I just had to share my Aunt Anna Rapp's 17 year old diary entry for today. She is such a hoot!!

September 30, 1941
Up qt 7:00. Ate. To school. Had some fun today.Went down to the furnace room and talked to Tadpole.(current boyfriend) Edyth went along. Silly. Had a ball game after school at Beaver Dam We won 6to8. Good game after supper Mary A. and I went with Gib A. and Red W. Tony P. to Mentone. Knocked on doors and asked how to find Burket. (they all knew how to find Burket). More fun. Came home. Washed and fixed hair. To bed.

My cousin Ron Rapp sent this letter about Aunt Count that was read at her funeral. Thanks Ron and thanks Larry.

My fondest memories from childhood are similar to my brother, Larry's. Home-made cherry pie, grocery store right across the street, their dog Skippy with the constant oil streak on his back from sleeping under the car, outhouse for 'day use' and chamber pot for 'night use', large yard where we kids could play, and of course, the active train tracks within a stone's throw. Aunt Ina Mae was always so 'kid friendly' - very tolerant, patient, and caring.

As an adult, I remember visiting Burket with my wife, Dorothy, and our family of three children. How Aunt Ina Mae would laugh when we would hear the trains coming, scurry to place a penny or two on the tracks, and then attempt to locate the coins after the train passed. She would always cook something special if she knew we were coming (even if we requested she not bother). Once my Dad passed away in 1987, I realized just how much Aunt Ina Mae reminded me of him - similarities in appearance, sound, values, etc. Eventually, during each visit, the conversation would turn to Aunt Ina Mae telling us stories of growing up with our Dad, or of receiving letters from him when he was in the Air Force. You could pretty much track what was important in her life, just by reading the notations on that calendar that hung on her kitchen wall. She remained mentally sharp through the last of our visits, and could recall so many details of her younger days.

In our living room, Dorothy still has the Christmas cactus that started from a sprout given to us by Aunt Ina Mae. I'll likely pause each time I pass by that plant, and smile each time it gives off those pink blossoms. Life's journey has ended, Aunt Ina Mae, but many of us were blessed by your presence. Enjoy eternity with your heavenly Father (and say hello to my Dad)!

From cousin Larry Rapp

I asked Larry to send me his favorite memories of my aunt Count. His dad was Wayne . Count always said Wayne was the one who gave her the nick name but I guess he wanted his children to show respect by calling her Auntie Ina Mae.

Aunt Ina Mae

Oh, yes.., I remember my Aunt Ina Mae. I was born just about the time this picture was taken… back in 1947. My dad told my brother and sister and I she was our “Aunt Ina Mae”…. But most other folks knew her as Count. I guess he used to call his sister Ina Mae back on the farm when they were kids.

Some of the things I remember best about my Aunt Ina Mae include:

· She had a cherry tree in her backyard. And she made this delicious cherry pie. She came to know that I loved that cherry pie. When we would come down from Michigan for a visit, she always fixed me up with some cherry pie. It will always be the best I have ever tasted.

· The Nickel Plate Road ran right by Count and Shorty’s house. When I was a kid, I loved watching the steam engines chug by. I didn’t like the outdoor loo that much, though.

· Aunt Ina Mae and Aunt Anna always sent us kids a Christmas Package…. And she never forgot to send me a birthday card. I think she sent them to all of us.

· She introduced me to my Rapp family genealogy. She had lots of old pictures…. And never tired of telling me who was in them. Later, she hooked me up with my cousin Jim…. After which I traveled to Wittenberg, PA to find the house and grave of my great-great-great grandfather George.

· Of greatest distinction, she showed her kind heart by caring for her dying sister Anna for the final months of her life.

Thank you for everything Aunt Ina Mae. I loved you. Larry Rapp

A tribute to Count

MY aunt Ina Mae (Count Kiefer) died last night. I am sad about the loss of her personality and family memory. However she was in such pain and misery and although she could not speak she knew what was going on to the last.
Count never traveled very far from home. She did not seem to need anything beyond Northern Indiana or Southern Michigan. She valued and kept her early friendships. Baking was easy for her and she was very good in the kitchen. I never tasted custard pie that was any better- even my grandma Grace Anglin did not top her. After her husband died she spent alot more time with her sister Anna -then moved in with her to care for her through her illness. Anna was so lucky to have her there so she did not have to endure the nursing home. We will all miss her sharp opinions and sometimes salty observances.

Happy B-day

Hey! today is my birthday and I am so thankful to be walking up-town to the bank and coffee. It is beautiful out and hopefully will rain later this afternoon . If he remembers it my " gentleman friend" is taking me out for prime rib. In my aunt Anna's diary for this day she does not mention that her little niece has a birthday because seventeen year old girls have lots to think about-just like now. Her major complaint is that it is boring in Rochester where she lives and she wishes she were still in Detroit where she spent most of the summer and things are hoppin'. She did get to see a movie "Road to Singapore" and ate at the Candy Kitchen . I remember the Candy Kitchen and wish I could still go there but it is now " The Chocolate Shop " and a serious old lady runs it instead of a couple of funny old Greek guys. Some change is good- some not so much.

Movies in the 30s and early 40s

I admit that when I was a child living at 315 N. Washington, My brother and I attended way too many movies. Of course this was late 40s but even the first run movies (we did not get very many), were relatively innocent compared to today. Sometimes on a week-end we would see a double feature in both theaters. The Strand had more B run movies but had local news because the theater owner was Mr. Boyce who could be seen at all the games and special events to add to his presentations. The Centennial , on Center street was fancier and showed newer movies. Back then there was a new movie title every week, sometimes every few days.
Anyway, it seems that in the 1930s movie magazines were in their prime. Girls would collect them and cut out their favorites to post on their walls or paste in scrap books. I remember passing countless hours looking through Aunt Bette Anglin's detailed movie scrapbooks when I was a girl. She had assembled these as an early teen, I am sure, and they ended up at Grandma Graces for some reason. The movies depicted were no longer seen except maybe at an outdoor free show. In any event, some of these movies are considered classics now and are shown on TV.
My favorite of all time is "Bringing up Baby". Silly funny shtick with Katherine Hepburn and Cary Grant. My favorite John Wayne era movie is not a western but "The Quiet Man" with a way younger than she looked, Maureen O'Hara.
In Aunt Anna Rapp.s seventeen year old diary written in the 1940s mentions a lot of movies she went to mostly on week-ends. Here is a short list: Bittersweet with Janette McDonald and Nelson Eddy, Love Thy Neighbor with Jack Benny and, Fred Allen and Mary Martin, Kitty Foyle with Ginger Rogers and Dennis Morgan, Andy Hardy- Private Secretary with Andy Rooney, Penny Serenade with Irene Dunne and Cary Grant. I have seen that one on TV and remember it was a very melodramatic.