Elizabeth Reuschlein

Reuschlein, Elizabeth G.

Madison: Elizabeth (Beth) Ginevra Reuschlein, who worked tirelessly in retirement for the cause of the mentally ill, died Oct. 4, 2016, in Madison. She was 94 years old.

Born in Huntington, W. Va. to George L. and Elva I. Young Starr on Sept. 25, 1922, she grew up in Hubball, Huntington and Charleston, W. Va. A bright and self-sufficient 20-year-old graduate of Marshall University, she missed out on becoming a WAVE during World War II only by failing the eye exam. She took a job with DuPont in Cincinnati, supervising ammunition production lines but often conflicted by the ethics of her occupation and her consummate duty to her country in wartime. At DuPont she met her husband, Clifford Reuschlein. They married on Feb. 25, 1944, in Washington State, where Clifford had been transferred to Hanford Engineer Works near Richland, Wash., and where she also worked in personnel. While the purpose of Hanford was kept a secret from employees, a tour of the site led her to suspect the development of a large explosive. Her suspicion was confirmed when Hanford's role in The Manhattan Project became clear: on Aug. 9, 1945, the plutonium bomb Fat Man was dropped on Nagasaki, Japan.

Full of adventure and independence, she travelled widely in the U.S. by train to be with Clifford when he docked at ports during his wartime naval duty. They raised their family in Madison and retired to El Paso, Texas, returning to Madison in 2005.

She and her husband were among the first to join the fledgling National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI), begun in Madison in 1979. In 1985 they began an El Paso chapter (EPAMI). Together they helped establish a drop-in center for those with mental illness and their families. She was the first editor of the EPAMI newsletter, formed to promote awareness and rally support for better state legislation. She was devoted to researching available new treatments, caring for those with mental illness, and working with and comforting their families.

She was curious about everything and enjoyed learning all her life. She never stopped encouraging the further education of her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, whom she loved so dearly. Her legacy is her strong belief in education as the foundation of self-reliance and success.

She is preceded by her parents, a brother, Virgil L. Starr, her husband, and a daughter, Nancy L. Reuschlein. She is survived by three daughters - Cathy (Bill) Taylor, Columbus, Ohio; Carole (Mike) Ecker, Black Earth, Wis.; and Connie Reuschlein (Dan Gaytan), El Paso - and two sons: C. Randy (Mary) Reuschlein, Stoughton, Wis.; and Tom Reuschlein, Colorado Springs, Col. She is also survived by 10 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.

A memorial celebration life will take place at 1:00 pm on Saturday, October 8, 2016 at Oakwood West University Woods Resurrection Chapel, 6205 Mineral Point Road, Madison, 53705. A private family funeral and burial will be held. . The family requests memorials be made to the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, P. O. Box 62596, Baltimore, MD, 21264, or nami.org/give. Please share your memories of Elizabeth.

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