Obituary for Gertrude (Gerty) Strong Neef -- Dec. 16, 1930-Nov. 15, 2012
The Independent [Livermore, CA], Nov 22, 2012, with photo 

 "Resident of Livermore. Gertrude was born to Ortha and Charlotte Strong in Ithaca, New York. She was an only child and spent her youth on a farm in the environs of Cornell University, which she attended in the College of Home Economics. There she earned both her Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees. She was very involved in 4-H and as a college student won awards in frozen foods. She met her future husband on a “blind date” to a fraternity formal dance. Bill says that the moment he laid eyes on her he knew she was the woman he could marry. They wed in 1952, living in Speedway, Indiana while Bill engineered aircraft jet engines.
  She was the mother of James, an engineer in California’s Silicon Valley, Steven, an architectural engineer in Livermore, CA, and Janet, licensed teaching pastor in Scottsdale, AZ. She was deeply involved in the care and education of her children and supported their extracurricular activities as Boy Scout den mother, Girl Scout Leader and Little League Baseball scorekeeper.
  As a leader of the Presbyterian youth group she enjoyed supervising their many activities, too. She was a member of the Del Valle Home Economists and was very skilled in the art of embroidery, enjoying the weekly meetings of a long-running stitchery group. She also was enamored of miniatures, each year spending days to set up a Dept. 56 Christmas Village display for the residents of Heritage Estates. A great fan of baseball, she was extremely knowledgeable about the game and the players for the A’s, the Giants, and the AZ Diamondbacks.
  Gerty was a world traveler and appreciated all the cultures she encountered. Travels included Africa, China, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, French Polynesia, Central and South America, and most of Europe. She left a legacy of photos and commentary of all of her trips. In her appreciation of different world cultures, she was an exchange mother to Luki, Lilian and Haroldo from Quezaltenango, Guatemala and Stefen from Bremen, Germany.
  Gertrude is survived by her husband, Bill Neef, and her three children: Jim Neef (Paula), Steve Neef (Ludy), and Janet Neef Morel (Rob), eight grandchildren and three great grandchildren, all of whom delighted her. All who knew Gerty found her to be friendly, intelligent, and full of energy and life. She has been regarded by many to have been the perfect wife and mother.
  Family and friends are invited to attend a memorial service on November 28, 3:00 pm, First Presbyterian Church, 2020 Fifth Street, Livermore, CA 94550."