Surnames: Grambort, Christensen, Goldamer, Horn, Hoffman, Johnson, Gosse, Miller, Peterson, Steffen, Schraufnagel, Lindberg, Kleinstick, Ellerman, Hinke, Jolivette, Leichtnam, Colby, Price, Arneson, Lieders, Doyle, Guetschow, Reyer

----Source: Abbotsford Tribune (Abbotsford, Clark Co., Wisconsin) 03/07/1940

Grambort, Gerald (29 Apr. 1929 - 2 Mar. 1940)

Gerald Grambort, age 10, son of Mr. and Mrs. Walter Grambort, was fatally injured Saturday morning, when his skull was crushed between a light cattle truck and the swinging door of the Harold Christensen barn on the Charles Goldamer farm.

Ralph Horn, who is employed by Harold Christensen and his cousin, Gerald Grambort, drove to Prentice Saturday morning, loaded a cow and returned to the Goldamer farm about eleven o’clock to unload it. As the truck drove into the yard, Gerald stepped off to open the swinging doors.

Bud Goldamer, who was in the barn, heard the truck and opened the doors. While Gerald was standing by one of the open swinging doors he was struck by the backing truck which crushed his head between the back of the truck and the door.

They immediately placed the injured boy into the truck and rushed to the doctor’s office. Mr. Grambort happened to be outside the office and upon seeing the boys sensed they were carrying his own son. Mr. Grambort is also employed by Mr. Christensen.

Upon finding the doctor out the father took the boy to the Colby Clinic where medical aid was given but he had apparently expired on the way in, about fifteen minutes after the accident happened.

Born in Colby, Wisconsin on April 29, 1929, Gerald Everett Grambort had spent his entire life in the Colby and Abbotsford communities and was a 5th grade pupil in the Abbotsford Public School at the time of his death. He was the oldest of four children.

Surviving are his parents; two brothers, Ronald, 8, and James, 3 a sister, Darlene, 6; his maternal grandmother, Mrs. Ida Reyer, and his paternal grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Fred Grambort, Colby, Wis.

The funeral services were conducted Tuesday afternoon at 1:30 o’clock at the Grambort home and at 2:00 o’clock at the Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church at Colby, Wis. The Rev. H. O. Hoffman officiated at the services. Children from Colby sang hymns during the church service. Internment was made in the Colby (Colby, Clark Co. Wis.) Cemetery.

Classmates acted as pallbearers; Jackie Gosse, Glendon Johnson, Melvin Miller, Arthur Peterson, Richard Steffen, Allen Schraufnagel.

The floral offerings including many from the school, were carried by fifth and sixth grade pupils, Ruby Lindberg, Shirley and Betty Kleinstick, Loretta Ellerman, Donna Hinke, Betty Jolivette, Margaret Leichtnam, Wilma Colby, Phyllis Pries, Maurine Lieders.

Out-of-town relatives included Fred and Edwin Grambort, Miss Malena Grambort, Miss Edna Grambort, Mrs. Ed Doyle and son, Dick, all of Chicago; Mr. and Mrs. Everett Grambort, Milwaukee; Mr. and Mrs. Louis Arneson and daughter Marjorie, Minneapolis; Mrs. Josephine Horn, Ladysmith; and Mr. and Mrs. Hubert Grambort and family, Mr. and Mrs. Fred Grambort, and Mr. and Mrs. Lester Guetschow, Colby, Wis.