Elizabeth Van Staaveren 1923 - 2022

Elizabeth Van Staaveren passed away February 1, 2022, at Hillside Manor in McMinnville, Oregon. She was 98 years old. The daughter of Booker M. and Rosa Pearl Graham, Elizabeth was born November 13, 1923, in Adel, Georgia.

The family lived in Adel and Valdosta, Georgia, before moving to Washington, D.C. in 1937. She graduated from George Washington University in Washington, D.C. in 1944, and from the University of California School of Librarianship in 1954.

She had a career as a federal civil servant, mostly with the U.S. Deptartment of Labor. At one time she worked as a librarian with Army Special Services in Germany during the occupation after World War II. In 1961, she married Jacob Van Staaveren. They lived in Washington, D.C. until 1994, when they moved to Hillside Retirement Community in McMinnville. Jacob Van Staaveren, who died in 1999, was a native Oregonian and a graduate of Linfield College and the University of Chicago.

As a retiree, she became interested in family history, and published a book about her paternal ancestry, also some articles on family history for genealogical journals. In Oregon, she was co-founder of Oregonians for Immigration Reform, and active in the organization for many years. She wrote blogs, letters, and opinion articles on immigration subjects.

She is survived by her brother, Paul M. Kelly (Hilde) of Cumming, Georgis; nephews, Ronald Kelly (Sarah) of Marietta, Georgia, and Barry Kelly (Cindy) of St. Augustine, Florida; and niece, Judy Davis (Edward) of Marietta. She also is survived by her four grandnieces and a grandnephew; and five great-grandnieces and seven great-grand-nephews.

To leave online condolences, please visit www.macyandson.com

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