Senior Citizen Snow Queen crowned

Ila Walker was crowned the 2022 Senior Citizen Snow Queen recently at Avantara.

Ila Walker was born and raised on a farm in the Chelsea/Cresbard area. She lived on the family farm and graduated from Cresbard in 1947. Her father insisted she go to college so she attended Northern for a quarter to make him happy.

In 1948 she married and was with her husband for 65 years before his passing. They had six children, followed by eight grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren.

Her husband worked the mail rail and when her children got older she worked part-time at the grocery store and janitor at the school. As soon as her husband and she were done with their jobs they would work together cutting hay. They also enjoyed following the polka fest circuit through North Dakota, South Dakota, and Minnesota. There was hardly a weekend they were home because they loved to dance.

Ila came to be a resident of Avantara in July of 2021. Ila loves to read and have her family visit. She enjoys playing bingo and reminiscing with the other residents about "the good old days". She's always got a smile on her face and always willing to have a chat with the staff.