge in her college days in the 40’s, in couples’ groups with Dad, in women’s bridge clubs, at the Gillie Senior Center and the Griswold Center, and still played at Wesley Glen in her 90’s.

One of the favorite things that Mom did after the kids were grown was to teach for the I.N.C.H. program on the OSU Campus. ( The International Neighborhood Coffee Hour) She taught weekly classes of ESL to international women of many cultures for almost 30 years. She finally decided to wrap it up at the age of 90. She had many friends around the world who have still continued to send her greetings and visit her through the years.

Winifred loved to travel and helped plan the yearly Stutz / Hangen summer vacations that we looked forward to each year growing up. We spent many wonderful weeks at Lakeside, OH, even in recent years. After we kids left home Mom and Dad began a twice yearly adventure to Kansas and South Dakota to visit our siblings and their families there. Her last big trip was in 2016 with her three daughters on the Rocky Mountaineer train from Vancouver to Jasper and Banff and back. We will miss her at our future extended family vacations and gatherings.

Mom had a wonderful long life and she will always live in our hearts as we carry her with us. She will be remembered for so many things but especially for her sense of humor, generosity and kind heart.

Calling hours will be from 2 - 4 p.m. on Saturday, July 30th, followed by a celebration of life at 4 p.m. at the Dublin Schoedinger Funeral Home : 5980 Perimeter Dr., Dublin OH , 43017. Masks required.

In lieu of flowers contributions can be made to Wesley Hospice or the Audubon Society.