GENEVIEVE HUEBSCH GRATZ

Genevieve Huebsch Gratz Genevieve Huebsch Gratz, a pillar of the Libertyville community, passed away peacefully at home on Saturday, July 3, 2010, at the age of 98. Genevieve was preceded in death by parents, Lewis and Sarah Huebsch (nee Wagstaff); brother, Lloyd Huebsch; husband, Wayne Gratz; and daughter, Margaret Audrey Evers (formerly Silver). She is survived by her daughter, Catherine Gratz Griffin of Lake Forest; five grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. Grandchildren are Sara (Tyler) Traband of Brookfield, Wis., Kenneth (Anne) Griffin of Chicago, Ill., Dr. Rhett Silver of Chicago, Ill., Loren (Dr. Traci) Griffin and Kelly (Steven) Presti of Newburyport, Mass. Great-grandchildren are Simone Genevieve and Sawyer Traband, Alexandra and Amanda Griffin and John Wesley "Wes" Griffin. Known to her friends as "Gen" she was loved and respected by generations of business people and residents of Lake County. Born in 1911, Genevieve was proud to live her life as, "The Farmer's Daughter," the title of the autobiography she penned in 1982. Her life story is now part of the collection of the Mundelein Historical Center. Genevieve and her only boyfriend Wayne Gratz graduated from Libertyville High School in 1929. They were high school sweethearts. In the Nautilus, their senior yearbook, they expressed their mutual feelings of love; Genevieve wrote, "Steady and true as the stars that shine - to Wayne" and Wayne wrote "Oh, Genevieve, Sweet Genevieve." The couple was married on Aug. 17, 1932. Wayne and Genevieve spent nearly 31 meaningful and wonderful years together until Wayne died on Aug. 9, 1963 of a sudden and acute illness. During their time together, they were true partners in life. Wayne and Genevieve had two daughters, Margaret Audrey Evers, born on Jan. 14, 1943 and Catherine Alice Griffin, born on Dec. 9, 1947. Genevieve and Wayne farmed more than 200 acres in the area. They owned and operated Wayne Gratz Oil Company in Libertyville, which served the needs of local families. As a couple, Genevieve and Wayne would travel to the Upper Peninsula in Michigan, where Wayne would hunt for birds with Genevieve as his hunting companion. They found joy in each other, in their work and in their daughters. When Wayne passed away, Genevieve wrote that, "Five Men, beautifully dressed, arrived from the Continental Illinois Bank in Chicago, saying that Wayne had left the property in trust. They had a buyer for our oil business and would I please sign on the dotted line ... Thirty years - thirty, long, hard fun-filled years swirled in front of me ... I casually looked up and said, 'Not one of you knows an oil can from a soup can. I will keep the business. If I fail, I will solve my own problems.'" Genevieve, in 1963, took it upon herself to run not only the oil business, but also the farm. Genevieve, endearingly referred to by her grandchildren as "Gwag," took much pleasure in the lives of her grandchildren. Like she did as a mother, she strove to impart her values and principles upon her grandchildren. She believed that integrity, honesty and hard work were the bedrock of success. She saw to it that each of her daughters and grandchildren graduated from college. From "The Farmer's Daughter," the closing quote she included was from an old Irish prayer: "Take time to work, it is the price of success. Take time to think, it is the source of power. Take time to play, it is the secret of perpetual youth. Take time to be friendly, it is the road to happiness. Take time to love and be loved, it is the privilege of the gods. Take time to share, life is too short to be selfish. Take time to laugh. Laughter is the music of the soul." Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, July 7, at Burnett-Dane Funeral Home Ltd., 120 W. Park Ave. (Route 176, one block west of Milwaukee Ave.), Libertyville. Services will be held 11 a.m. Thursday, July 8, at United Methodist Church of Libertyville, 429 Brainerd Ave. A private family burial will follow. Memorial gifts to the Paramedic Units of the Mundelein and Libertyville Fire Departments were her wishes. For information, 847-362-3009.