Viola was the loving wife of the late Herman O. Brinkmann; cherished mother of Tom (Carley) Brinkmann, Matt (Beth) Brinkmann, Joe (Lisa) Brinkmann, Paul Brinkmann, and Dan (Laura) Brinkmann; devoted grandmother of Katie (Jon) Monroe, Grace (Nick) Dowd, Olivia Brinkmann, Jack Brinkmann, Sarah Brinkmann, Henry Brinkmann, and Will Brinkmann; dear sister of Peter (Maureen) Wikete; dear aunt and great-aunt and a friend to many in her lifetime. Viola was preceded in death by her daughter-in-law Ann (nee Dubbelde) Brinkmann.
She was born in St. Louis to Catherine and Peter Wikete, who were immigrants of German heritage. Her only sibling was her older brother Pete and they remained close her entire life.
She met Herman at St. Pius V Catholic Church on Grand Blvd., during a gathering of the Legion of Mary Catholic service organization. In 1960, he proposed to her after they attended a performance of the opera La traviata by Giuseppe Verdi at the former Kiel Opera House and they were married that year.
Viola worked several jobs as a secretary throughout her life. The highlight was working at the St. Louis Chamber of Commerce in the 1950s, partly because she enjoyed working downtown. She also volunteered with Birthright International, a nonprofit crisis pregnancy counseling group, and at the former St. Louis Chronic Hospital.
She loved to travel and visit cultural, natural or historic sites and botanical gardens, with family and with many lifelong friends. She visited most of the 50 states. When her children were young, she planned lengthy vacations by car before the Internet age, writing letters months in advance to arrange accommodations and map out itineraries.
She was an avid reader her entire life and loved movies, particularly period dramas.
Her family and faith were the most important things in her life. As her children became adults, she began hosting family dinners on Thursday nights at the family home in St. Louis Hills, for whoever could make it. It became a tradition with the family including her grandkids.
She claimed to be an average cook most of her life, but later the family meals were much appreciated, and all looked forward to her pie-baking on Thanksgiving – pumpkin of course, but also coconut custard and cherry, among others.
One of her favorite simple pleasures was a good sunset. Although she loved nature and planting flowers, she had a lifelong aversion to birds – unless they were just singing at a distance.
When asked to give advice to her grandchildren she wrote this: “Never to forget how fortunate you are and always be grateful for the privileges you have. You are responsible to do what you can for people who aren’t as fortunate.”
Beloved Viola, enjoy a walk on the beach in the sunset now with Herman!
In lieu of flowers, contributions in in Viola's name to Birthright Counseling Saint Louis https://birthrightstl.org/ or Missionaries of Charity https://missionariesofcharity.org/ would be greatly appreciated by her family
Visitation will be Tuesday, March 18 from 4-8pm at Hoffmeister Colonial Mortuary, 6464 Chippewa Street, Saint Louis MO 63109. Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Wednesday, March 19 at 10am at Saint Gabriel the Archangel Catholic Church, 6303 Nottingham Avenue, 63109. Interment At Resurrection Cemetery immediately following.
Please leave a fond memory of Viola for her family to cherish at the "Add a Memory:" link below.
