Wilma Wadsworth Halterman, 83

Wilma was born in Jefferson, Iowa to Lee Leslie Wadsworth and Grace Ogden Wadsworth the night of March 1, 1938, as the family moved off a rented farm to a rental home in town. Two siblings awaited her arrival, Beryl age 13, and Bill age 11. Wilma was the first Wadsworth child to be born in a hospital. The new Greene County Hospital had been completed the first of January 1938.

In 1941 the family moved to 400 North Vine where they had purchased a house. This house was located across the street from the grade school. Not too many years later, maybe four or five, someone wanted to buy that house. The search for a different house turned up the one next door north so they moved from a corner lot to the second lot in the 400 block of Vine Street.

Wilma attended all her school years at the Jefferson schools, graduating in 1956. Following graduation, she attended the University of Wyoming from 1956 – 1958. In 1958 she accepted a teaching position in Churdan, Iowa. Her mother taught fifth grade in the same building where Wilma taught second grade.

It's time to backtrack a bit and mention that Wilma met her future husband Al Halterman at a Christmas party held by a classmate. Al was at that party, but Wilma was with someone else. The next morning Wilma’s phone rang, and the classmate (party host) asked if Wilma would come back and could Al pick her up? Wilma said “yes” and thus began the romance of Al and Wilma back in December 1957.

By June 1958 Al had proposed marriage and presented the engagement ring to Wilma, who readily agreed. They married in Lincoln, Nebraska with both sets of parents present. Gerald Halterman, Al’s brother, and wife Edith stood up with Al and Wilma.

They lived for a short time in the upstairs of Wilma’s parents’ home while Al traveled to a construction job in Cherokee, Iowa and Wilma remained behind to teach school at Churdan, Iowa. By early Spring they had purchased a trailer home so they could take their home with them as they moved around from Sioux City, Iowa to Lincoln, Nebraska, to Omaha, Nebraska.

Their first child, Jeffrey, was born in Lincoln, Nebraska in August 1959. The family moved to an Omaha trailer court where they lived until May 1960 when the trailer court was flooded out and their trailer was ruined. Then it was two rental homes before buying a house in Omaha. Son, Thomas Scott, was born in May of 1961. They bought their first home a few months after Tom was born. In 1963, a stillborn daughter was delivered. Her name was to be Hope. In 1964 their last child, Michael Todd, was born.

Jeff attended kindergarten and first grade in the Omaha Schools. All three sons graduated from Papillion High School and all three attended college at the University of Nebraska schools. Jeff and Tom attended in Lincoln while Mike attended one year at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. Jeff joined the United States Marine Corps after graduating and spent 20 years as a Marine, before retiring and working at a Marine Base as a civilian. Tom came to the University of Nebraska at Omaha where he earned his master’s degree. Mike left college after one year and entered the working world.

Wilma worked at various jobs of the years from teaching school to working in a bank. She was able to be at home for the sons while they lived at home.

In 1978, Al was invited to join Economy Forms Corporation as a Field Service Representative. He traveled around the country and was home most weekends, depending how far away her was. Wilma was able to tag along with him on occasion.

Al retired from his job at EFCO in September of 2001. By 2003, EFCO called and asked him to come out of retirement and work part-time for them covering jobs all over the United States and Far East. That lasted until the end of 2008 when they purchased a large motorhome and traveled to many of the jobs. In between time they went to see locations of interest to them. What fun that was for them! By 2012 they sold their motorhome and stayed in Papillion, Nebraska, putting down their retirement roots.

Wilma passed away at her home in Papillion, Nebraska on Monday, August 30, 2021, at the age of 83 years. No funeral service is planned.