Obituary of Renate Praksta

War-time Berlin was no place for children.

For a young girl like Renate Lemke, it was a city of ruins, of living in cellars, of bombs and artillery, cold and hunger.

Life meant simply staying alive, and she and her family survived.

Years later in Munich, where her family moved after the war, Renate met an American soldier, John Praksta, at a pre-lenten fasching ball. She liked his funny party hat.

The two hit it off and began seeing each other, to the strong disapproval of her friends, who found nothing to like in a despised "Ami."

There were bicycle trips through the Alps, Paris in the spring, Venice in the summer, and a coronation in London. The London experience extended for almost two years and included a period for Renate as an au pair for a baronet''s family.

She and John, who was in London as a student, began talking of the future. Come to America, he suggested, and if she liked it, they would marry.

She came to America. She liked it. And they were married. It was a marriage that would last more than 54 years.

They settled in suburban Oreland, and Renate Praksta became part of the larger community.

She joined the Art Goes to School teaching program in Philadelphia and volunteered at the Art Museum. She became a member of the Athenaeum and joined the International Women''s Club of Philadelphia. She worked for many years in Chestnut Hill, at art galleries and Robertsons''s Flowers.

She did pottery at the Cheltenham Art Center and watercolor at the Norristown Regional Art League. Her home housed an exotic glass and orchid collection and her garden became a showplace.

The two traveled widely, from Boise (Idaho) to Budapest (Hungary) and many places in between. There were summer days down the shore, fall weeks in Bermuda, and winter months in Florida.

Renate Praksta died Jan. 12 after a 10-year battle against breast cancer. She was 76.

She is survived by her husband, a retired Daily News editor, daughters Andrea Hardy and Michele Rich, granddaughter Olivia Hardy, and sister Marianne Stoeckel.

In lieu of flowers donations for remembering Renate may be made out to the Abington Memorial Hospital Foundation and sent to AMH Office of Philanthropy, Rosenfeld Cancer Center, 1200 Old York Road, Abington PA 19001.

A celebration of life commemoration is being planned.