Rosalie Kraft, 95, passed away peacefully on December 27, 2014, at Salina Regional Medical Center.
She was hospitalized as a result of a fall, in which her hip and wrist were fractured, and had undergone surgery.  The fall and accompanying surgery proved to be too difficult for her aging body and after several days she succumbed.

Rosalie was born on December 3, 1919, on the family farm, southeast of Grainfield to Balthasar and Cecelia (Zimmerman) Heier.  She attended school in Grainfield and, because of her desire to graduate, completed her high school education in 3 years by taking junior and senior classes simultaneously.

In 1940 she married Anthony (Tony) Kraft; to this union 7 children were born, 6 sons and 1 daughter.

They made their home on the family farm north of Park, Kansas.  In the late 1960’s, an opportunity presented itself.  Tony and Rosalie shifted gears and became business owners when they purchased the Western Auto Store in Grainfield.  They moved there to be closer to the business.
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Rosalie loved working in the store and learned every aspect of its operation.  She especially enjoyed the bookkeeping and the opportunity to visit with customers as they shopped.

As retirement age approached, both Tony and Rosalie decided to try another adventure and became snowbirds—living in Bullhead City, Arizona in the winter and coming back to Grainfield in the summer.  Their backyard swimming pool was the gathering place for many of the local youngsters to learn how to swim during those summers.

In their later years, Tony and Rosalie sold their Grainfield home and moved to an apartment in Wichita to be closer to their handicapped son, Pat.  When it became apparent that they needed a little more assistance, they moved, finally, to an independent living facility in Salina where another son, Jerry and his wife Karen lived.  The facility, Eaglecrest, was where they lived out the rest of their lives.

Tony passed away in 2010 and two sons, Eugene and Patrick also preceded Rosalie in death.
She is survived by 4 sons, Duane and wife Elaine of Jefferson City MO, Leroy and wife Charlotte of Wichita, Jerry and wife Karen of Salina, and Gail and wife Janice of Antioch CA, and 1 daughter Janice (Kraft) Manhart and husband Larry of Grainfield.  She also leaves 20 grandchildren and 45 great grandchildren to mourn her passing.

Rosalie was always very proud of her family and so enjoyed the times they would stop by and visit with her and Tony, if even for a little while.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be 10:00 a.m., Saturday, January 3, 2015 at St. Agnes Catholic Church of Grainfield with Father James Thomas as celebrant. Burial will be in the Grainfield City Cemetery.

Visitation will be Friday, from 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., with a parish vigil service immediately following, at the St. Agnes Religious Education Center in Grainfield.

Memorial contributions are suggested to the Kansans for Life, United Cerebral Palsy and St. Agnes Catholic Church Masses. Checks may be sent in care of Schmitt Funeral Home, 901 South Main, Quinter, KS 67752.