Brief Obituary, as printed in the Arizona Daily Star:
Sigrid Gisela Renate JUST
died on Nov. 7, 2016, one week after suffering a major stroke. She was born Nov. 24, 1928, in Beuthen, Upper Silesia, Germany, the only child of Karl & Charlotte Walther.
Her father died in 1933, and at the end of World War II, Sigrid and her mother moved to Berlin. She joined the Salvatorian Sisters for two years, and was named Sr. Constancia.
She then studied Mathematics at the Free University of (West) Berlin, where she met Dr. Kurt Just. They married in 1953 and had three sons while still in Berlin. In 1961 the family immigrated to Tucson, AZ, where Kurt was a UofA Physics Professor for almost 40 years.
Sigrid volunteered with the PTA, Red Cross, Boy Scouts, and as choir member and organist at several Catholic parishes. She was an avid reader, swimmer, email writer, and very creative in arts & crafts. She loved traveling the USA in her VW Bus.
Sigrid is predeceased by her husband Kurt (RIP 6/19/16) and survived by three adult sons: Stefan (& Rebecca), of Beaumont, CA; Klemens, of Berlin, Germany; and Felix, of Anaheim, CA.
Sigrid wanted her body donated to science. A Funeral Mass will be at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 10, at St. Cyril Catholic Church (4725 E Pima St, Tucson, AZ).
Notes of condolence may be sent to Rev. Felix Just SJ, 401 W Leonora St, Anaheim, CA 92805. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to Catholic Relief Services.
Longer Biography, as printed in the Worship Aide for the Funeral Mass:
Sigrid Just (11/24/1928 – 11/7/2016)
Sigrid Gisela Renate JUST (née Walther) was born on Nov. 24, 1928, in Beuthen, Upper Silesia, Germany, and died on Nov. 7, 2016, one week after suffering a major stroke. She was the only child of Karl and Charlotte Walther. Her father died in 1933, when Sigrid was only five years old. At the end of World War II, she and her mother moved to Berlin. In 1947, she joined the Sisters of the Divine Savior (Salvatorians) for two years, and was given the name Sr. Constancia.
Sigrid then studied Mathematics at the Free University of (West) Berlin, where she met a young physicist, Dr. Kurt Just. They married in 1953 and had three sons while still in Berlin. In Sept. 1961, shortly after the Berlin Wall was built, the Just family immigrated to the United States. They settled in Tucson, AZ, since Kurt had accepted a position as Professor of Physics at the University of Arizona, where he taught for almost 40 years.
There was a clear division of labor in the Just household: while Kurt worked at the UofA and provided the family income, Sigrid took care of the house and raised the boys. She was also very active in volunteer work in church, school, and various civic groups for many years: with PTA, swim teams, the American Red Cross, and the Boy Scouts of America. She served as choir member and organist at several Catholic parishes. She was an avid reader, swimmer, email writer, and a versatile craftsperson, showing great creativity in sewing, knitting, calligraphy, candle making, and many other arts and crafts.
Although she never visited Germany again after the death of her own mother in 1978, Sigrid loved to drive all over Arizona and visit friends and family throughout the USA in her VW Bus/Camper. Due to decreasing mobility and despite double knee-replacement surgery, Sigrid had to move to the Desert Villita Assisted Living home in 2009, where she received very attentive and loving care from the wonderful staff for the past seven years.
Sigrid is predeceased by Kurt, her husband of almost 63 years (RIP 6/19/16), and is survived by three adult sons: Stefan (wife Rebecca), of Beaumont, CA; Klemens, of Berlin, Germany; and Felix, of Anaheim, CA; as well as two married grandsons and two great-granddaughters.
Like her husband, Sigrid chose to have her body donated to science. Her Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, December 10, at St. Cyril Roman Catholic Church (4725 E. Pima St, Tucson, AZ). Interment of her cremains will be in a private ceremony that afternoon.
Cards and notes of condolence may be sent to: Rev. Felix Just SJ, 401 W Leonora St, Anaheim, CA 92805.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations in Sigrid’s memory be made to Catholic Relief Services.
