Julie Roberts Hoeflinger

Julie Roberts Hoeflinger passed away peacefully on April 15, 2018, in Phoenix, AZ.

Born Julie Tucker Roberts on July 13, 1940, in Eugene, Oregon, she was the eldest child of Elliott Phirman Roberts and Dora Sue Abraham. She spent much of her childhood in Portland, Oregon, and Knoxville, Tennessee, before moving to Washington, DC, as a teenager. It was there that she met George Stewart Rinehart, whom she married in 1958. As George pursued his doctoral and post-doctoral education, the couple lived in Ohio, California, and New York City before settling in Ithaca, NY, where George took a faculty position at Cornell University. Their son, Matthew, was born in 1963 in New York City; their daughters, Susannah and Lucy, were born in Ithaca in 1965 and 1968, respectively. The family spent sabbaticals in England and France, where Julie honed her excellent cooking skills. Sadly, George died in an automobile accident in Ithaca in 1972.

Julie met Frederick Hoeflinger in Ithaca in 1973, and when Julie decided to pursue her undergraduate degree (followed by graduate studies) at Boston University in 1975, the family moved to Newton, MA, where they lived for the next 11 years. After completing her education, Julie worked as an administrative assistant at John Hancock and Liberty Mutual insurance companies. Julie and Fred officially married in 1986. After leaving Newton, they lived in Dorchester, MA; Charlottesville, VA; and Takoma Park, MD, their home at the time of Julie's death.

Julie was the most intellectually curious of people - a voracious reader and solver of maddeningly difficult crossword puzzles who knew at least something about any subject, however arcane. She was never without at least one book and had an amazing capacity to remember what she had read. She instilled in her children (and thereby in her grandchildren) an abiding curiosity about the world. Julie loved to travel; her destinations included multiple spots throughout Europe, as well as South America (making it to the tip of Antarctica) and Alaska. She particularly enjoyed visiting museums, but also appreciated historical monuments, arts, culture, food, wine, and coffee on her travels. Her favorite cities were Istanbul, Florence, and Venice.

Julie was a lover of music with eclectic tastes. She played the clarinet as a teenager, and George's homemade LP storage / turntable / stereo stand had pride of place in her home for decades. Her children fondly remember the Beatles, Aretha Franklin, Mose Allison, the Band, and select Broadway musicals (West Side Story, Fiddler on the Roof) mixing in with bluegrass, folk, and classical (Schubert, Mozart's Clarinet Concerto, Bartok quartets) as they grew up.

Julie was committed to her community, in particular supporting the democratic process through her early involvement in the League of Women Voters and her later volunteering as a Maryland state election judge. Julie taught her children and grandchildren the importance of charitable giving, often including donations in their names among their Christmas gifts.

Julie faced more than her share of health challenges, including epilepsy diagnosed in young adulthood, and a benign brain tumor (meningioma) diagnosed at age 70. Surgery to remove the tumor left Julie partially disabled, relying on a wheelchair and cane. Undaunted, she continued to travel, and it was on her travels--specifically in Phoenix, where she was visiting her son--that she contracted flu and pneumonia in February of 2018. With her lungs already compromised by COPD, this double diagnosis put her in a precarious position. Her husband and son (and his family) attended her tirelessly for 7 weeks in and out of hospitals and rehabilitation facilities, as her condition improved and worsened and improved again. Ultimately, her lung function took a surprisingly sudden turn for the worse, and her daughters and her sister Kate (with her partner Dale) rushed to her side. She passed away peacefully in hospice, attended by those who loved her.

Julie is survived by her husband, Fred; her children, Matthew (and wife Vicky) Rinehart, Susannah (and husband David) Stucky, and Lucy (and husband Dan) Robin; her grandchildren, Madison Rinehart, Gillian Rinehart, Jacob Stucky, Alina Robin, Matthew Robin, and Kaya Robin; her sisters, Anne Reeves, Ellen Roberts, and Kate Harps; and many other dear family members and friends. Her family extends special thanks to Hazel Daniel, excellent friend and home health aide, for her constant support extending across generations.

Suggested organizations for donations in Julie's honor include the International Rescue Committee (rescue.org) and Hospice of the Valley (hov.org).

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