Isabel D. Paolini, 96, of Harmony, Minn., passed away peacefully on Sunday, October 21, 2018 at Country Winds Manor in Cresco, Iowa. Isabel was born in Harmony, Minn., on December 16, 1921, the daughter of Herbert A. Daniels and Ausye G. (Harstad) Daniels.
She graduated from Harmony High School in 1938, and left Harmony for Chicago, Ill., in order to attend business school. She was employed as a bookkeeper for several years in Chicago.
Isabel married Otto Paolini in 1940, and they lived in Chicago and then the suburb of Northbrook, Ill. In 1964, they moved to Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. In 1996, they returned to Harmony and lived at 45 6th Street SE.
Isabel was an avid reader, even from an early age. She read not only the American classics but European literature. Perhaps influenced by both her mother and mother-in-law, Isabel developed a deep appreciation for classical music and attended concerts and operas while living in Chicago, plus acquired a large record collection. As anyone who visited her will attest, her residence was an art gallery, mostly prints of French impressionists and Italian baroque. She and Otto traveled to Europe many times during the ‘80s and ‘90s. She toured Italy with her son in 2005 at the age of 84, and two years later, toured Poland, the Baltic states, and Russia by herself.
She was preceded in death by her husband Otto, and by her four sisters: Shirley (Ernest) Olsen, Bayonne (Allen) Reburn, Alma Jean (Joseph) Sudlik, and Marjorie, who died in infancy; and her brother H. Roderick (Fernanda Malmin) Daniels. She is survived by her son Rod (Kathleen Donovan) Paolini of Reston, Virg., and their children Nicole (Andrew) Schwab of Reseda, Calif., and Jared (Sophie Reverdy) Paolini of Baltimore, Md.
At Isabel’s request, there will be no funeral, but there will be a memorial at the burial of her ashes at Big Spring Cemetery in the spring 2019. If you wish to be notified, send an e-mail to rodpaolini@comcast.net.