Marga Maehl

Marga Maehl October 2, 1936-June 8, 2016

In the early morning hours of June 8, 2016, Marga passed away after a 15 year battle with Alzheimers. On that day, we lost a wife, mother, grandmother, great grandmother and best friend.
Marga Steindl and her twin sister Kaethe were born in 1936 to Karl Steindl and Elisabeth Steindl (Baberg) in a small rural village, in the Westphalian part of Germany. The twins joined their older brother Hans Jochen and older sister Annemarie. Karl Steindl was a rural doctor who often took his children with him on house calls. Elisabeth Steindl was a full time home maker.

Three years after Marga’s birth, World War II broke out and her father was drafted in to the German Army as a medical officer and shipped to the Western front where he remained until his return in 1946, when Marga was 10. Unfortunately, the war took a toll on Karl’s health and Marga lost her father 5 years later in 1951.
Marga had to quit school and work to help her family’s economic situation. She later took night classes to earn her high school diploma. Once she received her diploma she spent two years in London working as an au pair. She returned to Germany and began preparation for a move to the United States with her mother. By this time her older sister Annemarie had moved to New York City and was a hostess at Pan Am Airlines. Tragically, her mother passed away prior to their move so Marga went to New York City alone in December of 1957. Kaethe followed later, so now the three girls were together again in America.

Marga got a job with Scandinavian Airlines working in downtown Manhattan, in the SAS sales office. In the spring of 1958, she met Viggo Maehl who worked for SAS at Idlewild, New York’s international Airport. Viggo and Marga met through the SAS bowling league. Viggo proposed to Marga in 1960 and they married on April 29, 1961. In May of 1962 they were joined by their first daughter Birgit. They bought their first house in Levittown, Long Island and completed their family with the addition of their dog Jackie.
In 1963 Marga and Viggo decided to move back to Europe and settled in Denmark. In May of 1964, their daughter Ingrid was born.

Marga thrived in Denmark, learning the language quickly and getting involved with breeding and showing Irish Terriers. She quickly became the premier Irish Terrier breeder in the country.
After 11 years in Denmark, Viggo was offered a job in Kansas City. Marga agreed to return to the United States. The family settled in a ranch home in Leawood, Kansas where she lived until her death.
In 1980, Marga and Viggo built a log cabin at the Lake of the Ozarks. This became the venue for entertaining friends and family. Marga still loved her dogs but now owned dachshunds that accompanied her to the lake every weekend.

Marga and Viggo worked side by side at TransMark travel until their retirement in 2001. At this time, the family noticed that Marga was showing signs of dementia which developed into Alzheimers. She had many good years during retirement even as the disease slowly progressed. A hip fracture and a subsequent 2 month stay at a rehabilitation facility, accelerated the progression of the disease. Marga was able to stay at home throughout her illness and passed away at home on June 8, 2016 surrounded by family.

Marga was preceeded in death by her father Karl Steindl, her mother Elisabeth Steindl, her brother Hans Jochen Steindl and her sister Annemarie Spiller. She is survived by her loving husband Viggo, her daughters Birgit Maehl McMurray and Ingrid Elisabeth Maehl, her grandchildren Joseph Maehl McMurray (Sara and daughter Sophia) , Jamie Leigh Maehl, Andrew David McMurray and Kelly Ann Boketo-Maehl, her great grandchild Hadyn Joseph Maehl, her twin sister Kaethe Steindl, her brother-in-law Ed Spiller, sister-in-law Brit Maehl and many nieces and nephews in California, Denmark and Germany.

A celebration of Marga’s life will be held on Saturday, June 25th at Signature Funerals, 8019 State Line Road, Kansas City, MO 64114, from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Memories of Marga will be shared at 5:30 p.m. In lieu of flowers, a donation to the Alzheimers Association, 3846 W 75th St. Prairie Village, KS 66208 would be appreciated.