Dellis Hyatt

Broken Bow, NE- Dellis B. Hyatt, age 92, of Broken Bow, died Sunday November 17, 2013 at the Heritage Hall Nursing Home in Broken Bow. Funeral services will be held on Thursday November 21, 2013 at 2:00 PM at Govier Bros. Mortuary in Broken Bow, with Jerry Ricketts officiating. Burial will be in the Broken Bow Cemetery with Military Honors. Visitation will be held on Wednesday, 8 AM to 8 PM at Govier Bros. Mortuary in Broken Bow. Memorials are suggested to the Alzheimer’s Association. Dellis B. Hyatt was born July 25, 1921, in Ansley, NE to CD and Elsie (Crist) Hyatt. He was the oldest of 6 children and at the age of 9 years his parents divorced. Dellis, not wanting the family to be split up, tried to hide his siblings in the hayfield to keep them together. That was a memory not often shared and was a hurt he never got over. After some short term living arrangements and at the age of 10, he finally found a home with Earl and Florence Marion near a farm in Arcadia, NE. At 16 years of age, and 25.00 in his pocket, Dellis left for Preston, ID in his Model T. He would tell how he had 3 spare tires and used them all before he got to his destination. When he got to Laramie Hill he backed up the hill because the Model T never had a fuel pump. In 1945, Dellis received his draft notice into the United States Army. After being sworn in at Cheyenne, WY and basic training in Little Rock, Arkansas he became part of the Army Medical Corp. After extensive training they boarded the SS Mariposa and the 52nd Medical Battalion was headed to Casablanca, Morocco. After a short stint there, he was sent to Oran, Africa where he served on the front lines. His job was to locate the wounded , administer first aid, and transport them back to the field hospital. These corpsmen were also known as litter bearers, referring to the stretcher-type device used to carry the wounded soldiers. While carrying wounded down after one particular battle, there were so many wounded the medics ran out of stretchers. Dellis picked up one soldier, threw him across his shoulders, and began the trek down the muddy slope. He slipped in the mud and fell, seriously injuring his back. He spent one year and nine days in the hospital, much of it in an Africa hospital, before returning to the states. Dellis went to Africa as part of a 125-man medical team. Thirteen of them came home. He also sustained a hearing loss when a bomb exploded a short distance in front of him and shattered his ear drums. Dellis was discharged in 1945, in Cheyenne, and took the last passenger train back to Broken Bow to see a friend. God had a bigger plan in that his friend had a sister, Twilla, and the two started dating. On December 13th, 1947 Dellis married his sweetheart, Twilla Carpenter, in Ord, NE before the Justice of the Peace. To this union two children were born, Della Elaine and Delwin Dellis (nicknamed that’s my little Buzzy) by Dad when he brought him home from the hospital. He was a wonderful and caring husband, dad and grandpa. Dellis worked for the Broken Bow Creamery, Meston Motors and Arrow Motors. Over his career you never knew what he would be driving when he came home for lunch. One time he came home wearing license plates over his shoulder because he had sold the family car. He worked at auto detailing and body repair and took much pride in his work. Dellis loved cars, remembering every car he ever owned (and there were many), the gas mileage and how many miles they had on them. He retired at age 57 after two open heart surgeries. Dellis later lost most of his sight and hearing but never let that slow him down. He was always digging in a drawer, puttering in the garage, and going for walks. If someone pulled up in their car, he was able to feel the fenders and front of the car and tell them the year and model and would ask how many miles to the gallon they got. He loved to visit and never met a stranger. He entered Heritage Hall in 2008 and resided there until Nov. 17th, 2013 when God called him home. Dellis is survived by his wife of 65 years Twilla, daughter Della (Floyd) Treffer of Grand Island, son Buz (Verla) of O’Neill, NE, Grandchildren Michelle (Brian) Breazier, Mindy Berry, Missy (William)Jernigan, Nathan Hyatt, Kirsten (Colin) Brue; 17 great-grandchildren, and 1 great-great grandchild; 1 sister-in law; 6 step-sisters; 2 step-brothers; and a host of nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents; by Earl and Florence who gave him a home: 3 brothers; Dillard, Emil, and Kenny; 2 sisters Betty and Lena; one step-sister; and grandson Shannon Treffer.