Ila Edward Wright

Biography of Ila Edward Wright Ed was born on February 25, 1925 to A. Griffith and Eva L. (Kemp) Wright at his parent†™s home in Pierre, South Dakota. Ed attended all of his schooling in Pierre where his father was a school administrator. Upon graduating from high school in 1943 he was immediately drafted into the U.S. Army to server in WWII. Ed says that he received his high school diploma in one hand and his draft notice in the other hand. In the Army, he served at various locations within the states. Upon completion of his training at New York Trade School, New York City, New York, he was assigned to the 98th Infantry. Ed stated that this unit was originally a parade unit of the New York National Guard that was comprised of mainly men of the Jewish faith and the members had to purchase their own uniforms; unfortunately, World War II changed the character of this unit. Eventually Ed was stationed in the Territory of Hawaii, and his unit was the first fully equipped Infantry unit to be assigned to the Occupational Army of Japan. After he was no longer needed in Japan, he opted for discharge and returned home to Dubuque, Iowa where his parents had relocated. After the Army, Ed completed his Bachelor of Arts degree at William Penn College (now University) in Oskaloosa, Iowa. While in Dubuque, he met his future wife, Virginia M. Moon. Prior to going into the educational field, Ed served as a lay pastor for small congregations of the Methodist church in Iowa. After their marriage, both of them taught school in North Dakota for approximately 1 ½-school years. It was while in North Dakota that he became interested in being a teacher for the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs. The Bureau of Indian Affairs accepted him, and the family moved to Allen, South Dakota after a temporary assignment at another school on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. It was during this tenure that he earned his Master of Arts Degree from the University of Iowa and their oldest son, Charles, was born. In 1958, the family relocated to the Papago (now Tahono O†™odham) Indian Reservation, Sells, Arizona. He spent about 5 years teaching at a rural day school, Santa Rosa Ranch. While at Santa Rosa Ranch, their younger son, Stephen, was born. While at Santa Rosa Ranch he was also promoted to head of Adult Education and the family moved to the agency town of Sells. When the Adult Education program was discontinued, he went into the Employment Assistance office; Employment Assistance was the office that assisted tribal members in obtaining employment and post high school training. In 1974 he obtained a transfer to Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in Denver, Colorado. Once again, the family was on the move. When Ed had sufficient time in the Federal Government he retired. After retiring from the Federal Government, Ed worked in a variety of private security positions including the original Great West Sugar Company. When the Great West Sugar Company went bankrupt, he obtained a minimal retirement as part of his unpaid wage settlement. Ed begin working for the State of Colorado, Department of Labor after Great West Sugar Company†™s bankruptcy. After completing the minimal 5 years for state retirement, Ed finished working for wages. After stopping gainful employment, Ed completed a book on his Army experiences. He also worked on the history of the Westminster United Methodist Church. Ed and Virginia took numerous trips and tours for as long as their interest and health allowed. Up to 2 weeks prior to his rapid decline in health, Ed seemed to be aware of his surroundings, and enjoyed going with Charles on errands. If it was a place that Ed had been previously, Ed could indicate to Charles how they needed to go. Ed passed away on Thursday, December 19, 2013 at the Collier Hospice, Lutheran Hospital Campus, Wheat Ridge, Colorado. Westminster United Methodist Church (Ed's church since 1975) 3585 W. 76th Ave. Westminster, Colorado 80030 Phone: 303-429-1569 Email: [email protected] Collier Hospice at Exampla Lutheran (where Ed spent his final days) http://www.exemplalutheran.org/Foundation#.UsJvzbSO7nc Alzheimer's Foundation of America http://www.alzfdn.org/ContributetoAFA/makeadonation.html