Amalia Bracht

Amalia Helen Bracht, 90, of Canyon, died Monday, April 28, 2003 in Canyon. Services will be at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, May 1, 2003 at St. Ann's Catholic Church in Canyon, with Rev. Phu Phan, pastor, officiating. Vigil and Rosary services will be held at Brooks Chapel on Wednesday, April 30, at 7:00 p.m. Burial will be in St. Mary's Catholic Cemetery, Umbarger, Texas. Amalia Bracht was born October 14, 1912 in Scotland, Texas to John and Louisa Simon of German descent. She was the eighth child and had five brothers and six sisters. She married Windfred Higgins and had four children, Pauline, Buddy, Sadie and Betty. They divorced and she raised the children alone. Buddy died when he was eight years old. She had a lot of hardship at this time. Buddy had a congenital heart defect and Betty was very sick with polio when she was 18 month old. She worked and kept her family together until she met and married Henry Bracht and moved to Umbarger, Texas in 1941. Her children describe her as a person who lived the Corporal Works of Mercy. She fed the people that she saw hungry, whether it was in her home, at a wedding, a funeral, or on the street. When someone was in need of help she would do anything in her power to help them. Her children never felt afraid when she was near. She would calm them when they were sick, she lit a candle and prayed for all their needs when they asked and when they didn't ask. She always fell asleep with a rosary in her hand. She was always there when the church needed her - she cooked when the bishop came, she washed, ironed, made linens and cleaned the church. She brought food for funerals or when people were sick. Her children knew she could do anything. She gave her children and grandchildren strong Christian values, which they are so thankful for. She never had a problem speaking out about something she thought was wrong and going to the person and telling them. She was a lot of fun too. Her hobbies were growing a vegetable garden, a flower garden, and lots of fruit trees; baking bread and cinnamon rolls; crocheting, knitting, quilting and sewing. One of her charity projects was the WTSU Catholic Student Center. She donated quilts that she made and also donated her car to be raffled. She gave to many charities. When she still lived in Umbarger she had a big breakfast every Sunday morning for anyone that came. If someone was having a birthday she would serve wine that she and Henry brewed. Everyone got wine even the children got a tiny bit in a wine glass. Amalia was the best wine maker. When the grandchildren came she stopped her life, it was all about them. Her house became a big tent with blankets spread over chairs so they could crawl thru, or she would let them play in the flour or help with anything she was doing. The grandchildren loved playing with her. She would run with them and play on the floor. She was a fast runner. Her grandsons tell the story of her giving them cigarettes to try, because she knew they would try them eventually, they hated it, and to this day none of them smoke. She taught all the time with her examples and sometimes they were unusual. She loved to walk and would walk to church and then to work as postmaster, almost everyday. To describe her: She never did anything halfway. She worked hard, she played hard, loved hard and prayed with all her heart and soul. The last 7 1/2 years Amalia has been in a nursing home. She had dementia and forgot the names of many friends and relatives but never forgot how to pray to her father in heaven. She moved to Palo Duro Village in Canyon in 1984 and became a member of Saint Ann's Catholic Church. She is preceded in death by her husband, Henry Bracht, one son, Winfred D. Higgins, her father and mother, John & Louisa Simons, and five brothers and sisters. Survivors include three daughters, Pauline Farmer, and husband, Otis, of Las Cr