Obituaries

Grethe Newman

On Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, Grethe Damgaard Newman (Laursen) passed away at the age of 84. Grethe was born on April 26, 1934, in Copenhagen, Denmark. A happy childhood was interrupted by the time she spent in hiding while her parents fought for the Resistance in occupied Denmark. After the war, she studied cartography at the Geodetic Institute in Copenhagen and began her career working for the NATO Greenland mapping mission. In 1958, she was sponsored by the American Scandinavian Foundation to work for Hopewell and Sullivan developing the highway system in Chattanooga. There she met Robert Sigfried Newman (Col. Ret.) They married in 1960 and have two children, Eric and Nils. Grethe was an avid painter and member of the Chattanooga In-Town Gallery. Always the Viking, she and her husband of 58 years spent decades traveling the planet seeing sites in all the continents with the exception of Antarctica. Grethe is survived by her husband, sons, five grandchildren, and her brother Ib. A memorial service will be held on Saturday, Feb. 16, 2019, at the Chattanooga Funeral Home, North Chapel at 1 o’clock p.m. The interment will be held privately. In lieu of flowers, please contribute donations to the Hunter Museum of American Art in her memory. Arrangements are held by the North Chapel of Chattanooga Funeral Home, Crematory and Florist, 5401 Highway 153, Hixson, TN 37343. Please share your thoughts and memories at www.chattanooganorthchapel.com

Published February 14, 2019

Upcoming Events