Barbara Feldvebel

Deerfield, NH — In memory of Barbara B. Feldvebel, who died peacefully on February 8, 2025 at the age of 98.

Barbara was born in Oak Park, Illinois, on October 27, 1926, the second of three daughters of Laurine and Elvin Byers. She remembered her childhood with great fondness, especially the summertime trips to Buda, Illinois where she enjoyed the fun side of farm living with her many cousins. Being the daughter of two educators, Barbara had little choice but to earn her Bachelor of Science in Education from Northern Illinois State Teachers College, where she met the great love of her life, Alexander M. Feldvebel, a handsome and decorated WWII veteran.

Upon graduation, Barbara and Al got married and began teaching in the town of Blue Island, Illinois, where they lived in a small trailer in the yard of a local farmer. Barbara taught home economics for four years prior to the arrival of their four children: Tom, Alex, Paul, and Laurie. From then on, her focus was her family, though she kept her teaching certificate valid. In those early years, with the family settled in Park Forest, Illinois, Barbara set about raising her four children with a powerful love, sharing her grace and wisdom and big-heartedness with her young brood and her beloved husband. Summers were filled with trips to Lake Shishebogama in northern Wisconsin or, later, out west to Yellowstone or Glacier National Park and other Rocky Mountain destinations. There were many pictures of buffaloes and fish.

When Al got a teaching job at John Carroll University, the family moved to Shaker Heights, Ohio, and Barbara transitioned to raising teenagers and helping her young adults find their way while she earned an MA in Human Services. With the kids gone and Al retired, Barbara and Al moved to a smaller place in Sagamore Hills, Ohio, where they returned to the delightful company of each other, volunteering for Meals on Wheels, traveling the country in their camper van, frequently visiting their far-flung children and welcoming grandchildren. When Al died in 2018, it was difficult for Barbara to go on. But she had her daughter, Laurie, nearby, and then her son, Alex, when she moved to a memory care facility in New Hampshire in 2023. She lived an excellent, long life, filled with love and wonder and kindness.

She is survived by her children, Tom Feldvebel (Mandira), Alex Feldvebel (Maria Dalterio), Paul Feldvebel (Donna), and Laurie Sussen, as well as her grandchildren Nicole, Megan, Michael (Jr.), Tessa, Sophia, Jessica, and Austin, and her great grandchildren Logan, Lucca, Matteo, and Noah. Barbara was preceded in death by, her sisters Betty Unbehaun and Joan Rogers, her sister-in-law Ethel Kahles, and her son-in-law, Michael Sussen. 

ARRANGEMENTS: A Celebration of Life is in the planning stages for this summer in the Cleveland area where family and friends will be welcome. Assisting the family with arrangements is the Cremation Society of NH, Boscawen. To view an online memorial, leave a message of condolence, or for more information, please visit www.csnh.com.