Natalie Irene Rabenstein

Natalie Irene Rabenstein, 94, of Gaithersburg passed away Tuesday, June 6, 2023. Visitation will be from 10:00 am to 12:00 on June 14, 2023 at the Barber Funeral Home in Laytonsville, MD. Interment will follow at All Souls Cemetery, Germantown.  It is respectfully requested that in lieu of flowers, memorials in Natalie’s honor be sent to Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, 405 Ridge Ave, East Pittsburgh, Pa 15112.

Natalie was born July 1928 in Pitcairn, Pennsylvania to Edwin “Howard” and Elsie Edge and graduated from Wilkinsburg High School in Pa.  As a young adult she enjoyed going to the Ardmore Skating Rink where she met her husband, Wilber Rabenstein. They were happily married from 1948 until Wilber’s death in 1969.

For most of her life, Natalie lived in the Pittsburgh, Pa area, with a few years in Phoenix, Arizona.  She lived independently until age 93. She moved to Maryland to live with her daughter Barbara in March 2022.

Her biggest joy was talking to her friends, participating in church activities, and raising her children. Natalie was an active member of Bethany Lutheran Church, where she was church secretary, Sunday School teacher, Cub Scout pack leader and volunteered for the Youth Drop-in Center. After she transferred to Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, she was a greeter, member of the Senior group and served on committees.   Although she was almost blind, deaf and confined to a wheelchair she volunteered for Meals on Wheels and even in the last few days prior to her death, she was packing school supplies for Samaritan’s Purse Operation Christmas Child.

She enjoyed camping, playing games with her family, solving crosswords, reading, traveling and helping people wherever possible.

She is survived by daughter and son-in-law Barbara and Dean Illinger of Gaithersburg, MD, son and daughter-in-law Ken and Gwen Rabenstein of Severna Park, MD. She is also survived by four grandchildren; Anastasia and Joshua Illinger; and Melinda and William Rabenstein.

Natalie is preceded in death by her parents, husband Wilber, brothers Edwin and Donald Edge, and her children Katherine and Wilber.

Natalie was a loving mother, and adoring grandmother who will be greatly missed.

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