Elizabeth Kieffer Kidwell February 15, 1940 - May 7, 2023

Elizabeth Kieffer Kidwell was born in Fargo, ND to George V. and Mary M. Kieffer in 1940.
Early years were spent in Evanston, Il and in downtown Chicago, Elizabeth began violin lessons with George Perlman. She later discovered a love of sacred music, playing for LeRoy Wetzel, revered First United Methodist composer. She graduated from High School in Bloomfield Hills, MI winning a coveted scholarship to study in France at Fontainebleau with premier music teacher Nadia Boulanger. She enrolled at Dennison University Conservatory and while there filled a chair with the Columbus Symphony.
After completing her BA degree in music, Elizabeth moved to CA where she played with the Peninsula Symphony. There she met Wayne who was working on his doctorate. They married in 1964 in San Mateo at the First Baptist Church. Wayne’s higher education pursuits led them to Carbondale, Il where she played with the local symphony and gave birth to daughter Christine. Upon their return to CA Elizabeth had her second child, Douglas, and began performing regularly with the Modesto, Stockton and Merced symphonies and the Fresno philharmonic.
She relished her orchestral work, Con Brio String Quartet gigs, her PEO sisterhood, and most of all, her family.
Kind and beloved mother, grandmother, and wife, Elizabeth is survived by Wayne, her husband of 58 years, her two children and their spouses Christine and John, Douglas and Bonnie and four grandchildren, Lizzy, Reilly, Aimee and Amanda.
The memorial service will be held Saturday May 13 at 1:00pm at the First Presbyterian Church in Turlock. The interment will be private for the family in Barnett, MO.
In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made in her memory to the Modesto Symphony Youth Orchestra (MSYO) at 911 13th Street Modesto, CA 95354 or at modestosymphony.org.
The memorial service may be viewed at the following link: www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wYql3DGmu4