Theresia Gassner

Theresia (Resi) Gassner, age 91, died July 30, 2019 in the peace of her Toledo home surrounded by her loving family. She will be greatly missed by Jakob, her husband of 69 years; daughter, Rita Kijowski; son, Jakob Gassner; and 3 grandchildren, Robby and Steve Kijowski, and Selby Gassner. She was preceded in death by her son-in-law, Mike Kijowski.

Theresia led a truly remarkable life. She was born April 12, 1928 in the Yugoslavian village of Batscka Prigrevica Sveti Ivan, to Eva and Anton Neff. As a young girl, Theresia was a bright, motivated student earning a degree as a master seamstress. During WWII, Theresia was put into a Russian concentration camp for a number of years, eventually escaping to Austria where she met and married Jakob in 1950. The young couple immigrated to the United States in 1952 with little more than the clothes on their backs, a few dollars, and a sewing machine. Settling in Toledo, they found jobs, learned English, and were always grateful for the opportunities they were given in their new country. Theresia's creative mind and sewing expertise led her to become an extremely talented seamstress. She worked at the women's dress shop, Mark Klaus, for 25 years and at Damschroder for several years. Theresia's true passion was designing and making clothes for her daughter. She also loved to travel, play cards, and embroider large pieces of art which often took her a year to complete. Spending time with her family and friends was Theresia's greatest joy. Her life exemplifies humility, loyalty, and love. From Theresia, the noble lessons of working hard to achieve our goals, appreciating beauty, and giving of ourselves were learned. Auf Wiedersehen liebe Resi, Mutti, Oma.

Our family is so immensely thankful to Theresia's kind, generous neighbors and the loving, compassionate Hospice caregivers that allowed her the comforts of her own home during her final days. Please consider Hospice of Northwest Ohio for memorial tributes.

A Funeral Mass will be held at St. Patrick of Heatherdowns Church on Saturday, August 3, 2019 at 11:00 A.M. with visitation at 10:00 A.M. Interment will follow at Ottawa Hills Memorial Park. To send condolences or leave a message for the family, please visit www.NewcomerToledo.com.