Obituary of Edwina H. Zengerle
Edwina H. “Winnie” Zengerle, 1931-2022
Proud Nurse and Tireless Volunteer
Edwina H. Zengerle of North Plainfield, N.J., passed away peacefully at the Regency Heritage Nursing and Rehab Center in Somerset, N.J. on Nov. 11, 2022. Winnie, who would have turned 91 on Nov. 15, had Alzheimer’s disease.
A retired nurse, Winnie – or “Win” - was a devoted and beloved mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, friend, and tireless volunteer.
She is survived by son Walter Henry Zengerle III and wife, Marla Lynch, of Dedham, Mass.; daughter Susan Zengerle and husband, Lawrence Washington, of Rockville, Md., daughter Patricia Zengerle and husband, Dean Cretsinger, of McLean, Va., son William Zengerle and wife, Edna Ramin Zengerle, of Bridgewater, N.J., son John Zengerle, of Dunellen, N.J., sisters Emma Marie “Mickey” Wynne, of Short Hills, N.J., and Ann Heuer, of Davis, Calif. as well as six grandchildren, nieces, nephews, great-nieces, great-nephews and many loving friends.
She was predeceased by her husband of 42 years, Walter Henry Zengerle Jr., and oldest sister Aline Heuer.
Raised in Irvington, N.J., as the youngest of William and Emma Heuer’s daughters, Winnie was extremely close to her three older sisters, who affectionately called themselves “the Heuer girls” throughout their lives. A graduate of Irvington High School, the Presbyterian Hospital School of Nursing (later Bloomfield College), and Rutgers University, she had a proud career as a registered nurse, setting an example of hard work and professionalism. Winnie made friends at nursing school that she kept for decades.
Winnie worked as a nurse manager for New Jersey Rehabilitation in East Orange, Hospitality Care Center in Newark, the Baptist Home in Newark, and Woodlands Care Center in Plainfield, N.J. She was a director of nursing, nurse educator, and infection control director.
Outside of work, while raising five children, Winnie was always a devoted volunteer. Here are just a few highlights: creating an elementary school program to use food to teach about different cultures; leading Girl Scout and Cub Scout troops; serving as president of her nursing school alumni association; helping settle a refugee family from Pakistan, and volunteering at her church’s fund-raising thrift shop, while also serving on the vestry.
She loved to travel and music, with years of subscriptions to the Metropolitan Opera and New Jersey Symphony and trips throughout the United States and Europe. She was an adventurous cook – her children thought everyone had sweet and sour pork, Yorkshire pudding, and sauerbraten in the dinner rotation – and an avid baker.
A Memorial Service will be held on Saturday, December 3, 2022, at 11:00 a.m. at the Church of the Holy Cross, 40 Mercer Ave., North Plainfield, N.J., 07060.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to:
Grace’s Kitchen, Plainfield Community Outreach
600 Cleveland Avenue
Plainfield, NJ 07060
