Sigrid Gertrud Grahl (Gerber) of Eden, went to be with the Lord, on April 23, 2026. She was born on November 15, 1938, in Merschwitz, East Germany (now Poland), a daughter of Wilhelm and Gertrud (Fiebig) Gerber. She was one of 16 children, 12 of whom survived, seven boys and five girls.
On June 3, 1960, she married the love of her life, Philip J. Grahl, at the Assembly of God Church, Fond du Lac.
After fleeing to West Germany, the family settled in Straubing, Bavaria, Germany. At age 14, Sigrid moved alone to Munich Germany, where she had to begin working full-time so money could be sent back to her parents as they navigated post WWII hardships. The boss at her first job told her he would only take her on if she cut off her braids because she looked too young to work. She maintained that look throughout her life. Later she began an apprenticeship in a Hotel and Restaurant Business Management School at St. Augustine restaurant, Munich, where she graduated in 1957. When she moved back home to Straubing, she worked as a waitress and in 1959, she met a G.I. named Philip. Love hit them both at first sight because 8 months later, she immigrated to the US and got married within 3 days of arrival.
On December 6, 1963, she became a Naturalized Citizen of the United States. She drove tractor on the farm, picked stones and helped in many ways - activities she grew up doing in Germany. However, she wanted to add to the household via wages and took her first job for $1 per day as a waitress at a truck stop along Hwy. 45. One dollar for eight hours of work wasn’t cutting it and so began a time of searching for the right fit. Her first task was learning English. She tackled the language barrier by reading the funnies and Ann Landers columns in the newspapers which were delivered to the farm.
The job I best remember was her being a Stanley Brush saleswoman. Unfortunately, she gave away more product than she sold so had to quit. She also worked at the canning company in Eden and had many stories of her time there. Finally, she decided to go to LPN school at Moraine Park Technical Institute. We were all in school at the time and Mom was working in the day and attending night school. She cried many a night, because the words were so hard for her to speak and understand. She used to ask me to read the flash cards to her as she prepared for a final exam. There were test failures and class redos, but she persisted and in 1979 she graduated!
She worked at the Fond du Lac Mental Health Care Center, St. Joseph’s Convent in Campbellsport and Hope Nursing in Lomira, to name but a few. She finally quit nursing at age 75.
Inbred with a strong work ethic, Mom didn’t just have one iron in the fire! She became a landlord of several rental properties and if that weren’t enough, in 1984 she upped the multi-tasking ante by giving tours of Europe! As a travel guide and director, she was the best. Pop would go sometimes and she always added the personal touch. Even taking the tour group to her hometown and meeting some of the family there. I have no idea how she managed the stress and work! She never let her foot off the gas! Sometimes she gave four tours to Europe while working part-time as an LPN and continually being a landlord until her passing and being the best loving Mother and Friend a child could have.
The effort she gave to work, she gave in equal measure of love to her family.
Back in 1960, prior to her coming to the US, she attended a Billy Graham Crusade in Germany and there, gave her heart to the Lord. I cannot express the strength of a Mother’s prayers for her children. Growing up, each evening we would read the Word as a family and then go on our “prayer bones” and pray. When troubles came, as happens in life, there was Mom and Pop praying over us, for us and with us. No matter where we went in life, to school far from home, to war and back, and for the grandchildren and great-grandchildren as they came, Mom would pray for them. Many was the time my Mother couldn’t sleep and she would come downstairs and open her German Bible and read and pray. In the quiet when folks didn’t see. Her Bible is held together with packing tape now – so often did she use it. She had our backs when it came to praying for all of her family. While the void of her passing will be felt until our own home journey, we know she is with the Lord and joined in heaven with her beloved husband of 65 years, her oldest daughter, Pam, and youngest son, Wayne. I was blessed to know that on the first day of her final journey home, she had a vision of Pop. She was happy to see him again and looked forward to being with him.
She is survived by her son, John, and wife, Tami, of Eden; her daughter, Ingrid of Fond du Lac; 14 grandchildren, Scott, Jason, Stevie, Joanna, and Jeremy, Jayde, Gabriella, Alivia, Peter and Ahava, Simon, Anja, Janine and Jack; 30 great-grandchildren; one great-great-grandchild and one on the way; her sister, Rosa Barrett, and her two children, Johanna and Johnny; and multiple additional nieces and nephews.
Preceded in death are her parents, Wilhelm and Gertrud; 11 siblings; and two children.
Special thanks to Compassus Hospice and Home Helpers staff for their guidance, help and many kindnesses.
VISITATION: Kurki Funeral Chapel, 31 E. Division Street, Fond du Lac on Friday, May 1, from 4 to 7 p.m. Visitation will continue at Celebration Assembly, 825 Fond du Lac Ave, Fond du Lac on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m., after which the service will begin.
SERVICES: Begin at 10 a.m. at Celebration Assembly of God Church followed by burial at the Empire Cemetery, Town of Empire.
Kurki Funeral Chapel & Crematory is serving the family. An online guestbook can be found at www.kurkifuneralchapel.com. 920-921-4420
