Aase Marie (Arnold) Loescher

Aase Arnold Loescher, 87, passed away on Nov. 24, 2015 after a brief illness. She was born in Brooklyn, New York to Valborg Stengel Arnold and Oscar Arnold in Brooklyn, NY where her father was an engineer. She spent much of her early childhood in Norway, moved back to the U.S. during her elementary years, and continued to visit her relatives in Norway throughout her life. She greatly loved her two nations: the U.S.A. for her "wonderful life" and Norway for her "beloved heritage". Following her 1950 graduation from Swarthmore College with a bachelor's degree in economics, she received a Fulbright Scholarship and studied in Bergen, Norway. Following her travels, she worked as an intelligence analyst for the federal government in Washington D.C. In the summer of 1953 she met fellow Swarthmore alum Samuel Loescher, a professor of economics at Indiana University. They married that November and she moved to Bloomington where she resided for the rest of her life. She worked for the IU Press until starting a family. Aase and Sam had three children and six grandchildren, all of whom will greatly miss Aase's positive spirit, thoughtful wisdom, endless encouragement, and social conscience. Aase felt called to serve. Second only to her family, Aase was committed to her community and to promoting peace. She believed that government, NGO's, and businesses should meet the needs of the people. To that end, she was an active member of the local chapters of the following organizations: League of Women Voters (former officer and 50+-year member); Common Cause of Indiana (member of the statewide board); Consumer Funeral Alliance; and Monroe County United Ministries (board member). She also served as executive director of the Community Service Council, and advocated for the needs of several different children as a CASA volunteer. Aase was an avid peace activist and described by others in Bloomington as "the voice of peace for our community for many years". Although preferring to stay out of the limelight, she was a faithful presence at peace rallies throughout South Central Indiana. Aase was active in the local and state chapters of a number of peace-related organizations beginning in the 1980's. She participated in the Ground Zero campaign, raising awareness of the nuclear war threat. She was a former chairman of Bloomington's Congregations for Peace (CPax) and served as treasurer for Bloomington's Peace Action Coalition (BPAC). She was active in the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) and faithfully attended monthly Hour For Peace gatherings up until her death. In 2009 Monroe County Church Women United awarded her their first Human Rights Award for how she lived out her "unwavering belief in the importance of peace". Aase is survived by daughter Randi Stocker (Richard) of Franklin, IN, son Rolf Loescher (Donna Darcy), of Columbus, IN, daughter Siri Loescher of Bloomington, IN, and grandchildren Christopher Stocker (Katie) of Minneapolis, MN, Rebecca Stocker of Boston, MA, Justin Loescher of Houston, TX, Corey Loescher of West Lafayette, IN, Timo Loescher of Carmel, IN, and Sam Loescher of Laramie, WY. A service celebrating her life will be held on Saturday, December 12 at 10:30 am, at First United Church in Bloomington, Indiana. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Monroe County United Ministries (http://mcum.org/support/ 827 West 14th Court, Bloomington, IN 47404) or Women's International League of Peace and Freedom (http://wilpf.org 777 UN Plaza, 6th Floor, New York, NY 10017). And non-monetary donations may be made to Opportunity House (http://mcum.org/opportunityhouse/ 907 W. 11th Street, Bloomington, IN). Arrangements have been entrusted to Allen Funeral Home and Crematory, 4155 S. Old State Road 37. The family requests that memories of Aase be posted at www.allenfuneralhome.org

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Aase Marie (Arnold) Loescher

January 31, 1928 - November 24, 2015