Obituary of Dagmar Margarete Anna Borkowitz

Obituary Dagmar Margarete Anne Borkowitz, 94, was born November 26, 1927 in Vienau, Germany and gently passed on to Heaven February 4, 2022 in Fort Collins, CO. As her final chapter on earth has now closed, she leaves behind her son, Bernard Borkowitz (Cynthia), daughter Ingrid Mitts (Jim), grandson Kyle Mitts (Carol), great-granddaughters Nora and Emma Mitts, grandson Ryan Mitts, granddaughter Kenzie Reich (Devin), great-granddaughter Remi Reich. Those meeting her at Heaven’s gate are her cherished husband of 62 years, A. B. “Gus” Borkowitz, her great grandson, Everett Reich, her parents and siblings. In her own words: Born to Johanna and Heinrich Detloff von Kalben, my parents and sister, Helga, lived in a little house in Vienau in the Altmark. In the next years two little brothers followed. There was only one house between ours and the forest and I will forever connect a lot of memories with the smell of pine trees. When I was 6 years old my father was elected County Commissioner (Landrat) in Stendal. The house in Stendal had ample room for our family and I will never forget our mother on the day of moving, running from room to room turning on electric lights as we did not have that luxury before. Our little sister Gudrun was born here. In Stendal we had a harmonious and happy childhood with lots of music, arts and crafts and when the time came even a brand-new high school. Then, we very knowingly observed the beginning of WWII. Our father was responsible for all the rationing cards for his district so we knew things were not going to go smoothly. My father was also in the Army reserves and quickly had to leave to the battlefield. My mother, alone, had to care for the five of us—all between the ages of 5 and 13. Around the time I was 16 my father was transferred to Ansbach as Governor of Middle and Upper Franconia. It was a time of fear –our high school being destroyed by bombs is a horrible memory of lost friends. Uncertainty was the only constant. My father had to return to the battlefield leaving my mother to again care for us. At the end of the war US troops moved into Ansbach. Our house was the first they occupied. At that time my sister Helga and I were working in Neuendettelsau as Red Cross helpers. My 2 brothers were in the county and our mother, aunt, and little sister sat at the curb with their hastily packed personal things not knowing where to go. Our father was a prisoner of war. Somehow my mother, aunt and 9 year old little sister survived 5 moves within that year; at the end they found a small apartment in Oberaltenbernheim – above a barn 20 km from the nearest train station and another 40km to Ansbach. In early 1946, my father had returned from the prisoner of war camp without his pension and his money in an east German bank was no longer available to us—we were broke. We all had the intention of finishing High school. Helga, the eldest, had to go back to Stendal to attend a program that was not available in Ansbach. The rest of us boarded with a family in Ansbach and I commuted from Oberaltenbernheim to finish high school. We did any kind of work to put food on the table. 2 Following my graduation from high school, I was accepted into the medical school in Würzburg. Currency reform was then imposed and without money my dreams quickly vanished. My only other option was to stay with my mother in Oberaltenbernheim. We then started a business making dolls which helped make ends meet. I then was able to get a job with a mail order house in Fuerth, the “Quelle” --working there until I emigrated to the U.S. in 1954. My brothers, Reimar and Merse now working in Ansbach, introduced me to their friend Gus. We began seeing each other more often until he left for the U.S in 1952. A lot of letters followed for 2 years until I could finally join him. We were married in Pueblo in November 1954. In 1954, jobs were hard to find in town as CF&I was not very busy. I got acquainted with Pueblo and the surrounding areas, and we built our first house in 1955. Shortly thereafter, we had our first child, Ingrid, and a few years later our second child, Bernard. With children I had plenty to do; however, wanted to get back into the workforce. I was able to get temporary clerical work at CF& I Steel in the Industrial Engineering Department and continued there, off and on, until the steel mill started to downsize. During those years I also took every kind of class at the Pueblo Community College, shorthand, lots of cooking and sewing classes and whatever would be good for my family. Later, I found a job at Waldenbooks, which I thoroughly enjoyed. In the community I served with the Girl Scouts, Parkview Blue Ladies, Assistance League, for many years assisted people with their taxes through the VITA Program and of course the Pueblo German Club. Being a charter member of the Pueblo German Club gave me a wonderful opportunity to meet more people from our homeland. An experience filled with memories I will cherish forever. In 2002, we moved to Fort Collins to be closer to our daughter Ingrid Mitts, her husband Jim and our three wonderful grandchildren. I enjoyed our grandchildren and great grandchildren, they truly are the light of my life. Services Graveside Service Friday February 11, 2022 2:00 PM Grandview Cemetery 1900 West Mountain Avenue Fort Collins, CO 80521