NEWS RELEASE

10/8/02

CONTACT: John Sanford, News Service (650) 736-2151; e-mail: jsanford@stanford.edu

Oswalda Deva, longtime library employee, dies at 91

Oswalda Maria Kaiser Deva, who worked for nearly two decades in Stanford University Libraries, died Sept. 30. She was 91.

At the time of her death, she was living in the Redwood City home of her daughter Dagmar Logie, English Department administrator.

A native of Innsbruck, Austria, Deva held a lifelong interest in rare books. She began working at the university in 1959 as a library assistant in the Humanities and Social Sciences Division before moving to the Special Collections Department, where she remained until 1977. After retiring from Stanford, she worked part time at an antiquarian bookshop in Palo Alto owned by William Wreden, whose wife, Byra Wreden, was a founding member of the Associates of the Stanford University Libraries.

Deva was a member of the Associates of the Stanford University Libraries and the Dickens Fellowship of Palo Alto. An avid athlete and accomplished knitter, she swam a mile every day for 40 years and outfitted her family with an excellent supply of sweaters. She also enjoyed hiking, gardening, reading and the visual arts.

Deva's life was split evenly between both sides of the Atlantic: She spent the first half in Europe, mainly in Austria, with a few years in Albania and Rome; the second half in Palo Alto and, in her final years, Redwood City.

Her first husband, Richard Kaiser, died in 1970; her second husband, Djafer Deva, died in 1978; her eldest daughter, Gerlind Megroz, died in 1981. In addition to Logie, Deva is survived by her brother, Dr. Oswald Huber of Austria; her son, Udo Kaiser of San Francisco; seven grandchildren; and 11 great-grandchildren.

A memorial service is scheduled for 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 13, in Sequoia Christian Church, 233 Topaz St., Redwood City. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to the Department of Special Collections and University Archives, Stanford University Libraries, Stanford, CA 94305-6064. Checks should be made payable to Stanford University.

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