Natalie Wien

Natalie was born at home on 7/11/1931 in Reading, Pennsylvania She was raised in Kenhorst, Pennsylvania and attended Shillington High School where she was May Queen and focused on secretarial skills.

She then started work as a secretary for Burlington Northern Railroad, then as a patent secretary. She would save up her money to take trips to New York City and see Broadway shows. One summer, she met a West Point cadet who kept asking her for a date while he was home on leave.

A year later, on June 16, 1956, she married George Erb Wien, a newly minted Second Lieutenant US Army (Signal Corps). Thus began 21 years as an Army spouse, moving to many places including three years in Paris, where she gave birth to her second son Craig. Her firstborn Todd was born a year earlier in Reading, Pennsylvania. She also lived two years in South Korea with her family. Finally, they settled in Falls Church, Virginia. There she worked as a church secretary and also in a collectibles shop. After George retired from the US Army, his job with MCI eventually necessitated a move to St Louis briefly and finally in 1987 they moved to Plano, Texas. She joined Grace Presbyterian Church and was a regular there in women’s Bible studies and would usher, too. She had a strong love for God and Jesus, and her faith kept her centered. She successfully pressed her sons to deepen their faith.

Natalie was a devoted and loving wife and fantastic mother and nana. She was very social and gracious, always dressed well. Many described her as classy and having a great smile and a good wit. She was known for talking to anyone, telling detailed stories and could be politely assertive when necessary. She loved animals including her overindulged poodles. She also loved roses and flower gardening. She was fond of jewelry and Herend, Swarovski and other collectibles. Natalie always kept a clean home.  She enjoyed fine dining, was a good cook and loved hosting dinner parties and attending her neighborhood supper club events. Known for world traveling with George, they took many cruises and trips. She also enjoyed movies and PBS dramatic series. She and George were longtime symphony attendees. She loved music and often had Easy Listening music on the radio or TV. Natalie was very charitable and gave to many charities. She was diligent about sending cards for birthdays and anniversaries. She told her family many times that she had a great life and was blessed in many ways. In her final years, she developed temporal arteritis, which robbed her of her memory. She and George remained together at Legacy at Willow Bend, where they moved in the spring of 2016, until her recent passing on March 13, 2021.

Natalie is survived by her husband, George; sons, Todd and Craig and their respective spouses, Lisa and Saskia; former daughter-in-law, Marti Wien and seven grandchildren, Michelle Kramek, Alison Wien, Trent Wien, Eric Wien, Alexis Wien, Dylan Wien and Jason Wien. Her brother Richard Coldren is still alive in Reading, Pennsylvania.  Natalie was preceded in death by her niece Suzanne Coldren, her father Martin Luther Coldren and her mother Katie Bohn Coldren.

A Celebration of Life will be held on April 10, 2021, at 3:00 PM at Allen Family Funeral Options, 2112 W. Spring Creek Pkwy, Plano Texas, 75023.  For those who cannot in person, the service may be viewed live or recorded later at: http://webcast.funeralvue.com/events/viewer/51314

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorial donations, in Natalie’s name, to one of these charities:

Hope Women’s Center - 2740 Virginia Parkway Suite 200, McKinney, Texas 75071  Phone: 972-562-4673 https://myhope.org/

Poiema Foundation - P.O. Box 757, Rockwall, Texas 75087  Phone: 469-757-8888 https://poiemafoundation.org/donate

Voice of the Martyrs - 1815 SE Bison Rd., Bartlesville, Oklahoma 74006  Phone: 800-747-0085 https://www.persecution.com/donate/

Vasculitis Foundation - P.O. Box 28660, Kansas City, Missouri 64188  Phone: 800-277-9474 https://www.vasculitisfoundation.org/donate/