Inge S. Strach

Beloved wife, mother, and grandmother Inge S. Strach passed away peacefully in her sleep on July 16, 2022. She is preceded in death by her husband, Arthur Strach, and children, Steven James Strach and Bruce Warren Strach. Inge leaves behind her two loved daughters, Angela Strach-Gotthardt (Jeffrey A. Gotthardt) and Barbarann Strach, along with her grandchildren, Alexxa Tiana Gotthardt (Richard Masland) and Garren Xavier Gotthardt (Nicole Leighton).

Inge was born and raised in an idyllic childhood setting in and around Stuttgart, Germany. Days were spent playing with her favorite cousin Helga, picking mirabellen, climbing ladders for apples, swimming in the river, hunting mushrooms with her Oma, and “helping” the neighborhood baker in exchange for carrying home her favorite Brezeln (pretzels). Sadly, this was interrupted when the war broke out, forcing Inge and her family to move many times as their homes were bombed. Along with so many other children of the war, Inge was eventually evacuated to the countryside to live with relatives and, there, was able to continue her education. She was a serious student who loved mathematics, French, and English (a sign of her future, perhaps); she spent after-school hours rowing and seeking out any body of water where she could swim.

After the war, Inge settled back in Stuttgart as a teenager, where the beauty of her long, flowing hair and kind, long-lashed eyes was matched by her smarts and unflappable inner strength. She became a photo technician, a job that balanced her exactitude and creativity. It was there where she met her husband, Arthur, an intrepid photographer and professional golfer who whisked her away to dance halls in the sidecar of his motorcycle. As Germany was rebuilding, they decided to move to the United States for a better life and future for the children they hoped to have. Arthur flew and Inge followed by ship, first settling in Augusta, Georgia and then in Akron, Ohio, where they went on to have four children. 

Inge was a strong, loving mother who insisted on raising her children bilingual and whose deep, thoughtful pragmatism perfectly balanced the creativity of her husband. In addition to being a devoted mother, she was a real estate agent in Akron and still owns the olive brown suede skirt suit she bought with money from the first home she sold. She loved dogs and birds, especially cardinals (a true Ohioan), and always kept a birding guide by the kitchen window. In her 50s, she became a grandmother to Alexxa and Garren, who were her favorite people on Earth—she was so proud of them for their kindness, sincerity, ethics, and senses of humor.

Before her death, Inge was ill for about one year and Inge and her family wish to thank the Cleveland Clinic for its kind and diligent care. Inge especially wants to thank the dining staff, nurses, and nursing aides who have been attentive and caring for the thirteen years she has lived at Laurel Lake Retirement Community. 

Funeral arrangements are being made by Hennessy-Bagnoli-Moore Funeral Home on North Hill in Akron, OH. Visiting hours will be held on July 30th, 2022 at 936 N. Main St. Akron, OH 44310 from 3:00 to 5:00 PM. Friends are invited to gather afterward at Papa Joe’s Restaurant from 5:30 PM on, at 1561 Akron-Peninsula Rd. Akron, OH 44313

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Inge’s name to The Humane Society of Summit County https://www.summithumane.org/,  Haven of Rest Ministries https://havenofrest.org/  or Children of War/Ukraine https://www.unicef.org/ukraine/en