Caryl Ione (Benzer) Schoentgen, 95, died June 15, 2016, in Flagstaff, Arizona. She had been a resident of Flagstaff since 1987.

Mrs. Schoentgen was born in Oelwein, Iowa, May 14, 1921, to Frederick Charles Benzer and Edith Carswell (Taylor) Benzer. She was the youngest of three children and sister to Helen Johannah (Benzer) Mundt and Robert Frederick Benzer.

Caryl graduated from Oelwein High School in 1939, and she attended some classes at the University of Iowa in Iowa City. She met William Paul Schoentgen in Dubuque, Iowa, and they were married February 4, 1943. During their 68-year marriage, they followed their employment from Eagle Pass, Texas, to Sheldon, Iowa, to Chicago, Illinois, to Frankfort, Kentucky, and back to Chicago, Illinois. In retirement they moved from Park Ridge, Illinois, to Flagstaff, Arizona.

Caryl was highly motivated to achieve in her employment and was self-taught in many areas through her extensive reading and work experiences. She worked part time and full time while raising their children.

In 1969 Caryl joined a committee charged with setting up, organizing, and opening Oakton Community College, a school designed to serve the north shore suburbs of Chicago. After Oakton opened its doors in fall 1970, she worked there as the Assistant to the Vice President of Curriculum and Instruction. She worked to get and keep Oakton's courses articulated with the course requirements of the other colleges and universities in Illinois. Among her other endeavors at Oakton, she prepared and edited the catalog and course description books for publication. Caryl retired from Oakton May 31, 1983.

Caryl and Bill's curiosity and love of adventure led them through North America and Europe, where their travels extended as far west as Hawaii and as far east as Istanbul, St. Petersburg, and Moscow.

Caryl's husband, William, preceded her in death in October, 2011. Survivors include two daughters, Pamela Jo Schoentgen and Marcy Jean Schoentgen, of Flagstaff, Arizona, two grandchildren, Hanne Lora Schoentgen, of Flagstaff, Arizona, and Caleb Jason Peters of Madison, Wisconsin, and three great-granddaughters.

At Caryl's instruction, no service was held. Memorials may be given to The Carter Center in Atlanta, Georgia, or to a charity of your choice.