IN MEMORY
In days when the “performance” of
wives still received official comment,
those about her were exceptional.
(Her conduct did not change when
the grading stopped.) Having been introduced to society in New York City,
Mrs. Skoug was at ease at lunches or
dinners with dignitaries such as Soviet
Foreign Minister Gromyko and President Carlos Andres Perez of Venezuela. Yet it gave her equal satisfaction to visit poor areas of Caracas in
1989 and 1990 and present contributions to the needy as wife of the charge
d’affaires, and she regretted not having done more of that.
During the 1968 Soviet invasion of
Czechoslovakia, she opted not to be
evacuated but remained at post where
she assisted American citizens and
others seeking relief at the embassy.
Despite hardship involved in three
years of service in Moscow during the
Cold War (1976-1979), where she
resided many miles from the embassy,
she made the most of her opportunities to arrange and guide embassy
tours to explore Russian culture. Indeed, she regarded Moscow as the
most interesting post at which she ever
served.
Mrs. Skoug was a trained, prize-winning artist whose watercolors and
acrylics, especially those of old church-es and winter scenes in the Soviet
Union, were appreciated by diplomatic colleagues and the international
business and journalistic community.
She was always glad to paint a specific
scene upon request of a friend. Those
works of art will keep her memory
green on walls around the world.
She was also a gourmet cook,
skilled hostess and convivial entertainer. Her sincerity, lively humor and
warm smile always won the esteem of
colleagues and associates. However,
she regarded her chief responsibility
as providing a serene and cheerful
home, as she did for her family wherever in the world they might be.
She is survived by her husband,
Ken, of Alexandria, Va.; her daughter,
Reed Stevens Skoug-Roller of Harleys-ville, Pa.; her son, Kenneth N. Skoug
III of Plymouth, Mich.; and five
grandchildren: Curtis, Cecilia and
Evangeline Martha Roller, and Kenneth N. Skoug IV and Meganne
Skoug.
