Margot Trager, proud of German heritage
Margot Trager, formerly of Wilmington, passed away Saturday, Jan. 14, 2023. She was born April 17, 1931, in West Germany, to her mother, Amalie Bregenzer and father, Heinrich Scheidt in a then-tiny town outside Frankfort, called Eckartshausen. She and her family eventually made their way to the U.S. following the end of WW II. She met Richard Trager in his family’s German delicatessen, Dautel’s, in Elsmere, and in March of 1955, they were married.
Margot was a gifted seamstress, loved to cook and bake, and was very creative and artistic. And gardening! Wow, did she have a gift for landscaping! The yard, front and back, was beautifully kept with an array of flowers and flowering bushes and trees. She enjoyed working in flower shops through the years, and made many arrangements, wreaths and ornaments for loved ones as well as for various bazaars. She was a nurturer by nature, served many years as a Sunday school teacher for 4- and 5-year-olds in Zion Lutheran Church in Wilmington, and was a caregiver and nanny to several little ones both in Germany and in the U.S. She had a sweet voice and could be heard humming to the German music she’d play while working at home or driving in the car.
She was preceded in death by her parents. Margot is survived by her loving husband of 67 years, Richard Trager; her daughter, Christel Grandell and her husband Paul of Frankford, and son, Juergen Trager and his wife Jennifer of Dagsboro; her three grandchildren, Eric Rodriguez, Ryan Trager and Christina Trager; and two great-grandchildren, Braelyn Trager and Elijah Rodriguez. She is also survived by her beloved sisters, Ingeborg Keith of Newark, Elke Kelley of Parma, Ohio, and Mechthild Grossman of Greenwich, R.I.
She and Richard researched and learned the many traditional folk and schuhplattler dances and later started the Enzian Volkstanzgrupe, 54-plus years ago, spending many of their years at the Delaware Saengerbund in Ogletown, dancing and teaching others, as well as participating and serving in many functions held there in the German tradition. In their later years, they moved to Sussex County to be closer to their children, and often attended Rock of Ages and Feed My Sheep happenings and Mariners Bethel UMC.
A celebration of life will be held at 11 a.m., Saturday, Jan. 28, at Melson’s Funeral Home in Ocean View, with visitation beginning at 10 a.m. Interment will be held at 10 a.m., Monday, Jan. 30, at Veterans Memorial Cemetery, 2465 Chesapeake City Road, Bear.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Margot’s name to Delaware Saengerbund, 49 Salem Church Rd., Newark, DE 19713, memo line to reflect Culture Committee/Walsee Program, where youth are educated in the German language, traditions, culture and music.
Online condolences may be sent by visiting melsonfuneralservices.com.
