Bertram, Margaret Ann (nee Weilbacher) died peacefully at Evelyn House on Thursday, December 20, 2018 at the age of 95. Beloved wife of the late husband Robert “Bud” W. Bertram; loving mother of Diane Rau, Bob Bertram, Ellen Bertram, Cathy (Dennis) Crowe, Gene (Paula) Bertram, loving grandmother of Tom Rau, Susan (Bryan) Donnelly, Michael (Tracy) Crowe, David (JoVanna) Crowe, Christina Crowe; loving great-grandma of Melanie Rau, Hanna Donnelly, Jonah, Myra, Hazel, and Graham Crowe. Dearest sister of Jeannette (Leonard) Meyer and the late Mardell (Roy) Dietsch, Joann (Joe) Roden, and Eugene “Buddy” Weilbacher. Dear Aunt, Great-Aunt, cousin, neighbor and friend to many.
If you’d ask her family and friends what 5 things remind them of Margaret, they’d probably provide you with the following list:
- Intricate piano pieces
- The tiny print of the Wall Street Journal
- A well-worn bingo dauber
- Handwritten cards with thoughtful newspaper clippings
- A classic ivory rosary
These five items can’t sum up the life of such a fantastic woman but they tell the story of a unique path and a life well-lived.
Growing up in Columbia, Illinois, as the oldest of 5 siblings, Margaret studied piano, developed her sewing skills, and excelled in math at school. While she enjoyed intricate piano pieces, she disliked playing in front of others. Those lucky enough to hear her tickle the ivories would be surprised to know that she once played on radio station WTMB in East St. Louis in the 7th or 8th grade.
After graduating high school, her father convinced her to study accounting at St. Louis University. As one of the few women in the department in the early 1940s, she quickly learned that the unwelcome environment wouldn’t work for her. Against her father’s wishes, she quit college while he was away on a business trip and got a job as an auditor for Pet Milk. Since she had a job, her father couldn’t make her quit and go back to school when he got back home! Even though she never finished a degree, her clear ability to outsmart systems and her innate skills with numbers stuck with her for life. She went on to handle the books for her future husband’s pharmacy, serve as an auditor for a Las Vegas Casino, and manage her stock portfolio and investments up until the last weeks of her life. Even as her eyesight weakened, family members would still find her poring over the tiny font in the WSJ every day with the use of a machine from the Society of the Blind and Visually Impaired.
Margaret met Bud in Columbia and married him in 1944 – she would proudly tell her grandchildren how she made her own wedding dress and those for her bridesmaids. Her sewing and organization skills would come in handy as she raised 5 children, managed the household, helped her husband manage his business finances, and served as an active parishioner of St. Joan of Arc Parish.
In 1976, she and her husband Bud, moved to Las Vegas, Nevada. Although he passed away less than 2 years later, she stayed and worked for a few years as an auditor for Silver City Casino. She was on the board of her condo complex for many years, often talking about it as another full time job. With her local friends and visiting family and friends, she was an avid keno player and spent many an hour at the bingo halls. She loved having a life in Vegas for 35 years and being able to come home to St. Louis at least twice a year.
After being diagnosed with COPD in 2007, she had to start using oxygen full time. She often would joke about having her ‘leash’ following her around her condo but she never let it stop her from flying back and forth between Vegas and St. Louis, enjoying the warmth of the desert and the holidays in Missouri, despite the chill.
In 2010 a cancer battle brought her back to St. Louis where she amazed doctors at her ability to tackle chemo/radiation and everything else the disease threw at her. She beat the cancer and continued to live independently in her new apartment until she was hospitalized in early December with pneumonia. Always an ardent card & letter writer (usually complete with newspaper clippings containing notes about why the article made her think of you), she got her Christmas cards out and presents ready before passing peacefully at Evelyn’s House (BJC Hospice).
Margaret prayed the rosary most every day of her adult life and one of her favorite church songs is Hail Mary, Gentle Woman. The refrain lyrics describe her as well as the Blessed Mother Mary.
“Gentle woman, quiet light
Morning star, so strong and bright
Gentle mother, peaceful dove,
Teach us wisdom, teach us love.”
Please consider celebrating her life with us at Kutis Funeral Home at 10151 Gravois on Wednesday, December 26, 2018 from 5-8 pm, and at 9 am Mass at St Joan of Arc Catholic Church at 5801 Pernod Ave. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the St Louis Society for the Blind and Visually Impaired or St. Joan of Arc Catholic Church.