JULIA APPEL

Julia Stimson Appel age 94, passed away peacefully at Cherry Meadows Hospice facility in Appleton, Wisconsin on Monday September 27, 2021.  She was born in Washington D.C. to the late Harold and Florence (Stocker) Stimson on June 19, 1927. 

Julia graduated from Grinnell College, Grinnell, Iowa with a BA in Biology.  She married David W. Appel on June 8, 1949, in Grinnell, Iowa.  She later earned a degree in nursing as a private duty nurse.

Julia and David loved the outdoors.  They enjoyed hiking, camping, and rock climbing as well as sailing and skiing.  They purchased a 32 ft. sailboat named Lorelei and cruised from Detroit through the Great Lakes and down the Mississippi river, through the intracoastal waterway along the Gulf of Mexico to Florida.  They completed the trip by going up the east coast to the Hudson River and via the Erie Canal back to the Great Lakes.  They found a home in Neenah, Wisconsin where Lorelei docked on the Fox River.  They subsequently built a 35 ft. sailboat from a fiberglass shell hull.  They sailed the Enchantress extensively on the Great Lakes.

They made a move to Wittenberg, Wisconsin where they enjoyed some rural living.  They raised veal calves in the winter and traveled in the summer.

Julia also became interested in writing.  She joined the Romance Writers of America Appleton Chapter in 1989.  She completed a novel  and wrote articles for travel magazines.

In 1996, David began volunteering his time at the Bears Den Trail Center located on the Appalachian Trail in northern Virginia.  Julia made many trips to Virginia and the Appalachian Trail, but preferred her perfect house in the woods that she and David built together in Wittenberg.

In 1997, Julia had a very bad stroke leaving her without the use of her right arm and diminished capacity in her right leg.  She continued to live independently for many years.  She found innovative ways to accomplish just about anything she wanted to do.

In addition to her parents, Julia was preceded in death by her husband and her sister, Edith O'Toole.

Julia is survived by her 3 children, George (Antoinette) Appel, Appleton; Janet (Michael) Snyder, Rochester, MN., and Raymond (Marcia) Appel, Townsend, WI; 5 grandchildren Shane Appel, Jeri (Chad) Gruenstern, Al Snyder, Ryan (Sierra) Appel, and Stephen (Heidi Anoszko) Appel; in addition to 2 great-grandchildren Lucas and Brianna Gruenstern.

Julia's wishes were for no service to be held.  In lieu of flowers, the family suggests a contribution to either Bears Den Trail Center, 18393 Blueridge Mountain Rd. Bluemont, WA 20135 or St. Joseph's Indian School PO Box 326 Chamberlain, SD  57326 * www.stjo.org