10/15/2025
WILMA ELIZABETH LUCAS
Wilma, the second of three girls, was born on November 14. 1909, and was raised on a farm in Bloomfield, Iowa. Wilma graduated from Bloomfield High School in 1927, wanting to study home economics at Iowa State University; however, "my older sister was a student at Ames, the country was in a depression, the family farm was in trouble, so there was not enough money for my college education." Wilma saved the money she earned working in a dental office and driving a school bus, enrolling at Iowa State University in 1928. She worked four years for the Jones family in exchange for room and board, received a P.E.O. student loan and financial aid from the county ($20 dollars a semester), and worked for the highway commission during the summers to help pay for her college tuition. She graduated in 1932 and accepted "my one and only job offer" teaching home economics at Bloomfield High School.
After four years of teaching, Wilma moved to Morrison, Illinois in 1936 to serve as home advisor for the newly organized Whiteside Home Bureau. "Morrison has been a town that was just right for me," she says, "I've made many friends who have become like family."
Wilma and her friend, Wilma Trundy, opened "The Brick House" restaurant on Easter Sunday in 1938. "We charged only sixty-five cents for a three-course dinner and thirty-five cents for lunch. Just to be on the safe side, I kept my day job at the Home Bureau for two more years," she recounts. Wilma Trundy died in 1950, and Wilma continued as the sole proprietor of the restaurant until 1975, when she sold the business. For thirty-seven years, patrons came from miles around to enjoy Wilma's famous peanut brittle, watermelon pickles, orange rolls, and "The Brick House" French dressing.
Being a restaurateur did not leave Wilma with very much free time for hobbies. "In the late 40's, I became fascinated with aviation. You might say that flying was in my blood for about five years," she laughs. Wilma earned her pilot's license in 1948. "In my younger years, I was occasionally able to sneak away for a round of golf on a Sunday afternoon or a Wednesday evening," she recalls. Also, she had a shop in the basement of "The Brick House" where she refinished antique furniture and recaned chairs. Playing bridge, reading, knitting, and counted cross-stitch have been other leisure pursuits. Wilma has been a member of Watanye since 1936. After retirement, Wilma became more actively involved in the life and work of the First Presbyterian Church.
Chapter FL sisters are grateful to Wilma for giving Morrison the gift of P.E.O. Wilma is the only surviving charter member of the P.E.O. Sisterhood, Chapter FL. Wilma remembers, "Jennie Craddock and Ruth Caughery had invited me to attend a few of their P.E.O. chapter meetings in Sterling. Jane and Ruth really wanted to start a chapter in Morrison, and I was interested. Another charter member, Doris Melton, was friendly, fun, and enthusiastic and she helped move things along." Wilma had first joined P.E.O. in Bloomfield, Iowa, in April of 1934 and demitted into Chapter FL on March 8, 1940. Wilma reports, "I have served in every office at least once if not twice; however, I have never, nor do I want to serve as corresponding secretary!" Understandably, Wilma is an advocate for the P.E.O. projects that provide financial assistance to women pursuing advanced education. Her best memories of P.E.O. are "the friendships."
*This is taken from an article sent to us by J. Eggemeyer. Author unknown.*
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