Irmke Schoebel

February 22, 1941 — October 25, 2023

Irmke was born in Poland and spent her childhood and early adult years in Germany until she came to the United States by herself to learn English. She spent time in New York before she eventually settled in San Francisco, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in nursing and had a career in nursing administration in the Bay Area. During that time, she was very active in skiing, hiking, and camping, but once she discovered fly fishing, that became her joy. She joined the Golden West Women Flyfishers in 1993 and was Membership Chair for many years. She made many lasting friendships with the women of GWWF on trips all over Northern California.

Upon discovering the area around the North Fork of the Yuba, she retired to Sierra City, where she purchased an amusingly dilapidated trailer on a piece of property near Haypress Creek and proceeded to build a beautiful house. It was there that she and partner Glenn Deibler went on to host many GWWF outings, complete with barbecue and detailed fishing advice.

Irmke wore a gold nugget pendant, her souvenir of the very active mining culture in the area. While living in Sierra City, Irmke and Glenn befriended many people and used their love of cooking to host many gatherings at their home.

As time went by, Irmke fished less and started volunteering more in Sierra County community organizations, and quilting became her new passion. She won many awards with her stunning quilts, one of which was donated to the historical society by her family after her passing and will be on display at the Kentucky Mine. She belonged to the Mountain Star Quilters and collaborated with them to sew many of the club quilts that were raffled for high school scholarships. She also belonged to the Grass Valley Quilt Guild, where she made many friends and hosted them at her home. She made many baby quilts for the local Angel Wings program, where quilts are donated to families with new babies. Irmke volunteered much of her time doing the accounting at the Sierra City Library and the Western Sierra Residential Center and was a valuable member of the Friends of the Library Group.

This amazing woman was independent, determined, funny, and adventurous, with a very giving spirit. She will be missed. She is survived by her sister, her two nephews, and their families in Germany.