Larae Marilyn Vawser

LaRae Marilyn Vawser, 88, of Fairbury, Nebraska, passed away on April 17, 2023, at Gardenside Long Term Care.  She was born at her Grandma Huetig’s house near Laurel, Nebraska, on April 21, 1934, to Edna Laura Louise (Huetig) and Orlin Marvin Wegner.  After graduating from Bloomfield High School in 1952, she taught in a Knox County one room school for two years. She married her high school sweetheart, Lowell Wesley Vawser, on December 2, 1953, while he was home on leave from the Army. LaRae finished the school year before joining Lowell in Georgia.

After Lowell was discharged from the Army in 1955, he and LaRae farmed near Bloomfield for four years. Then, they purchased the Oxnard Hotel in Norfolk, Nebraska. In 1964, they traded the Norfolk business for a larger hotel, the MaryEtta, in Fairbury. That is where they began working in food service. In 1973, they moved out of the MaryEtta and opened the Stable, a popular steakhouse just a half block away from the hotel.

For several years, while her three children were in school, LaRae took classes at Fairbury Junior College and, eventually, Concordia Teachers College (now Concordia University) in Seward, Nebraska.  She was 40 when she graduated from Concordia with a degree in elementary education.  After that, she taught third, fourth, and fifth graders at the Endicott school for one year. Although she loved teaching, Lowell needed her help to manage the Stable, which was always busy and much more successful than they had ever anticipated. So after that, LaRae was content with working as an occasional substitute teacher for the Fairbury schools.

Lowell and LaRae retired in 1998. They enjoyed living on an acreage on the edge of Fairbury, where LaRae loved growing flowers, canning the fruits and vegetables Lowell grew in his garden, watching the birds, and taking daily walks. She painted beautiful oil paintings, mostly of Nebraska animals and landscapes, and worked on several murals and community painting projects in Fairbury. From the time they were teens, she and Lowell loved dancing together. Eventually, LaRae taught ballroom dancing, even teaching her grandchildren to dance. She was passionate about history and visiting historical sites, passing that love on to her children and grandchildren. She was an avid reader for her whole life, until her eyesight failed.

LaRae was a Girl Scout leader and Cub Scout den mother. She taught Sunday School and Vacation Bible School at her church. She was an active member of Grace Lutheran Church and the Lutheran Women’s Missionary League (LWML), Fairbury Art Guild, and Beta Sigma Phi. She was trained as a Stephen Minister, and took joy in spending time with shut-ins and friends who lived in nursing homes. She enjoyed attending and leading countless Bible studies. She loved visiting the family ranch near Gordon, Nebraska, where she was fond of hiking, cooking on a wood stove, and spending time with family.

LaRae is survived by her daughters, Janet (William) Bauer and Laura (Kent) Gilbert; son,  Daniel (Sharon) Vawser; granddaughters, Erin Bauer (Reed Tyler), Meagan (Andy) Stobel, Victoria Bauer (Caleb Schank), Katie (Bobby) Smith, and Melody (Jesse) Findley; grandsons, Levi Bauer, Wesley (Ashley) Scherbarth, and Casey Gilbert; seven great-granddaughters and seven great-grandsons, with three more great-grandchildren on the way; brother-in-law, Lyle (Marlene) Vawser; sisters-in-law, Rose Vawser, Marjorie (Norman) Winder, and  Marilyn (Karl) Harig; and numerous nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by Lowell, her husband  of 68 years; her parents; parents-in-law, Glen William and Alice Marjorie Vawser;  sister, Ellen Wegner; brother, Gary Wegner;  sisters-in-law, Ruth Vawser and Teddy Mae (Vern) Larson; brother-in-law, Leland Vawser; daughter-in-law, Patricia Vawser; grandson, Lowell L. Vawser;  granddaughter, Kelly Gilbert; great-granddaughter, Ellie Scherbarth; niece, Sharon Pfeifer; and nephew, Alan Winder.

Visitation will be on Sunday, April 23, from 3:00-5:00 p.m. at Gerdes-Meyer Funeral Home, 2414 H Street, in Fairbury, Nebraska. A memorial service will be held on Monday, April 24, at 10:30 a.m. at Grace Lutheran Church, 1100 G Street, in Fairbury, with burial to follow at the Fairbury Cemetery. The memorial service will be livestreamed on the “Grace Lutheran Church of Fairbury, Nebraska” Facebook page, and will also be available there for later viewing. Memorials may be given to Grace Lutheran Church or the Fairbury Art Guild. Gerdes-Meyer Funeral Home is assisting with arrangements. www.gerdesmeyerfh.com

“I lift up my eyes to the hills. Where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.” Psalm 121:1-2