In Memory of Grandma Clara

My sweet Grandma Clara was born 100 years ago on the 14th of September in 1911. She is Madeline's Great-Grandmother, my father's mother. I'm including this in Madeline's blog so hopefully she can read this about her Great-Grandma some day.

Grandma Clara and her siblings were the first generation of her family to be born in America. Her mother and father, Mary and Vincent Zobac, came to America from Czechoslovakia in the late 1800's and settled in Bertram, Iowa where they had a farm and raised 7 children. Clara was the youngest sibling of 4 girls and 3 boys. I'm not sure of the order but the siblings names were William, Edward, Louis, Emma, Rosie, Bessie (who were twins), and then Grandma Clara.

Clara being a farm girl only attended school through the 8th grade, lived on the farm until her late 20's, and didn't marry my grandpa Verne until she was 30. They met while working at Wilson's meat packing plant in Cedar Rapids. He would give her and her roommate rides to and from work. They married on July 4, 1942 in Joplin, Missouri close to where he was stationed in the Army before going off to to the South Pacific during WWII.

Clara gave birth to her first son, my dad Del, in December of 1943. Then my uncle Alan came along a few years later. She spent most of her life as a housewife and stay at home mother.

The pictures above are of Grandma Clara with my dad Del as a toddler. The first one looks like it was taken at the family farm in Bertram. She went to the farm alot as her parents then her three brothers who never married all lived there until they died. I went out to the farm alot as a child as well. I enjoyed chasing chickens, getting to explore the old barn, and remember picking lots of strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries.

I have such fond memories of Grandma Clara. She was a sweet and gentle soul. Very mothering and nurturing. She always felt like a safe place to me. She was rather quiet, not a big chit-chatter, and she got after me when I would try to make her laugh. I could always count on having homemade chocolate chip cookies and strawberry preserves on toast every time I went to her house. And we always had fun games of cards or Scrabble together.

I was only 16 when she passed away at the age of 77 but the times I spent with her were wonderful times and I still miss her and think about her alot. Goodbye Grandma Clara...until we meet again...