Louise Van Vliet

Louise Van Vliet passed away on 12/4/2024 at the age of 85. She was preceded in death by her parents, Henry R. and Katherine Van Vliet, and sister, Gretchen Gilbert. She is survived by brother George Van Vliet and sister Margaret Van Vliet Thomas as well as nieces and nephews. 

Louise was born in Rhinebeck, NY and raised on a dairy farm in Pleasant Plains, NY. She attended schools in the Hyde Park School District. She went to Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio for a degree in biological sciences. One of the requirements for speech and hearing majors was to listen to new students for speech variations. When they heard her NY accent, they suggested that she take a speech dialects course. She fell in love with the course and later got graduate degrees in Speech and Hearing Science. She received a traineeship at the Dayton VA Medical center. After her internship, the VA hired her for a full time staff position. She obtained certification in both Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology. She was an Aphasiologist. Later she joined the faculty at Miami University, Oxford, OH. After retirement in 2003, she moved to Oakwood but spent her last six years at Brookdale Living Solutions.

A most humble and selfless individual, Louise was a longtime community volunteer with Dayton Peace Museum, Habitat for Humanity, and League of Women Voters; she read to school children for the Dayton Literary Council, taught English as a Second Language to recent immigrants, and served as a Court Appointed Special Advocate for abused, neglected and dependent children. Her generosity also included honoring some special individuals through two scholarship funds at The Dayton Foundation. The Fannie Vought Fink Memorial Scholarship Fund assists students who reflect the interests and backgrounds of her grandmother. Louise said that her grandmother was the most influential person in her life. Her grandmother always advocated for the underdog and never complained, even though she was bedridden for the last few years of her life. The Willie and Eloise Root Memorial Scholarship Fund aids students who are migrant workers or have an interest in the lives of migrant workers. Willie and Eloise Root were migrant workers who Louise became close to when she worked in an apple orchard after high school. 

While working at the VA, Louise discovered international folk dancing. She was an extremely active member of the Miami Valley Folk Dancers for over 40 years, serving in many club positions. Louise was named the Miami Valley Dance Council's 2007 Honor Roll Dancer. Her nomination stated "If every member of every club did half of what Louise does for the dance community, the dance community would be friendlier and larger than our wildest dreams. Louise is the most humble of people and does not care for any accolades or honors. She will say that she has done nothing. But we know better, and this honor is long overdue."

 Louise was also a member of the South Slavic Club and danced with their performing group, "Zivio!". In 1987 she performed with "Zivio!" in the former Yugoslavia. Later she joined the Friendship Force, which connects people with its mission to promote global understanding across the barriers that separate people. She traveled to other countries and hosted people from other countries in her home as part of this group.

 Louise wrote of herself -- "Louise Van Vliet was lucky. As a child no one thought she would amount to anything. Her biggest accomplishments were beating up boys in her class and doing the very least amount of work to get by."

 Louise had a celebration of life ceremony on her 80th birthday and requested that it be in lieu of her funeral at a later date. 

 Donations in remembrance of Louise may be made to Hospice of Dayton, Miami Valley Folk Dancers, Wright Library in Oakwood or an organization of your choice.