Obituary of Anneliese "Anna" Rostock

Anneliese “Anna” (and her late twin sister Inga) was born in Rudolstadt, Germany to the late Dr. Fritz and Ruth (née Rausch) Rostock. She was also predeceased by her brother Hans of Maxville.

Anneliese leaves behind her niece Anne and family in Germany and her close friends Cairine and Jim Cybulski.

Anneliese was very talented and enjoyed many activities. At 16 she wrote a children’s book which was published at the publishing house where her mother worked. Anna was a member of the Fencing Club, the Riding Club and the Golf Club. She was also musical, playing the accordion and loved travelling.

Anneliese was always feisty and as Russians occupied East Germany after WWII, her parents worried for her.

She married Hans Christian Skobul. They divorced a short time later, never having had any children.

Anneliese left Germany in the 70s and settled in Montreal. She worked at BASF Canada as an Administrative Assistant. She then moved to Maxville where she lived with her brother Hans until his death.

She later moved on to Golden Lake where she worked for some time with the Christinks at Gerber’s Nursery and enjoyed the Germanica Club.

She bought the old school at the corner of Ruby and Zadow where she remained until moving to Long Term Care at the Grove in Arnprior.

Anna had neither a television nor radio. She became extremely hard of hearing which suited her well as she enjoyed her own company and solitude for the most part. Anneliese was incredibly gifted at needlepoint and knitting. She gifted her handwork to many. She would read a book while knitting or crocheting, whizzing through books at incredible speed. Luckily the Eganville and Arnprior libraries had many of the series that fascinated her. During the Covid lockdown, friends and neighbours happily banded together to provide her with sufficient reading material and puzzles.

Anna loved animals, especially cats. The loss of her beloved TomTom and Blackie allowed her to finally consider her last move to the Grove.

Anneliese was witty and slightly unfiltered in her comments. She was a deeply caring person despite her outwardly standoffish persona.

As Anna transitioned to a wheelchair, she loved having a bicycle bell to let staff know she wanted to be pushed and she carried Werther’s candies as “taxi fare”.  When another resident unknowingly was scaring her with his wandering and wanted to help her shaking her wheelchair, her new whistle was her secret security weapon.

The staff at the Grove were so caring to Anna, in providing the personal care and attention allowing Anna to finally feel truly at home, especially in those last difficult months.

Rest easy now Anna.

If you would like to leave a donation in Anna's memory, please consider the Arnprior and District Humane Society or the Grove Nursing Home.