Kittery- Olga Ester (Zuech) Rawson, 90, of Kittery, passed peacefully Saturday morning, August 7th, after a prolonged illness.

Born in 1931 in New Canaan, Connecticut, she was the only child of Serafina (Canestrini) and Ernest Zuech, who emigrated from the South Tyrol in the early 20th century. She grew up in rural southwestern Connecticut, sharing her time with neighbors and cousins, forming memories she would cherish forever (the breakfast oatmeal .. not so much). In school, she developed a love for music that endured throughout her life, mastering voice, clarinet and saxophone, eventually performing with the school's marching band. One of the highlights of these years was her post-war trip to Italy with her mother to visit the ancestral home: to her last days she relished telling others about meeting generations of relatives and perfecting her Nos dialect, venturing to the high alpine pastures with the herd, and the cute cousin who became a frequent visitor. After graduation, she attended Danbury State Teachers' College to prepare for her career. Her novice teaching year earned her the New Teacher of the Year award, which included a scholarship to New York University. In addition to earning her Master's, she also enjoyed a luncheon with Eleanor Roosevelt. After teaching reservation students in Scottsdale, Arizona, she returned to Connecticut, where, through a young adult bowling league, she met John Rawson. They were married in Darien in the summer of 1961. Together they shared nearly sixty years of adventures, friends, pastimes, and children without a real argument.

Olga taught elementary school nearly forty years, from Connecticut to Arizona to Bangor, eventually landing as a fifth grade teacher at Eliot Elementary. As her education career wound down, she also found work at the Kittery malls, first at a succession of clothing stores (the corporation changed, but she did not), then at the Pepperidge Farm outlet, dispensing cheerful suggestions and travel guidance along with the Milanos and goldfish. She loved to travel, and indulged that passion with relish, especially after retirement. With John and a series of ever-larger RV's, she explored the continent from Mexico's Copper Canyon to Canada's Banff National Park, from Alaska's Mendenhall Glacier to icebergs off Twillingate, Newfoundland. Favorite trips included Longwood Gardens, Prince Edward Island, in addition to annual treks to the Florida condo and frequent visits to visit friends and family. She was proud to have made it to forty-eight states: she never made it to Hawaii (flying was never her thing), and the other .. well, it isn't Alaska.

She is remembered for her knitted gifts with signature personalized tags, card games around the dinner table, and, with John, providing driving & dining tours of the area with anyone who would come to visit. In addition to John, she leaves behind her sons David and his wife, Pamela, of Scarborough, and Charles and his wife, Lisa, of Waldorf, Maryland, plus their four children Emily, Nick, Kiersten (whose wedding is in October), and Kelsey (who, with her husband, Josh, presented Olga with her first great-grandson in April).

Interment will be at a later date at the family plot in Brooks Memorial Cemetery in Eliot. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to your local school or Parent/Teacher Organization, or grabbing a treasured companion and going to Foxwoods for a helluva time. Online condolences may be made by visiting www.jspelkeyfuneralhome.com . Care for the Rawson family has been entrusted to the JS Pelkey and Son Funeral Home.