Elisabeth Elfriede

(Herbert) Kunzke

Elisabeth Elfriede (Herbert) Kunzke died on May 20, 2023, at the age of 90. She was born on March 28, 1933, the ninth of eleven children in Nurnburg, Germany. She married Hans Joachim Kunzke in 1955. Hans was a decorated German army veteran who served in the German army, including the Afrikakorps under General Rommel.  Son Peter was born in 1956 and their daughter Katja was born in 1957.  The family left Germany and immigrated to Southern California in 1960, arriving by boat in the Port of New York. The move to California was for Hans to work in the aerospace industry.  Upon arrival in California, no one in the family spoke English.  Li taught herself English by looking at the Spiegel catalogue.  Peter and Katja learned English from the kids in the neighborhood.  In 1977, Li and Hans moved to Lake Mills, Wisconsin for Hans's new engineering job.  Li made many wonderful friends in Lake Mills and hosted countless tea parties and cocktail hours, but never became accustomed to Wisconsin winters or driving in the snow.

Li is survived by son Peter Kunzke, daughter Katja Kunzke, granddaughters Katey Kamoku (James) and Halle Kunzke-Anderson, and great grandchildren Kona, Makai, Leiani, and Noa Kamoku.  She is also survived by her sisters Luise and Ursula, her brother Wolfgang, and many nieces and nephews.  Li was predeceased by her parents, her husband Hans, and her siblings Hermann, Lydia, Konrad, Walter, Ruth, Helmut, and Martha.

Li faced many challenges in her life.  She was born in a country at war, immigrated to a country where she knew no one and didn't speak the language, was denied admission to college because she couldn't produce documentation of her German high school graduation, and raised her children far away from their German family.  Nonetheless, she worked hard and found joy.  Li was smart, stubborn, proud, charming, and loved to laugh.  She instilled these values in her children and showed us that we are tough enough to survive anything.

We are grateful for the friendships Li cherished with Linda, Candice, Fuzzy, and Jim in Lake Mills; and the kindness, respect, and care she received from the staff at Brook Gardens assisted living home. If you wish to honor her memory with a gift, Li supported Rainbow Hospice in Jefferson and Olbrich Gardens in Madison.  Li much preferred parties to funerals, so her final tea party will be hosted in her home in Lake Mills on Saturday, June 24 from 10am to 1pm.  There will be no funeral, as per her instructions. In life and in death, Li did it her way.

www.claussenfuneralhome.com