Edna Anna, the daughter of Hugo & Anna (Waller) Grau, was born on May 7, 1921, in Audubon County. Edna then moved with her family to Manilla when she was four years old. Her siblings included Walter, Amanda, Bernice, Hugo, Jr. and Ralph. She remembers playing outside a lot with her brothers, Hugo and Ralph, and some friends. The games they played were “Hide‐N‐Seek”, “Washington Punch”, “Red Light, Green Light”, “Annie, Annie Over”, “Jacks”, and “Marbles”. They also had stilts that her brother Hugo had made. The popular thing to do when the weather was nice was to roll a hoop around town. In the winter, she’d go sledding on a homemade sled that Hugo had made. The Dyson hill was THE HILL to go down with her friends. The card games they played were mainly “Hearts” or “Rummy”. When Edna was seven or eight years old she had to help with the chores of feeding the hens and chickens that her folks had in their backyard in Manilla. She had a pet black and white chicken that she named “Betty”; and whenever she’d call her name, the chicken would run to her and sit down for her. During the summers, the kids al met at the swimming hole down by “Schram’s Park”. Edna was about ten or eleven years old when she’d wear her brother’s overalls and an old blouse. The overalls weren’t cut off so they got very heavy when they got wet! This was typical bathing attire for the girls at that time since they didn’t have swimsuits. When Edna was a junior at Manilla High School the Grau family moved to Bayard because of her dad’s railroad job. They only lived there for six weeks before moving to Earling where she completed her high school education and graduated in 1939. She was with some of her girlfriends at a park in Earling when she met her future husband, Francis Mitzel, who was from South Dakota but was working for the railroad. She ordered her wedding gown ($12) and veil ($5) from a mail order catalog! They got married on November 27, 1940, at the St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Earling and it would have been a very small wedding except that all the school children were in attendance, too. The meal afterwards for the wedding party and a few relatives was in her parents’ home. Francis had to be gone a lot for various work assignments so Edna remained in Earling to be closer to her parents. After a while, Francis and Edna bought a small trailer so she could go with him during the warm months of the year. Their first daughter, Janet was born on April 12, 1942, in Earling. By the time Karen was born on April 8, 1945, the family had moved to Manilla as Edna’s parents had already moved back there. Edna has remained in Manilla since that time. Edna is probably best known in the community for her 29 ½ years as a cook for the Manilla School’s hot lunch program. She started working there in 1956 and became the head cook in 1974. On Wednesdays, she’d be at the school by 5:15 a.m. to start making 1,200 cinnamon rolls or buns. She thought it was great when the kids would come back for seconds since that meant they liked the food she’d helped to prepare. Francis died on September 11, 1977 from lung cancer. Luckily, Edna had her job, though. She continued to work until she retired in 1986. She still hears compliments from former students about their favorite hot lunch foods. She truly enjoyed her job at the school even though it was a lot of hard work making everything “from scratch”. Being a former basketball player herself and growing up with brothers, Edna always enjoyed sports. Working at the school enhanced her enthusiasm when attending the home Manilla High School basket or football games. In her later years, she’d be glued to her radio to listen to the I.K.M. sports broadcasts. Material things didn’t hold a big significance to Edna but her family is her most treasured possession. Janet married Jim Goeser on December 2, 1961; and they became the parents of Chris (deceased), Carri (Glenn) Kernes, Jay (Mary Beth), and Jeff (Chris). Jim and Jan are retired now and reside in Harland. Karen married Ralph Lampman on August 20, 1966. They are retired and live in Arcadia. Edna’s great grandchildren are Jamie (Jessica) Naramore, Kyle Ledford, Ana, and Alexi (Deceased) Kernes. Edna great‐
great grandchildren are Sam, Lottie, and Levi Naramore and her step great‐grandson is Kai Kernes. Many years ago, Edna had hobbies of embroidery and ceramics. Probably her most challenging and beautiful ceramic projects involved making complete, colorful nativity sets for her daughters, Karen and Janet. She enjoyed playing cards or Yahtzee with her friends, bowling, attending meetings, and traveling on bus trips or with family members. Whatever she did, though, she had fun in the process! For almost 70 years Edna was a member of Manilla’s unit of the American Legion Auxiliary. She was president four times before 1995 and then held the office of president from 1995 until the organization was disbanded. She’s sold hundreds of poppies over the years! Edna is still a member of the Manning chapter of the Ladies Auxiliary to the Veterans of Foreign Wars. She came up with the idea of displaying the deceased American Veterans’ flags in flag holders at the Manilla Memorial Hall. Other volunteers have helped her vision become a reality. Edna has been a faithful member of the Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Manilla and until recent years, was an active member of the Altar society. She took her turn preparing funeral dinners and helping with Bingo at the Manilla Manor. She is still a member of the Catholic Daughters. Being ecumenically minded, however, she enjoyed attending and supporting the fundraisers of the other denomination in the area too. For the Manilla Area Historical Association (MAHA) fundraisers, she was involved in feeding the multitudes by mixing up the pancake batter for their breakfasts or helping to serve luncheons at the Klondike. When RAGBRAI went through Manilla several years ago, she was practically covered in white from the pancake flower! Whenever they needed food for something, Edna helped provide it or she would be there to help serve it. The Manilla High School class of 1939 hadn’t had a reunion until it was time for their fifty‐year reunion. Although Edna had actually graduated from another school, she was on the planning committee for this and then put in charge! It was at their fifty‐five‐year class reunion in 1990 that she and Virgil Boyens, a widower, became attracted to each other……and he became her “significant other”! They enjoyed spending time with their families, attending plays at the Okoboji Summer Theater, going to the casinos, and dining out. Because of his ill health, Virgil moved to the Manilla Manor in April of 2016. They didn’t like being apart so Edna moved there a few weeks later in May of 2016. They appreciate the care they receive and really enjoy the meals there. Of course, they especially enjoy having visitors. Edna enjoys the church services, exercise class, and playing Bingo. She is 96 years old but still has fairly good health and is still famous for her great hugs!