Esther Wingert

Esther Wingert, 97 of Kearney, died Saturday, April 25, 2015 at her home near Kearney. Funeral services will be Thursday, April 30, 2015 at 10:30 a.m. at Faith United Methodist Church in Kearney. Rev. Robert Perry will officiate and burial will follow at Kearney Cemetery. Visitation will be Wednesday, April 29, 2015 from 7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. at Horner Lieske McBride & Kuhl Funeral and Cremation Services in Kearney and also 1 hour prior to services at the church on Thursday. Memorials are suggested to Buffalo County Extension Services. Visit www.hlmkfuneral.com to leave a tribute or message of condolence. Horner Lieske McBride & Kuhl Funeral and Cremation Services in Kearney are in charge of arrangements. Esther Gibreal Wingert passed away at the age of 97 years old on April 25, 2015 surrounded by loved ones on her farm in Buffalo County, Nebraska. She was born on July 25, 1917 to Nicholas and Sadie Gibreal, immigrants from Lebanon. Esther was raised in a large Lebanese family with 10 siblings. After graduating from the Alfalfa Center School she went on to attend Cosmetology School in Grand Island, Nebraska. While working in her own beauty parlor she met the love of her life, a handsome cowboy from Eddyville, Nebraska named Cecil Wingert. Cecil finally persuaded her into a date by relentlessly racing his car back and forth in front of her beauty parlor and they began a courtship as World War II was looming. When Cecil was drafted into the United States Army he briefly went AWOL to marry his sweetheart on August 30, 1941 The now married couple was stationed at Fort Riley, KS for almost the entirety of the war, where Esther managed the Post Exchange. They were lean years but they dedicated themselves to the war effort like many of the Greatest Generation. Esther was initially paid on commission for managing the Post Exchange, however the Fort soon placed her on salary after her tremendous success threatened to upset their budget. She was so successful that every time Cecil received orders to be deployed overseas Esther would put in her resignation papers, and each time Cecil would be inexplicably reassigned back to Fort Riley. Esther believed her business acumen and logistical ability was instilled in her by her successful father, Nicholas Gibreal. Following the war Esther and Cecil moved just 1 mile from where she was born in Buffalo County and purchased a farm with the money she had saved from her salary at the Post Exchange. It was extraordinary in that era for a woman to have that kind of money, but that’s the kind of woman Esther Wingert was. Amazingly they started their farm using horses to plow the fields, truly a different era. Children soon followed with the birth of their daughter Gloria and son James. Over the years they raised a multitude of crops as well as a successful dairy farm and cow-calf operation. As well, Cecil and Esther were active 4-H leaders. Never one to shy away from hard work Esther and Cecil were a true team on their farm, rising at the crack of dawn to milk the cows and working day and night for their family. When Cecil’s health declined in the latter years of his life, Esther was truly incredible as she took on the majority of the physical labor for the farm and the 100-cow herd. Her grandchildren would watch in amazement, as their small 80 year old grandmother would break up ice with a sledgehammer for the cows to drink and work 10-12 hours in the summer, hardly stopping for a break. Esther was proud that the work she put into the farm allowed her children to attain advanced education, Gloria a Masters in Communications and James a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine. Her work ethic has permeated throughout the family and she built a foundation of hard work, perseverance, positive thinking, generosity, and the ability to overcome adversity. Esther was staunchly self-reliant and lived on her farm continuously from 1946 until her death, a period spanning nearly 70 years witnessing 12 different presidents, 5 major wars. Esther was extremely self-sufficient, living on the vegetables she cultivated in her large and fruitful garden and the “no-fat” beef and chicken raised right on her farm. Her byline was, “for good nutrition, eat beef” .She was a wonderful cook and kept the Lebanese culinary tradition close to her heart. A visitor to her house, even into her mid-90s would enjoy homemade okra and tomatoes, kibbeh, cabbage rolls, stuffed grape leaves and Lebanese bread in addition to fried chicken, roast beef, mashed potatoes with the most amazing gravy and pie for dessert. No one ever left Esther’s house hungry. It was a special treat for her family to receive homemade Baklava, with multiple layers of hand-made philo dough at Christmas. Esther’s beef fed many a family gathering in many states for several decades into her mid-90s. In her later years as her health declined her family in Kearney provided constant loving support, in particular her neighbor and niece Debbie Jesch and her husband Doug Jesch. Esther is survived by daughter Gloria Sindt (Russ), son James Wingert (Kathy), grandsons Doug Wingert (Leandra) and Jeff Sindt (Jill), granddaughters Stephanie Egan (Bryce) and Katie Hughes (Adam) as well as sisters Cleo Freburg and Isabelle Runge in addition to countless nieces, nephews, cousins, grand-nieces and grand-nephews and her horses, Bud and Speck. Esther was preceded in death by her Husband, Cecil in 1997. PDF Printable Version

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Esther Wingert

April 25, 2015 - April 25, 2015