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Cecile Metzger Obituary

Cecile Lee Metzger, 98, beloved wife of 56 years to the late Beryl G. Metzger, died on April 21 from complications of pneumonia. Known throughout her life as "Teenie," Cecile was born and raised along with her older sister, the late Marian Edelstein, on Woodlawn Avenue in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. Teenie's parents were a study in contrasts: her mother, the cultured and intrepid Jennie F. Levi, came from the prominent Franks family and lived to be 92, while her father, Leo, was a dapper, self-made attorney, and died suddenly of peritonitis at the age of 37, when Teenie was seven years old.

Educated first at the University of Chicago Laboratory School, and then at Northwestern University, Teenie was a slim and elegant beauty who married Beryl G. Metzger in 1941 on the eve of World War II. "Buddy," as he was called, was a legendary salesman in the materials handling industry who eventually became the President of Sturdi-Bilt and a high-ranking executive with Unarco Industries before passing away of congestive heart failure in 1998, at 82.

Although they lived in several different cities as a young couple, they soon returned to Teenie's adored Chicago, settling on the North Shore to raise their family. Among their myriad friends in the suburban world of Highland Park, Teenie and Buddy were a colorful and sought-after pair. Even at mid-life, Teenie could still take over a room with her elegant entrances, her stunning clothes, and her striking self-confidence. She cultivated this grace by studying ballet as a teenager, and continued to take dance classes on and off into her 80's. She was a companionable golfer and an expert card-player, adept at every game from canasta to gin rummy to bridge. She did not like to lose, and she rarely did. Family and friends alike were drawn to her fighting spirit, her welcoming kindness, and her winning sense of humor.

Although she spent her later years pushing through a variety of surgeries and ailments, Teenie was healthy and remarkably energetic for most of her life. She was active in her community, raising money part-time for Brandeis University and for the MothersAid Gift Shop. A lifelong and enthusiastic reader, Teenie continued to devour large-print and eventually audiobooks as her vision began to decline. She also nurtured a passion for poems, witticisms, wordplay, and crossword puzzles, and could recite from memory poetry she first learned at University High.

But, most of all, Teenie was a devoted mother, daughter, wife, sister, and grandmother, for whom family was at the center of her existence, and her engagement in their lives helped her to retain her remarkable resilience and optimism. She is survived by her daughter, Loren J. Metzger-Marcus (Michael Marcus) of Providence, Rhode Island; her two sons, Donald L. Metzger (Susan Anderson) of Chicago, and Robert A. Metzger (Kimberly Monda) of Santa Barbara, California; five grandchildren, Olivia (Alexander Dennis),Harrison, Alexander Marcus, Samuel, and Leo; and three great-grandchildren.

Published by Chicago Tribune on May 24, 2020.
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