Obituary -- Martha Auffert 1920-2013

Martha Elinor Switzer Sisk Auffert passed away from natural causes on April 17, 2013 in her home in Sutter Creek, CA at age 92.

Martha was born on a sugar beet farm near Wellington, Colorado on October 6, 1920 to Hazel Claire and Clifford Daniel Switzer. Her sister, La Donna Claire, was four years older. She rode her pony to school, and as her parents didn’t have any boys, she helped her father in the fields.

During her life, Martha experienced many changes in the world, from horse-drawn carriages to iPads, but she said that she thought the most important changes she saw were the advent of the car and of electricity. Her family was thrilled when President Roosevelt brought electricity to the rural areas: this allowed them cook their meals on an electric stove rather than having to build a fire in a wood cookstove for every meal, and to have an electric washing machine in place of a washboard.

When Martha was 15 years old, her family moved from Colorado to a new farm in Worth County, Missouri. One day their neighbors, the Sisks, came over to her family’s farm with their thrashing machine, and that’s when she met her high school sweetheart, Gale Sisk. They were married on March 16, 1941.

Martha and Gale had two daughters, Dixie Lynn and Cinda Irene. The Sisk family managed a 1,000-acre farm and were renowned for their herd of Hereford cattle. But in 1949, when Dixie was two years old and Cinda was three weeks old, Gale was on his way home from a cattle sale with his parents and aunt when their car was struck by a drunk driver, and all four family members in the car were killed instantly.

After this, Martha moved to Grant City, Missouri and later to Maryville, Missouri to raise her girls. She was a businesswoman and managed her 250-acre farm near Maryville. In the male-dominated business world of the mid-20th century, Martha was a pioneer as a single mother working to support her daughters. She was the ultimate role model of a strong, independent woman, and always knew the right thing to do in any situation.

Martha became a Christian at an early age, and throughout her adult life was a valued member in the women’s clubs of the Grant City Christian Church and later the Sutter Creek Methodist Church. She joined the 14th Emerald Chapter of the #29 Order of the Eastern Star, the same chapter where her mother was a member, and they both received their 50-Year Star Pins.

In 1976-’77, Martha, Dixie, and Cinda were all married within 12 months of each other: Cinda to Stuart Bowers, Dixie to David Camardo, and Martha to Francis Auffert.

Martha loved to dance, and Francis was a great dancing partner. They had a wonderful life together for 14 months, living on his Windy Hill farm near Parnell, Missouri and traveling the U.S. together. Martha became a lifelong mentor to Francis’s daughter Joyce. But then Francis’s dormant cancer returned, and he passed away in 1978.

Martha moved to Northern California in 1984 to help raise Dixie and David’s twin daughters, Danielle and Davina. She instilled in them strong values, showing them to take control of their lives, to be conscientious, and to take responsibility for their actions.

She moved to Dallas, Texas in 2004 to spend time with Cinda, and then back to Sutter Creek, California in 2011. She weathered the many changing seasons of her life with unflinching strength and courage—a true woman for all seasons.

Martha is survived by her daughters Cinda Bowers and Dixie Camardo; her son-in-law David Camardo; her granddaughters Danielle and Davina Camardo; her stepchildren Joyce Smith and Eugene and James Auffert; her step-grandchildren Teri Mamola, Kirk Bowers, Victoria Tomasik, and Keith Camardo; and her brother-in-law Wendell Sisk and his wife Shirley.

She is preceded in death by Gale Sisk, Verga and Merle Sisk, Hazel and Clifford Switzer, La Donna and Charles West, Milo McQuigg, and Francis Auffert.

A special thank you to Hospice of Amador for their devoted care and support. Donations may be made in her memory to the Grant City Christian Church at 501 South High Street, Grant City, MO, 64456.

Arrangements are by the Price Funeral Home in Maryville, MO. A graveside memorial service will be held on Saturday, May 4 at 10:30 a.m. at the Grant City Cemetery in Missouri. Condolences may be sent to the family by visiting danerimortuary.com and signing her guest book.