Alice (Balish) Stenger

Alice (Balish) Stenger went peacefully home to the Lord on May 15 after a short illness, four days short of her 94th birthday. She passed away at the home of her son Rodger Stenger of Bel Air, Maryland, where she had been residing since late 2018. Born and raised in Bridgeport, Connecticut, she was the youngest of five daughters of Alexander and Jessie Balish, which included Margaret Abalan of Duluth, Isabel Balish of Fairfield, Adele Potis of Newtown, and Olga Forbes of New York, all of whom predeceased her. As the baby of the family, Alice never lost her youthful spirit or girlish enthusiasms. Alice and her late husband Carl Stenger, who died in 1993, moved to Monroe in 1961. and lived there for 57 years. They raised seven remarkable children. (An eighth, Jimmy, died in infancy.) After graduating from Harding High School, Alice worked at Read’s Department Store. Alice took special pride in her mellifluous singing voice, her impressive forays into poetry, and her quick-witted talent for puns. She loved vintage movies and was a devoted viewer of Turner Classic Movies. When her vision began to fail, she became a voracious consumer of audio books. She treasured her house in Monroe, and until she moved away, took tremendous pride in tending her garden and making myriad improvements. She had an extraordinary memory and was able to recite the long, humorous monologues and tongue-twisting songs she learned as a teenager. She relished family gatherings, and loved arranging family outings to Bridgeport’s Downtown Cabaret Theatre and other venues. She and her girlfriends enjoyed playing rotating host at monthly gatherings at their respective homes. She was a devoted parishioner of St. Jude Catholic Church of Monroe. Besides Rodger Stenger (Eeva), she is survived by her children Barbara Schmitt (John), Marcia Lafayette, Robert Stenger (Debra), and Tom Stenger (Marg). Her children Janice Stenger and Carl Stenger III (Pam) predeceased her. She leaves nine grandchildren and four great grandchildren, all of whom adored their “Nini” or “Gigi,” as well as many loving nieces and nephews. A 10th grandchild, Bryan Lafayette, predeceased her. A memorial service will be held at a future date to be determined due to the coronavirus. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the American Macular Degeneration Foundation, P.O. Box 515, Northampton, Massachusetts 01061-0515. https://www.macular.org/how-donate.