Elaine G. Wuebbold

September 11, 1924 - January 21, 2019

Elaine Gates Wuebbold, who lived a crackling good life – at times, tinged by sorrow – died at her home January 21. The love of her life, Walton, died on their 63rd wedding anniversary in 2011. Together they raised two children; delighted in the antics and achievements of their three granddaughters and two great grandchildren; enjoyed the company of a wide circle of dear friends; embraced Roman Catholicism; celebrated the arts; and did their best on the tennis court. By example, they taught their children the importance of civic engagement and their obligation to actively help those in need. Elaine was born in Cincinnati on Sept. 11, 1924 and raised by her parents Helen and Reuben Gates in their Fairfield Ave. home. She had a younger sister, Helen Ann. She graduated from Ursuline Academy in 1942. Elected senior class president, the yearbook described her as “intelligent and genuine with a dry sense of humor.” She attended Our Lady of Cincinnati, majoring in fashion design. Her Catholicism extended far beyond attending Sunday Mass. As the Church adopted the sweeping reforms of Vatican II, she attended study groups to better understand and appreciate how the Church was struggling to bring its teachings and practices closer to people throughout the world. For decades on, she read Thomas Merton, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, Ted Loder and others of many faiths. Throughout her life she loved theater and movies. In the early years of Hamilton Civic Theater, she played lead and supporting roles, and worked behind the scenes on set and costume designs. Theater was more than play acting. In the 1970s, she co-starred with her daughter, Elisa, in “Lady on the Rocks,” a one-act play co-sponsored by the National Council on Alcoholism. She directed Elisa and cast in “Something Personal,” focusing on rape crisis. She was an active member and volunteer for many civic groups, including the League of Women Voters, Junior League and the Garden Club. But it was not all luncheons and roses. Working as a mental health volunteer counselor, one of her clients, an 11 year old boy, fell onto an electrical transformer, suffering severe burns. After hearing the news, she visited him frequently at Shriner’s burn unit until he died. In appreciation of Elaine’s caring, the boy’s mother knitted a blanket that she treasured. Whether it be her clothes, dressing a home or hosting a dinner party, in Elaine’s world it was not fashion it was style. Shortly after arriving at college, she caught the eye of the campus newspaper columnist who observed her “looking broad shouldered in her attractive suspenders.” She had a knack for always hitting the right note. She designed the 1965 family Christmas card with this quote from Teilhard de Chardin: “Someday, after mastering the winds, the waves and gravity, we shall harness for God the energies of love, and then, for a second time in the history of the world, man will have discovered fire.” She is survived by her son, Jay, (Susan Krauss) Wuebbold; her daughter, Elisa Williams; three grandchildren Lauren Elaine (Kyle) Kellum; Aiden Victoria Williams, and Elizabeth Zi Wuebbold ; two great grandchildren Evelyn and Henry Kellum; nieces, Gretchen Broeman and Ann (Al) Miller and nephews, Tom Brown and Peter Broeman. She was preceded in death by parents, her husband and her sister. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Friday, January 25, 2019 at 11:00 a.m. at St. Julie Billart Catholic Church, 224 Dayton St. with Father Jim Wedig officiating. Interment will be in St. Stephen Cemetery. Visitation will be at the church from 10:30 a.m. until the time of the Mass. In lieu of flowers memorial may be directed to ViaQuest, Foundation (hospice care); Attn: Dyanna Baier; 525 Metro Place North, Suite 300; Dublin, OH 43017 or Ursuline Academy; 5535 Pfeiffer Rd.; Cincinnati, OH 45242. Online condolences are available at www.weigelfuneralhome.com