Awilda M. O'Brien

Awilda M. O'Brien, Wilda, as her friends and family knew her, was born in Kirkville, Iowa on Oct. 29, 1933. She passed peacefully at home Dec. 10, 2017 at age 84.

Wilda was the daughter of Mearl Moore, who worked for the railroad, and Madeline Moore, a homemaker. The rural community of Kirkville had a one-room school house where she was always an excellent student, becoming the Wapello County Spelling Bee Champion. She went on to Ottumwa High School, where she graduated at the top of her class of 1950 at the age of 17.

After high school, she worked a short time as a telephone operator before j...