RAPID CITY- Emma Rau, 100, passed into the loving arms of Jesus at her home on Thursday, June 4th, 2015. She was born on July 12th, 1914 to John and Elizabeth Eberhart. Emma grew up on a farm outside of Eureka, SD with four loving sisters. They all worked hard helping their father clear the land of rocks and milking the cows. When they were able to attend school, they had to walk more than a mile to get to the Lincoln country school where she loved books, music and learning. When the family moved to McLaughlin, she met Reiny Rau whom she found very handsome. They courted and were married in the EUB church on September 8th, 1935. They raised three girls, Conney, Kathy and Myrna. They lived in McLaughlin until 1969 when they moved to the Black Hills area and purchased Fish & Fry Campground near Deadwood. The two of them rebuilt the property and worked hard to build the business, which they sold in 1977. They had lost their home in Rapid City during the 1972 flood and together they decided to build their new home on higher ground. Emma was always by Reiny's side. She was his caretaker and partner. She loved her family, her sisters, her friends and neighbors. She loved to cook and bake for others. A new neighbor would usually get her angel food cake or a pie. Her German recipes have been handed down with love to her daughters and their children, but none can compare to Emma's own hand of "a little bit of this and a little bit of that". Another passion for her was gardening and tending to her flowers. Emma and Reiny were members of the First United Methodist Church in Rapid City. Emma is survived by her three daughters: Conney Sutherland (husband Jim) of Deadwood, SD; Kathy Jones of Rapid City, SD; Myrna Beving (husband Randy) of Creston, IA; her sister, Clara Stotz; 7 grandchildren: Nikki Kuchta (husband Tim) and Jason Sutherland (wife Jen) of Columbia, Mo; Andrea Brooks (husband Mike) of Peoria, Il; Kelly Chocholousek (husband Ryan) of Rapid City, SD; Mike Jones (wife Bri) of Chaska, Mn; Jessica Gray (husband Jeremy) of Winterset, Ia.; and Tyler Beving (wife Dawn) of Emmetsburg, Ia.; and 14 great grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband, Reiny in 1994, her parents, John & Elizabeth, and 3 sisters, Lydia Banek, Martha Aman, and Viola Brockel. Our mother was a special lady who lived to be 100 years, 10 months and 23 days. She was loved by many and will be missed by us all. We have been so blessed and are so thankful for our faith that assures us we will see her again. She is home at last with our Lord and our Dad. Her memorial service will be on Saturday, June 20, at 1:00 p.m. at First United Methodist Church in Rapid City.