Astrid Hanzalek was the one to get things done
Always direct and plain spoken, Astrid Hanzalek found herself face-to-face with the soon-to-be Republican nominee for president in 1980.
As a delegate to the Republican National Convention in Detroit, Hanzalek was part of a group of women who met with Ronald Reagan. She asked Reagan about whether he had any plans to nominate a woman to the Supreme Court. “He promised to give it serious consideration,” a newspaper report quoted Hanzalek as saying.
“She was a woman who was able to speak what she believed; she was no shrinking violet,” said Karin Peterson, a close friend. A year later, in 1981, Reagan nominated Sandra Day O’Conner as the court’s first female justice.
Astrid Hanzalek, a state legislator, environmentalist and civic leader, died Sept. 1 in her home in Suffield of a stroke. She was 91 and had spent more than six decades actively involved in Suffield.
Hanzalek was born in New York City on Jan. 6, 1928, to Arthur and Luise Funke Teicher, German immigrants who came to the United States in the 1920s seeking better economic opportunities. Arthur ran a business that sold sheet metal to the growing aviation industry, and Luise, who had trained in France, was a professional chef. The family spoke German at home and visited Germany yearly.
Astrid and her mother were nearly stranded in Germany in the summer of 1939 when the port of Hamburg was closed due to the buildup of the German military prior to the invasion of Poland, which would take place in September. The pair hurried to reach Rotterdam and were fortunate to find passage aboard another ship. During the war, the family was not able to contact relatives in Germany, and they used to listen to shortwave broadcasts of war news in German. In the years following the war, the Teichers still had difficulty contacting relatives because they lived in the Eastern Zone, behind the Berlin Wall.
The family lived in Queens, N.Y., while Astrid attended high school and graduated in three years. Her high school yearbook motto was “to make much of time,” and she easily fulfilled that prophecy. After studying at Concordia College in Bronxville, she graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1949 with a degree in chemistry. Along with several friends, she wrote and produced musical station breaks for local radio stations and wrote and sang in television commercials — which provided funds needed for her college expenses, although she later lamented that a lack of musical training had ruined her voice. After graduation, she was the organist and choir director of a Lutheran Church on Long Island.
Hanzalek worked for Continental Can Co. and for several advertising agencies in the Mad Men era of the early 1950s. On a business trip to Paris, she met a young engineer while they were both sightseeing. “He was smitten,” said Christina Ahrens, a Suffield friend. “She was not.”
Nevertheless, Dick Hanzalek continued to show interest, and Astrid eventually agreed to attend one of the renowned puppet shows in the Luxembourg Gardens. She changed her mind about her suitor, and the couple were married in New York in 1955 and held the reception at the fabled Plaza Hotel. Dick began his 30-year career with Combustion Engineering, and when the company moved to Windsor in 1956, the Hanzaleks moved to Suffield.
Astrid quickly became involved with many local organizations. She helped found the Suffield Land Trust (now the Land Conservancy) and served in leadership roles with the American Red Cross, the Bushnell, Traveler’s Aid and the Greater Hartford Community Council. She also became involved in local politics and in 1971, was elected to the first of five terms as a state representative.
Astrid was a Republican, rose to leadership positions in the General Assembly and became chairperson of several influential committees. She was the chairperson of the Republican state platform committee, and in 1980, was a delegate to the Republican National Convention in Detroit when she met Reagan.
Since her move to Suffield more than 60 years ago, Astrid had been active in politics and numerous town and statewide organizations, but one of her strongest interests was in Suffield’s many historic houses. “She was involved in just about everything,” said Lester Smith, the town historian.
Suffield, in the 18th century, had a number of wealthy families, some of whom developed land in western New York and Ohio, or were entrepreneurs or merchants, Smith said. A century later, with the growth of the tobacco industry, many farmers became rich, and the houses many of these families built are also in the town’s historic district. The Hanzaleks lived in one 18th century house on Main Street, and after a fire caused significant damage to the King House, which is now a museum, Astrid agreed to lead the fundraising necessary to restore it. She was also involved in efforts to restore the Phelps-Hatheway House and have it designated as a landmark. She became the president of the Antiquarian and Landmark Society, now Connecticut Landmarks, and received its George Dudley Seymour Medal in recognition of her work supporting Connecticut’s history. She also served on the board of the state Commission on Culture and Tourism.
Her interest in nature and the environment led to involvement with the Connecticut Forest and Park Association, where she served on the board, as well as on the board of Riverfront Recapture. She was also a member of the Connecticut Council on Environmental Quality and the Connecticut Greenway Commission. Her interest in education led to her involvement with Charter Oak College, which granted her the honorary award of Doctor of Humane Letters in 2010, and she served as chairperson of the board for State Academic Awards.
She remained a board member of several organizations until her death, even though vision problems sometimes prevented her from attending meetings in person. “She read the minutes and made comments in the margin; she was thoughtful and didn’t miss meetings,” said Peterson. “She took things seriously, and she had something to say.” When Hanzalek moved to a 55-andolder community, she was immediately elected president of the residents’ council. “If you wanted something done, it would be done. It made her a bit intimidating,” Peterson said.
Astrid was a competitive tennis player and frequent trophy winner and, with her husband, enjoyed playing golf courses around the world. They made frequent trips to Germany to stay in touch with Astrid’s extended family, which held large family reunions in 2001 and 2007. They entertained frequently, although Astrid’s demeanor was always formal and her manner very direct. “She didn’t truck much foolishness,” Smith said.
Hanzalek left no close survivors but has many cousins in Germany. A celebration of her life will be held September 29 at 1:30 at the Phelps-Hatheway House, 55 South Main St., Suffield.