Claire Vogelsong Pease

Mar 9, 1931 -

Jul 28, 2022

Longtime Anchorage resident Claire Vogelsong Pease died on July 28, 2022, at age 91, in the presence of her loving family. She was born on March 9, 1931, in Harrisburg, Pa., to David Clarence and Dorothy Messinger Vogelsong.

Claire enjoyed an idyllic childhood in Mechanicsburg, Pa., immersed in Pennsylvania Dutch culture and surrounded by loving grandparents, parents, aunts and uncles. Summers were spent at a family cottage at Mt. Gretna, as well as fishing with her father. She graduated from Bucknell University in 1953 with a B.S. in economics and finance. She met her future husband, Ted, in Philadelphia while he was on a three-day military furlough. They maintained a long-distance romance while Ted completed military service, then law school. They wed on July 13, 1957, the beginning of a 64-year marriage that grew ever-stronger over the decades.

As a newlywed, Claire worked as department secretary for Harvard University's Graduate School of Design in Cambridge, Mass. She and Ted moved to Anchorage in February 1960, where Ted established his legal practice and Claire became the head of a growing household.

Like most Anchorage mothers of the era, Claire learned to be innovative with limited resources. She maintained a large vegetable garden, baked bread, and pickled, canned and preserved. She mixed Milk Man powdered milk extra thick to approximate fresh. She transformed discarded halibut cheeks - 19 cents/pound - into a delicacy.

Claire introduced her children and grandchildren to sports and the outdoors. She carried a child on her back while hiking and berry picking. She laced ice skates and uncrossed ski tips. On winter weekdays after a fresh snow, Claire would pick up her children from school in the family's VW bus, and drive to Alyeska for half-days of skiing on the single chairlift. She taught her children to swim at Hidden Lake at the top of O'Malley Road and later supported them on the Spa Swim Team.

But Claire's life was not just about kids. Her volunteer activities included serving as President of the Anchorage League of Women Voters from 1968-71, promoting unification of Anchorage's Borough and City governments into a single entity and advocating for bike trails in Anchorage. She and friends organized the first ever Bike Day on the Park Strip on June 1, 1971. It snowed that day, but Claire remained undeterred. Her team's efforts led to Anchorage's first bike trail built along Chester Creek. From 1976-79, Claire volunteered as race director for the Nordic Ski Club of Anchorage. She also produced the Club's newsletter, transforming the kitchen table into a printing press, and occasionally, an inky mess.

Claire served on multiple school district advisory committees. She helped start the first optional education program in Anchorage and helped establish the gifted curriculum in ASD schools. She also served on the board of Alaska Children's Services.

From 1977-81, Claire was Director of Volunteer Opportunities, a nonprofit organization she founded to place volunteers with over 80 community agencies. As director, she helped establish Pretrial Community Service and Project Re-entry to help the incarcerated population transition back into the workplace.

In 1982, then-Mayor Tony Knowles hired Claire to be the Director of Boards and Commissions for the Municipality of Anchorage, a job she held for all six years of the Knowles administration.

In between working, volunteering and parenting, Claire explored the world with Ted on their bicycles, riding through Inner Mongolia, Vietnam, Tasmania, and many Eastern Bloc countries just after the fall of Communism,

Claire was the consummate hostess. She treated friends to formal sit-down dinners in her Rabbit Creek home, known as Cafe Claire. Evenings consisted of gourmet meals, generous pours of wine and a roaring fire in an oversized fireplace. Her influence extended to the next generation, teaching children and grandchildren to cook and entertain.

Claire loved fresh-cut flowers, many of which she grew. She had an eye for art and a skill for fine cuisine. She had a keen sense of style. She loved classical music and supported the Anchorage Symphony and the Sitka Music Festival. Above all, she loved people, bringing friends and strangers together in her gracious and impeccable manner.

Claire's legacy is her kindness. She recognized the potential in every person she encountered and strove to see that potential developed. She will be remembered as a loyal and nurturing wife, mother and friend.

Claire is survived by three children and their spouses, David (Mary Ann), Nancy (Dan Hull) and Thomas (Susanne DiPietro), all of Anchorage; and four grandsons, Teddy, Arthur, Andrew and Thomas. Claire's husband, Ted, preceded her in death.

There will be a gathering in September to celebrate Claire's life, date TBA, or contact family for more information.