Maria von Trapp died on Tuesday at her home in Vermont. The last surviving member of the family whose 1938 escape from Nazi-occupied Austria was the inspiration for The Sound of Music musical, film, and NBC live broadcast was 99 years old. Her half-brother, Johannes von Trapp (a child of Capt. Georg von Trapp and Maria Kutschera von Trapp) told the AP, “She was a lovely woman who was one of the few truly good people. There wasn’t a mean or miserable bone in her body. I think everyone who knew her would agree with that.” Later in life, Von Trapp served as a lay missionary in Papua, New Guinea. She was also known for playing accordion and teaching Austrian dance with her sister, Rosmarie, at the Stowe ski lodge her family opened after arriving in the United States.
