Hilda Mae Knick

November 9, 1934 - November 24, 2020

Hilda Mae Knick, 86, of Grand Island passed away on November 24th at Grand Island Bickford Cottage. Services will be on Tuesday, December 1st at 2 pm at the National Hall just north of Ord. Dan Naranjo will officiate. Burial will be at the National Bohemian Cemetery outside of Ord, NE. Hilda Mae was born on November 9, 1934, on the family farm northeast of Comstock, NE., to Charley and Rose Marie (Vodehnal) Visek. She attended grade school at Longwood School, District 6 and graduated from Comstock High School in 1953. Hilda then attended Business College in Grand Island. In 1955, Hilda was employed by the Bureau of Reclamation in Sargent, NE. In July of 1959, she transferred to the Veterans Administration Medical Service in Grand Island, where she worked until her retirement in 1989. Hilda Mae enjoyed being outdoors, yardwork and gardening. Her entire back yard was a literal flower garden that bloomed through the entire season. She found pleasure in doing many craft projects. She especially loved listening and dancing to Czech music. Hilda was also an avid walker and could be seen walking her route with a plastic bag for aluminum cans and a stick to ward off pesky animals if approached. Her route was so common that people would leave aluminum cans for her to pick up along the way. She enjoyed working with the elderly and this could be seen in the many hours she spent volunteering at Park Place Nursing Home, The Salvation Army, Nebraska Veterans Home, and the VA Medical Center where she logged over 12,500 volunteer hours, earning numerous awards and recognition. Hilda made hundreds of friends during those many days and hours and was considered a welcoming member of the VA Medical Center volunteers. Nothing meant more to her than giving and receiving a warm hug…lots of hugs. On July 2, 1976, Hilda was united in marriage to Thomas Knick. She was a lifetime member of ZCBJ Lodge Shavin No. 112 at National Hall of Comstock, NE. She first joined in 1936 at the age of two. She spoke often of her and her sister being the first on the dance floor every opportunity they had. Hilda was extremely proud of her Bohemian heritage and continued to speak the language on a consistent basis and greatly enjoyed meeting others that spoke Bohemian to converse with. Those left to cherish her memory include many beloved family and friends. She was preceded in death by her parents, husband and sister. In lieu of flowers, memorials are suggested to The Alzheimer’s Association.