Allen Arthur Graf (1920 - 2013)

GRAF, KREGER, HARTWIG, BALLOU, ABEYTA, RICKELS

Posted By: Janet A. Brandt (email)
Date: 8/16/2013 at 09:54:07

Allen Arthur Graf
December 1920–April 5, 2013

Allen Arthur Graf, 92, formerly of Olin, passed away on April 5, 2013. A visitation and memorial service was held at Lahey Funeral Home in Olin on Saturday, April 20th. Burial at the Olin Cemetery and luncheon at St. John's Lutheran Church followed.

Allen was born to Walter and Christine Graf on a farm in rural Hale Township in December 1920. He was the youngest of six children. Allen grew up in Olin and attended a country school near Hale (grades 1-3) and Olin Consolidated Schools (grade 4-12), graduating in 1938.

Allen was a proud Navy veteran, spending his Navy career as an aircraft mechanic on the U. S. S. Hampton in California, the South Pacific, and Guadalcanel during World War II. He had very fond memories of his time in the Navy and could remember amazing details of his service duty until the day he died. At age 88 (2009), Allen was able to take part in the Eastern Iowa Honor Flight to Washington D. C.

After the war, he married Marieta Kreger on February 11, 1946 in Olathe, Kansas and they resided and raised their family in Olin all their married lives until moving to a Solon Assisted-Living Center April, 2010. In 1952, Allen became owner/operator of Graf Transportation Co., operating and maintaining the school buses for the Olin School for nineteen years. He always had a special place in his heart for his bus drivers and the children that rode the buses. Allen and his family also owned and operated Graf's Drive-In in Olin from 1962 to 1971 and then operated a DX gas station along I-80 near Atalissa, Iowa from 1974 - 1978. He was also an active member of the Olin Legion and Olin Fire Department for many years.

Allen had a lifelong interest in history and antiques, owning, building and driving several antique cars which he proudly drove in many Olin parades, restoring player pianos, a calliope, and many antiques. He was the ultimate recycler, as there was nothing he couldn't fix or reuse in some way. He also loved traveling and spent many summer vacations driving his family all over the U. S., many times to Colorado, which he continued to do with Marieta until well into his 80's.

Allen has no surviving siblings; he was preceded in death by his parents, his very loving sister who raised him during the Depression, Wilma (Bill) Hartwig, brothers, Wyman (Natalie), Clarence (Verene), Ervin and Leonard. He is also preceded in death by his first child who died at birth, and son, Aric Graf who died in 1995.
Those left to honor and cherish his memory are his wife of sixty-seven years, Marieta, now residing in Solon Assisted-Living; and their children, Robert Graf (Patty) of Anamosa, Lana (Jim) Ballou of Olin, Larry Graf (Cindy) of Marion, Debra (Bernie) Abeyta of Ankeny, Dennis Graf of Cedar Rapids, Jodi (Dan) Rickels of Solon, and Christine Graf of Oswego, Illinois, eleven grandchildren and twenty-one great-grandchildren.

Source: Midland Times, Wyoming, Iowa, 3 May 2013

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