Ilse Falcone

The world lost both a beautiful human and a friendly, generous soul on 09/11/2021. Ilse (Fleischhacker) Falcone was born on January 21st, 1948 in Vienna, Austria, the youngest of seven children. She came to America in the late 1960’s as an au pair and continued working first for the United Nations in the language department, and then for German banks as an executive assistant. Ilse received her US citizenship in 2002.

A resident of New York’s Upper West Side for over 35 years, Ilse dedicated herself to her community, volunteering at a local soup kitchen for the past 17 years, caring for the elderly, mentoring children, and teaching English as a second language. She adored the Arts and was a regular at Lincoln Center. She continually challenged herself, running and finishing the New York Marathon at the age of 54, and was always up for any adventure, having traveled to nearly 80 countries around the world.

For all her extracurricular interests and experiences, Ilse’s friends and family were her true joy. She is survived by her husband, Tony, whom she was married to for 51 years this September 19th, 2021. She is also survived by her son Adrian and his wife Dana, and Ilse’s daughter, Daphne, and her grandson, Lucas.

Ilse lifted, inspired, and loved everyone in her life. She was amazing with everything she did, but never boasted about. Just last year, during a pandemic and difficult time, she decided she wanted to teach herself guitar, and played and sung for anyone via zoom, who wanted a little reprieve and a big smile.

She was present, engaged in every moment, wherever she was, always delighted by everything- big and small. She touched the lives of so many with her never-ending supply of positive vibes and joy that she happily shared with everyone.

She will be dearly missed.

In lieu of flowers please consider making a donation to a memorial fund for a park bench in Ilse’s name.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/ilse-falcone-memorial-fund