Rita M. (Seubert) Back, 90 years old of New Alsace, passed away on Sunday, December 11, 2022. Born and raised in “old New Alsace” as she would like to say, Rita was one of five children born to Helen (Miller) and John Seubert. When she was only three months old, the family home caught fire and her brother was credited with saving her life as he carried her and her crib to the neighbor’s house. Leaving high school after the 10th grade, Rita went to work as a nanny for a Cincinnati family. After meeting Albert, Rita continued to nanny and on Sunday nights he would take her into the city where she stayed with the family throughout the week. At the end of the week Rita, along with several other girls from this area, took the train from the Cincinnati terminal where it dropped them off in Sunman. Interestingly, there was not an actual stop in Sunman, but since there were so many girls needing a ride home, the train scheduled a stop every week. Rita’s mom served as a nanny when she was younger as well. Her role as a nanny was as a cook and baker whose talents were passed down to Rita. Later, Rita worked at Hill-Rom for 34 years as a technician wiring the power columns for hospital beds.
When Rita met her husband, Albert, many of their dates consisted of her watching him play baseball in the Tri-County League. Of course, Rita could only attend the game after she had picked her fair share of tomatoes that were needed for the canning plant in Sunman. After every baseball game there was fried chicken and a keg of beer for all to enjoy. Rita & Albert enjoyed playing cards with their friends and enjoyed watching sports. They attended Sunman & East Central High School basketball and EC football games where Rita, usually the talkative one, also tended to be the one yelling in the stands. On multiple occasions, Albert could be overheard saying “don’t get excited Rita”. When their nephews started playing football for UC, they began traveling with family to watch the boys play, combining their love for sports along with their love for travel. Rita & Albert went on several cruises and trips to fun places like Alaska, Hawaii, across the United States, and to Germany. Rita always loved to bake, inheriting her skills from her mother, and taking over as the official baker of the family. Her grandkids reaped the benefits of always having chocolate chip cookies when they visited and, of course, a box of cookies to take back to college. As Rita aged, she found calm and comfort in some of her favorite songs as they were sung to her and she was able to sing along. “She’ll be Coming Round the Mountain” and “You are My Sunshine” were two of her favorites.
Rita will be deeply missed by her children Diane (Vince) Warrenburg, Dale (Rhonda) Back, and Daren (Mary) Back; sisters Mary Ann Hofer and Elaine Walker; grandchildren Kristine Rome & Ryan Warrenburg, Damon, Nathan & Jason Back, and Jeremy & Alec Back; and 15 great grandchildren. She is preceded in death by Albert, her husband of 65 years, and her siblings Margaret Wuestefeld and Joe Seubert; and parents Helen & John Seubert.
Visitation will be held on Friday, December 16. The rosary will begin at 4:45pm and visitation will be from 5:00pm – 7:00pm at Andres-Wuestefeld Funeral Home. Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:00am Saturday, December 17 at St. Paul’s Campus of All Saints Parish. Burial will immediately follow. For those unable to attend, the Mass will be live streamed at https://www.youtube.com/user/aspweeklyhomily. Memorials can be made to St. Paul’s Cemetery Fund and Clara A. Back Scholarship Fund. Memorials will be taken at the visitation or can be mailed to the funeral home. Checks for the Scholarship Fund should be payable to Franklin County Community Foundation, Inc. or FCCF and write on the memo line “Clara A. Back Scholarship Fund”. Family and friends are encouraged to leave condolences at www.andres-wuestefeldfh.com