Gisela was born in Germany and lived there until age 6 when she moved to the US where she lived in Illinois and Wisconsin. She attended the University of Hawaii. Gisela worked at the U.S. Postal Service and retired as Postmaster at the Placida, FL 33946 post office.

She and husband Duane moved to the islands in 1998. She became involved in the Conservancy because she believes in their mission “to protect our natural environment by ensuring habitat for flora and fauna”. She has served as Publicity Chair for the organization.

Her other interests include scuba diving, reading, and gardening.