Magda Rixen

HURST -- Magda Rixen of Hurst died Sunday, Dec. 13, 2009, from Alzheimer's disease.        Memorial gathering: 2 to 5 p.m. Saturday at the Rixens' home. For more information contact jrixen@austin.rr.com, christine.mcgee@weatherford.com or dickdodds@tx.rr.com.        Memorials: Donations to the Alzheimer's Association, in lieu of flowers, will be gratefully accepted.        Born Feb. 28, 1930, in Furth, Germany, Magda went to Toronto, Canada, in 1954 to work as a translator. Magda planned to return to Germany after a year, but shortly after her arrival, she met Frank Rixen, an English immigrant and engineer, at a costume Halloween party. They married on Christmas Eve a year later. For 13 years, Magda and Frank lived in Toronto and had two daughters there, Ann Julie and Jacqueline. They moved to Hurst in 1967 when Frank was offered a job with Bell Helicopter, and had their third daughter, Christine, in 1968.        In addition to being a super wife, mother and cook, Magda volunteered countless hours with the Girl Scouts and the Oak Crest Woman's Club, and was a successful Realtor for many years. Magda was known for her sense of adventure, independence and high spiritedness. She enjoyed traveling and exploring both this continent and overseas, entertaining, and the Fort Worth Symphony, the Fort Worth Opera, and Dallas Chamber concerts. One of her greatest joys was family life at the lake house she and Frank designed and built at Possum Kingdom Lake. Magda's family would like to thank the staff of Parkwood and Vitas Hospice for their compassionate care and support, as well as the many people who visited Magda while she was there.        Her parents, Georg and Anna Schlicht, and her brother, Herbert Schlicht, preceded her in death.        Survivors: Her devoted husband of 54 years, Frank; her only grandchild and the apple of her eye, Clayton Arthur McGee; and her three daughters. To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of Magda Rixen please visit our Sympathy Store.