Ingrid Schafer Ceridono

July 22, 1938 – August 4, 2017

Ingrid Schafer Ceridono of Lafayette, California, passed away peacefully in her home on August 4th, surrounded by her family.

Ingrid is survived by her brother, Wolf Schafer of Kiel, Germany, as well as her two children and five grandchildren: daughter, Linda Ceridono Behnke of San Francisco, CA, with husband Nils Behnke and children Vincent and Francis; and son, Glendon Ceridono of Lafayette, CA, with wife Laura White Ceridono and children Mathias, Elsa, and James.

Ingrid was born on July 22, 1938 in Kiel, Germany, to Wolf Schafer and Ursula Nachtigal Schafer. She graduated from the RicardaHuch school and worked in the field of bacteriology in the 1960’s at various institutes in Germany, including the Institute for Veterinary Hygiene in Heidelberg, the Max-Planck-Institute for Biology in Tuebingen, and the Institute of Marine Biology in Kiel. In the U.S., Ingrid continued her career with positions in the Biology department at the University of Southern California and UC Berkeley.

In 1968, she married Clifford Allan Ceridono in Berkeley, CA. A few years later they moved to Lafayette to raise their family. In retirement, her lifelong dream of a cottage in Carmel was realized and Ingrid spent several happy years living there part time.

Throughout her life, Ingrid maintained strong ties to Germany. She celebrated German language, culture, and customs throughout her everyday activities and special occasions. She loved traveling to visit family and friends and hosted countless international guests at her home in Lafayette. Through her involvement in organizations such as the American Field Service, German Benevolent Society, and Stanford Women’s Club of the East Bay she took on more formal roles working to foster cultural awareness in her community.

Above all, Ingrid’s energy was concentrated on her family. She was a loving mother, devoted wife and caregiver to her late husband, and special grandmother to her five grandchildren. Her deep commitment to her friends and overwhelming devotion to her family defined her life. Ingrid created a legacy of love on two continents that will endure and be passed on to future generations.

Ingrid will be remembered for her impeccable style, dignified manner and thoughtful, genuine demeanor. Her family and friends will miss her passion for life and attention to detail and special touches that gave us comfort and expressed her love.

A memorial service and burial will be held on Tuesday, August 15 at 11:00 a.m. in the Mountain View Cemetery Tower Chapel, 5000 Piedmont Avenue, Oakland, CA, followed by a reception. In lieu of flowers, she wished for donations in her memory to be made to Ocean Conservancy which can be found at the following link, https:// amplify.netdonor.net/2821/ in-honor-or-memory/12224/ ingrids-inmemory-page