Obituary
Barbara A. Nordhaus, 86, passed away Friday, August 20, 2021, in Fort Myers, Florida, of dementia/Alzheimer’s complicated by COVID-19. She was born to Edward and Emma (Haukup) Nordhaus on July 2, 1935, in Germantown, Illinois. She married her long time partner, Shirley Janes, in 2017.
Barb retired from Anheuser Busch, St. Louis, after 20+ years. A staunch AB beer drinker, she would counsel you if she saw you drinking a competitors brand!
She was a diehard Cardinals baseball fan, always quick to tell you Red Schoendienst grew up in her hometown of Germantown. Of course it wasn’t good if you didn’t know who Red was!
Barb was a sports enthusiast, excelling at softball, bowling, and in her retirement years, golf. She was extremely proud of her hole in one.
Barb was feisty, stubborn at times (that’s a German thing), but always had a twinkle in her eye and an ear for her friends and relatives. She had a smile that drew people to her. That smile was a magnet for the staff at the Shell Point Pavilion memory care floor.
Barb and Shirley traveled to Florida for many years before purchasing a home in 2016. Shelling on the beaches of Sanibel, Venice, and St. Petersburg became her new hobby. She had boxes and boxes and boxes of shells and shark teeth!
Barb will be dearly missed by Shirley; her beloved dachshund Jessie; sister Pat Millican; brother Franklin (Fritz) Nordhaus; nieces Terri Wheeler and Karen Knackstedt; nephews Mike Wheeler, Keith Nordhaus, and Gary Nordhaus; great nieces JoAnne Vasek, LeAnne Book, Megan Wheeler, Carli Wheeler, Nicole Knackstedt and Molly Nordhaus; great nephews Clint Younger and Brady Knackstedt; and the many many friends she made over the years.
Barb was preceded in death by her parents, sister-in-law Rita Nordhaus, and brother-in-laws Von Wheeler and Arlo Millican.
A special thank you to the entire staff on the memory care floor of Shell Point Pavilion. Barb was a resident there for three years. They treated Barb with kindness and the utmost respect. She couldn’t have been in a better place.
It was Barb’s wish to be cremated. A celebration of life will be held in St. Louis, Missouri, at a later date.
Memorials can be made in Barb’s name to the Alzheimer’s Association, act.alz.org.
Love and hugs, Kathy Sutphen