22 Jan 1919 OH - 15 Apr 2011 OH
Daughter of Thomas K. Mark &
Wife of Alvin Henry Braun
Mother of Ann & Alvina
Sister of my paternal grandmother, Ivy Mark Brown
My great aunt
Wava was the youngest child of Thomas and Regina Mark. Her oldest sister, Isabell, was 16 when Wava was born in 1919. Wava appears in the 1920 census at eleven months old.[1]In the 1930 census she was eleven years old and attending school.[2]
When Wava was a little girl she had chores. She said she stood on a stool to wash dishes. She remembered taking bathes in a big tub on the kitchen floor. Wava also remembered a neighbor lady who let them ride her old horse. Wava said, “Clarence and I’d go on down the road and we’d stand on the gate to get on the horse.” She said her family had a cow and chickens.[3]
Wava remembered the street cars in Wadsworth. Wava and her mother took the street cars as the first step on their way to visit her mother’s sister. She wrote,
When I was five my mother took me and we walked down Prospect St. to where the street car ran across our road and we got on the street car and went to Wooster, Ohio. We changed to a train and went to Fort Wayne, Indiana and changed trains and went to Grand Rapids, Michigan. Rephenia’s husband, Willis, picked us up in a truck. While we were there we went swimming (playing) in the water. A big wave pulled me in and some swimmers pulled me out.[4]
Wava’s niece, Genevieve (Brown) Wieland, remembered her aunt coming to visit her parents’ Ohio home. Genevieve was about six years old and Wava was a teenager. Wava would come to their house on weekends to help her older sister, Ivy, to clean her house. These visits had a double purpose. Not only did she help her older sister, she was also able to meet Alvin Braun. Wava’s mother was very strict and not always in favor of these meetings.[5]
Wava married Alvin H. Braun on 11 January 1941.[6] She was living with her parents at 181 Bergy Street, Wadsworth, Ohio at the time.
Wava and Alvin lived on their farm at 9846 Lee Road in Seville, Ohio for over 50 years. Wava never drove a car but she could drive a tractor on their farm.[7]She did not slow down as she got older. In April 1994 Wava wrote,
I helped with the church Rummage Sale. That takes at least three days getting ready. Then Alvin was trying to get the chicken yard moved, so between him and I we managed that. Our neighbor plowed the garden so I want to plant potatoes. It has been too cold nights to plant much yet.[8]
In August 1994 Viola wrote,
I had so many beans I gave them away, canned 46 Pints and 26 pints red beets, froze Swiss Chard, Broccoli, Cauliflower. Canned elderberries yesterday. Hoping to get a lot of tomatoes but nights are down in the 50s.”[9]
In 1995 Wava gave a big family picnic for Alvin’s 80th birthday.[10]
About 1998 there was a fire in the Braun’s farm house. The fire began in a motorized chair for Alvin. The chair would rise up to assist Alvin in sitting and standing. The fire began in the motor of the chair. Wava got her husband up quickly and out of their house. In a Christmas card Wava wrote, “I suppose you heard about our fire, burned out the whole down stairs. Glad to say mostly fixed up and a lot different.”[11] In a November 1999 letter Wava wrote, “Thankful we are back in our home. But that was a year ago. The house is about as good as it is going to get, after the fire.”[12]
Alvin died 4 June 2000.[13]Wava wrote, “I had a long hard time taking care of him. He couldn’t even get from his chair unless I had two hands on him and if he fell I had to call the rescue squad to get him up.”[14]His obituary said,
Alvin H. Braun, 84, of Seville, died Sunday, June 4, 2000, at Medina General Hospital. He was born in Kent and was a Medina County resident for 58 years. He was a 50 - year member of the Guilford Grange and a past master. He was also a member of the Farm Bureau and United Methodist Church of Seville. He lived and farmed in Seville for 58 years. He is survived by his wife of 59 years, Wava Braun of Seville; daughters, Ann (John) Long of Wadsworth and Jane (Dick) Perry of Rittman; sister, Leona Webb of Sacherts, N. Y.; six grandsons; one granddaughter; and seven great - grandsons. Service: 11 a. m. Wednesday at Seville United Methodist Church, West Main St. The Rev. Philip Wilden will officiate. Burial: Mound Hill Cemetery, Seville. The family suggests memorial contributions be made to Seville United Methodist Church, P. O. Box 32, Seville, 44273.[15]
In July 2005 Wava wrote, “I am still on the farm alone. A good friend or Ann take me to get groceries. I have a walker. I use it to get to the mail box.”[16]Her land was farmed by others. They did the planting and harvesting that Wava and Alvin once did. In 2007 she wrote, “My corn field is tall. Can’t see up the road.”[17]The barns, hen house, and smokehouse are still there but not used. Wava kept in touch with most of the family and enjoyed visits with cousins, nieces and nephews from all branches of our family. Anyone passing through the area was invited in for a friendly visit. Warm hospitality could always be found at the Braun farm.
In 2009 Wava moved out of her farmhouse to live in a house on the farm of her daughter, Ann. Ann and her family could help take care of her there. In the fall she moved to Apostolic Christian Home in Rittman.[18]In 2010 she was doing well and enjoying visits from her family.
Wava, the youngest child of Thomas and Regina Mark, died 15 April 2011. Her obituary in the Daily Record said:
Wava A. Braun, 92, passed away April 15, 2011 at the Apostolic Christian Home. She was born near River Styx to Thomas and Regina Mark. Wava married Alvin Braun in 1941 and they lived their life on a farm in Guilford Township. Wava was a very active member of the Seville United Methodist Church. She volunteered in many church activities but especially enjoyed the children. She served as Sunday school superintendent, teacher, secretary and was active in the United Methodist Women’s group and the Unity class. Wava also enjoyed embroidery. She was active in the Farm Bureau and Grange. She is survived by daughters Ann (John) Long of Wadsworth and A. Jane Perry of Rittman; seven grandchildren; 20 great-grandchildren; and two great-great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband on June 4, 2000.
[1]1920 U. S. Census, Medina County, Ohio; Volume 147, ED 67, Sheet 5, Line 37, Family History Center Microfilm # 1821417: Thomas K. Mark, Head of Household.
[2]1930 U. S. Census, Guilford, Medina County, Ohio, Sheet 11B. Thomas Mark.
[3]“Interviews with Wava (Mark) Braun”.
[4]Letter from Wava (Mark) Braun (9846 Lee Road, Seville, Ohio) to author July 2005.
[5]“Interviews with Genevieve (Brown) Wieland.”
[6]Record of Marriage for Wava A. Mark and Alvin H. Braun, 11 January 1941, Medina County Probate Court, Medina, Ohio.
[7]“Interviews with Delbert K. Brown.”
[8]Letter from Wava (Mark) Braun (9846 Lee Road, Seville, Ohio) to author,
30 April 1994.
[9]Ibid.
[10]Letter from Wava (Mark) Braun (9846 Lee Road, Seville, Ohio) to author
1995.
[11]Letter from Wava (Mark) Braun (9846 Lee Road, Seville, Ohio) to author,
December 1998.
[12]Letter from Wava (Mark) Braun (9846 Lee Road, Seville, Ohio) to author ,
25 November 1999.
[13]Certificate of Death for Alvin H. Braun, 4 June 2000, Ohio Department of Health, Vital Statistics, Medina County Health Department, 4800 Ledgewood Drive, Medina, Ohio.
[14]Letter from Wava (Mark) Braun (9846 Lee Road, Seville, Ohio) to author 2 November 2000.
[15]"Alvin H. Braun." Medina County Gazette June 5, 2000: 2A. From Medina County Library, 210 S. Broadway St., Medina, Ohio.
[16]Letter from Wava (Mark) Braun (9846 Lee Road, Seville, Ohio) to author, July 2005.
[17]Letter from Wava (Mark) Braun (9846 Lee Road, Seville, Ohio) to author 1 July 2007.
[18]Letter from Ann (Braun) Long (2619 Reimer Road, Wadsworth, Ohio) to author, 20 December 2009.
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I love everything about this post! Simple little details here and there paint a wonderful picture of Wava from her early years to the end. Having HER words makes this an A+ post.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your kind words, Wendy.
ReplyDeleteSorry, as my google account isn’t syncing for some reason, so apparently this will only be an “anonymous “ comment. My name is Lisa J Meade. My grandmother, Veda Mae Remsnyder, was best friends with Wava her senior year of high school and spoke fondly of her!
ReplyDelete