The passing of another wonderful Irish mother, Virginia Ileen Torrens Wohlrab, mother of five and exceptional friend to many, succumbed to congestive heart failure on Sunday, September 14, 2014. She was 90 and these last words about her should be as feisty as she was.

Born May 24, 1924 in Vassar Hospital in Poughkeepsie, she married Leonard James Wohlrab when she was but 17. World War II looming large, her husband called to war, they decided on starting their family. She wanted a part of him to remain with her and they were blessed with their first born.

Summer days, as a young mother, were spent with her children, cramming a picnic basket with bread, peanut butter and jelly, lounging on blankets on the banks of the Hudson River. Camping in spring and fall, she educated and encouraged her children to see nature as a true living entity. Always having room in her heart for more, her home was a welcome place for all the kids in the neighborhood.

Friend to many, she loved being a homemaker who brought a zest and humor to life and living. She was actively involved in the American Legion Auxiliary for 25 years, the VFW Auxiliary for 50 years, and she also volunteered at Northern Dutchess Hospital thrift store for 50 years. She taught arts and crafts at Red Hook night school. She enjoyed AKC agility competitions with her dogs, and crafts of sewing, knitting, beadwork and crocheting. After her husband passed, she developed a warm relationship with an exceptional man, George Harmonay, and they shared a close bond for 6 years until he passed. She will be remembered for composing a bi-annual family newsletter that reached a circulation of 70 and she was a wicked Rummikub player right to the end who would have made her dad proud.

She leaves behind her children: Jane Estabrooke, Cheryl Barclay, Richard Kramer, Jeremy Warner and Ginger Harmonay. She will be greatly missed.

For online condolences, please visit Virginia’s Book of Memories at www.mchoulfuneralhome.com.