Emma Mae Fellows Hughes, 96 of Grand Island passed away on March 17th in West Point, Nebraska surrounded by her loving family. Funeral Mass will be at 10:30 am Friday, March 24th at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in West Point, NE. There will be no visitation. She will be laid to rest at a later date next to her husband John in the Wood River cemetery. Minnick Funeral Home in West Point is in charge of the arrangements.
Emma was born on October 5, 1926 to Mary Ann (Featherston) and Frank M Fellows and raised in a sod house in the beautiful rural Sandhills region of Nebraska. Emma was the last of 9 children all of whom attended Cottonwood, a one room schoolhouse. She graduated from Anselmo High School in May 1944. Her first marriage was to William Trull February 1945 and she had two daughters Sharon and Judy. She married John N Hughes of Wood River NE on November 9, 1950. Together they raised Sharon, Judy and had four more children, John, Douglas and David (twins) and Marcia in Grand Island. Emma and John were married 58 years until his death in 2009. Emma and her husband were long time members of St. Mary’s Cathedral of Grand Island. She worked as a nurses associate, for the Grand Island Ammunitions Plant, as a cosmetologist and a poll worker for local elections until her retirement in 1980. She was active in the Altar Society and the St. Mary Cathedral Ladies. She moved to Omaha after the death of her husband to be near family.
Emma enjoyed gardening, homemaking, cards, bingo, crafting, and quilting and was highly skilled at crocheting, making many beautiful bedspreads and other textile pieces throughout the years. She could grow African violets better than anyone we knew. Her children remember the huge platters of donuts, cinnamon rolls and kolaches she made on Saturdays and fried chicken dinner, pies and cakes on Sundays. She enjoyed her faith, reading, visits from family, traveling through many states and in particular, her visit to the Hawaiian Islands.
She is survived by her six children, Sharon Bates of Columbus, Judy Stukenholtz of Nebraska City, John Hughes of Donnellson, IA, Douglas (Jody) Hughes of Omaha, David (Kirsten) Hughes of West Point and Marcia (Duane) Woerman of Gold Canyon, AZ. 15 grandchildren; Rebecca (Don) LaPointe, Timothy (Carrie) Bates, Matthew Hughes of Omaha, Andrew (Kaitlyn) Hughes of Platte Center, Matthew (Renee) Stukenholtz, Tara (Rod) Nanninga, Marc (Abby) Stukenholtz, Jill (Charlie) Heng, Jake (Rachel) Hughes, Tyler (Emily) Hughes, Jordan (Kristyna) Hughes, Adam (Shyla) Hughes, Ashley (Roman) Moreno, Abigail (Jason) Brown and Aaron (Sara) Hughes. 40 great-grandchildren and 8 great-great grandchildren.
Emma was preceded in death by her husband John Neil Hughes, 4 sisters; Mary, Leona, Jessie, and Alberta and 4 brothers; Joe, Francis, Marion, and John son-in-laws John Bates and John Stukenholtz.
Memorials may be made to St. Mary’s Cathedral in Grand Island or St. Joseph Hillside Villa in West Point.
