Elaine - A Century of Love

Pauline, Marian, Norma & Elaine

Florence holding Norma, Elaine, Pauline & Marian abt 1929

I remember when I first started to become a member of the "women" of the Gage family.  It was my great grandparents 65th wedding anniversary and their nine living children as well as a large number of the friends and family attended the celebration. When I walked into that kitchen at 16 years old, I began to see my grandmother and her sisters with new eyes.  There was something unique about those four women and the way they did the work and related to each other.  I found that there was a special camaderie that existed and for the first time in my life I was included in the group.  At the core of the group were four women who were a well oiled machine. My grandmother, Marian was the oldest, Elaine was next, then Pauline and Norma.  Each sister seemed to have a role - Grandma was the worrier and the organizer, Elain was a natural caretaker, Pauline was the life of the party, and Norma had a quiet efficiency and was known as the pretty one.  Norma died a few years later at age 55, when I was 18 of cancer.  My grandmother died in 2011 at the age of 91, Pauline in 2020 at the age of 94 and Elaine passed away on Sept 7, 2024 at the age of 100.  

It is an end of era for our family.  Those of use who are among the older generations have enjoyed a unique closeness.  We grew up with each other and played together at family reunions and as we grew older, we did appreciate the older family members because their interest and kindness was genuine.  Until the past few years, I don't remember a family get together that didn't include at least one of those four women.  Family reunions were serious stuff for them.  I remember the last several years of my grandmother's life, Elaine came over early and the two of them spent the week planning, visiting ie catching up on family news and reminiscing about their lives and family. I think they looked forward to that time together more than the actual reunion. I last saw Aunt Elaine at the last reunion before Covid.  Elaine was 95 at that point and spent most of the time flitting around from family to family visiting everyone and spending special time with Norma's daughter, Lou who was sick with cancer.  Elaine was a natural caretaker and had tried to fill the role of mother to her sister's children - it didn't matter if they were young or senior citizens.

Elaine & Lou - 2019

Elaine & her family

I can't help thinking of Aunt Elaine as a young woman.  I know from my grandmother and other family stories that Elaine was a feisty, tough petite child and teenager.  Her husband told Dad that he remembered when they were children and at school that some boys thought they were going to put a snake down her neck...and found it down the back of their neck.  She played basketball at the high school.   Girls were only allowed to play half court basketball.  This meant that they weren't allowed to use the full court.  I guess they thought these girls weren't tough or strong enough to use the full court.  I wouldn't have been surprised to find out that Elaine had spent a little time watching women's basketball enjoying the changes since she played in the early 1940's.  However, her real sports passion was baseball.  She loved watching the Seattle Mariners - watching baseball was a passion that she shared with her father.

Elaine married Wayne Larue on Jan 12, 1942 at 18 years of age. They married in Couer d'Alene, ID and I believe that they eloped.  Wayne was drafted to fight in the World War II.  He was sent to California for training.  I do see something on his draft card that he was involved in the Bayview Naval Project near Coeur d'Alene and perhaps that was why they eloped.  Anyway, sometime between Wayne being trained in California and deployed in the South Pacific, Elaine got pregnant and they welcomed a baby girl on July 13, 1943 in Marysville, CA.  Wayne was badly burned while serving, healed up and actually fought at Okinawa. They came home after the war.  I am not sure of the details of the events, but Wayne and Elaine ended up back up on Hatter Creek after his service.  I know they ran the Co-Op for a time and Wayne worked for the National Forest Service.  Elaine didn't have a "job" as we would call it today.  However, it would be very foolish to think she didn't work hard.  A farm/ranch wife in those days likely not only cooked the meals from scratch, likely made the bread and any desserts they might have.  They had a garden and spent a lot of their time canning for the winter time.  My Dad worked several summers on their farm.  He remembers during spring planting that he worked the tractor after school to late evening when Wayne would take over for the night after getting some rest after his regular job.  Elaine took over in the morning and worked till Dad got home from school.  It wasn't until he was older that he realized that he still had food to eat and clean clothes to wear.  

Back Left: Don, Duane, Byron, Pauline, Marian, Orland Bernard
Bottom Left: Norma, Florence, Ora, Elaine - 1982

I know that Wayne's job took them up to the area up on the St Joe River that was very sparsely populated in what today we would know at Red Ives past Avery, ID.  They then ended up in St Maries, ID which is where they lived until Wayne's retirement.  Wayne and Elaine were snowbirds who spent winters in Arizona alongside Pauline & Allen (Elaine's sister and brother-in-law).  I also know that several of their cousins went south as well.  They must have been quite a community of family.  Wayne died in 1988 after suffering from the effects of ephysyma.  I know that they had done quite a bit of traveling in their motorhome.  I don't think Wayne was able to do a lot...so it was Elaine who did most of the driving and setting up wherever they camped along the way.  Elaine sold her home in St Maries and made her way to Canby, OR where her parents were still living.  She and my grandmother Marian looked after them for the final few years.  After their passing, Elaine decided to move up to Renton, WA to be closer to her daughter and her family.  Elaine wanted to be part of their lives instead of being a spectator watching from a distance.  Life is very unfair in so many ways.  Not long after Elaine moved to be near her daughter and family, Patti got sick and Elaine once again took on the role of caretaker and lovingly took care of Patti along with her daughters and Patti's husband until she passed.  Elaine then jumped in and became and integral part of her granddaughters lives.  

Wayne, Vonda, Elaine, Peachie, Patti and Lori & Shelley

I would like to think that when Elaine passed, all of those that she loved so much during her life were there to greet her. Elaine's daughter and husband...her parents and her siblings and all of those whose life she had impacted.  

Norma, Elaine, Florence, Pauline & Marian - 1975

Ora & Allen Becker, Front - Florence, Pauline and Elaine

Elaine & Marian

Pauline & Elaine

Some of it is about the pie!!!

Last night, I was sitting in my chair reading my book and waiting for the pies that I had just made to cool so I could put them in the refrigerator.  I was feeling quite content.  I was by myself, with my cat resting on my lap and the wonderful smells of fall still permeating the house.  I have more to do tonight...anyone who has done much preparation for Thanksgiving know that it is not a one day affair.  

When I was young, my chief jobs were doing the dishes, peeling and chopping.  My Mom oversaw everything.  My grandmother would make the pies on her own and bring them over on Thanksgiving.  When I was about 16, that changed.  It was difficult for my grandmother to do much of anything and Mom told her to not worry about the pies and that we would take care of it.  So, Mom bought pre made pie dough and we worked on the pies together.  She basically told me what to do and how to do it!  People asked me how I learned to cook and that was essentially it.  Mom sat at the bar and directed me on what to.  I put the pie dough in the pie plates and Mom showed me how to remove the excess and crimp the edges.  The filling was where Mom shined.  She didn't enjoy putting the dough in the pie plates so she let me do that.  That first year, I did the pie dough and peeled the apples, but Mom did the rest of it.  The next year it became my job except for the huckleberry pie which was her favorite.  My normal pie repertoire was Apple pie, Mincemeat Apple pie and Pumpkin pie.  I think that my grandmother even got a chance to taste a pie that I had made.  She passed away in August when I was 18 years old.  That first Thanksgiving was very difficult for my Mom.  She was grieving for her mother and stressed trying to accommodate her step-father.  We had two Thanksgiving's with my grandfather on his own.  The stress involved with that is a whole other story.

As I got older, more and more of the Thanksgiving preparations fell to me.  The only thing that Mom took charge of was the Turkey and dressing.  I suppose that I wasn't quite trusted with that yet.  During the day of Thanksgiving, our kitchen was filled with a lot of helpers.  After my brother arrived, he took care of the gravy while I was preparing the mashed potatoes.  One of my sister-in-laws was likely cleaning up after us with my Mom overseeing and directing all from her spot at the counter.  The last year Mom was alive, I did the normal preparations for going over to my brother's house where he and his wife took care of the majority of the meal.  I made and baked the pies and the family favorite salads.  Mom decided that we needed another Thanksgiving meal at the house the next day as she wanted the leftovers.  I have always thought that Mom knew her time was short that last year.  She had started coughing again and she had an appointment the following week with her doctor in Spokane.  As it turned out, the cancer had come back and she was diagnosed again on Dec 22nd and died 4 days later.

It has been 17 years since we lost Mom this year.  Most of the time during the holidays when I think of Mom, I smile instead of cry.  I think that is the natural order of things. I have even changed up the traditional preparations.  I made the mistake about a decade ago by learning how to make the pie dough from scratch.  Dad doesn't offer his opinion on much, but he was very definite that the home made pie crust was much better.  So, last night I made a Pumpkin pie and Bourbon Pecan pie and enjoyed the special smells that are associated with Thanksgiving.  Tonight I will bake the Apple pie and the Mincemeat-Apple pie and hope that I will finish before 9 pm.  I also have to finish my Dad's salad which my neice has named "Granpa's Crappy Salad!"  It is lemon jellow that is set mixed in with softened cream cheese and then you had a whole bunch of small chopped celery.  I know...it sounds pretty good until you get to the celery.  I then will make the Egg Nog jelled salad which is my favorite and finish up the sweet potatoes with brown sugar sauce with butter, orange zest and rum.  

Some day I want to teach one of the younger generation to bake the pies from scratch.  I wonder sometimes if learning to do something yourself instead of buying it at a grocery store is a lost art.  People have told me they just buy a pumpkin pie from Costco and call it good.  I don't agree.  You miss out on the taste but also the smells.  Thanksgiving is multiple day affair if you include the preparations for the meal.  For now, I am the one who shows up with the pies.  Most don't come home with us and it is a way where I can share all that I have been taught by those who came before me.  So for me...those pies represent my Mom and Grandma Cappy and Grandma Marian!  The pie fillings come from what I learned from my Mom and her Mom and I use my Grandma Marian's pie crust recipe.  So...some of what makes Thanksgiving great...is the pie!

Happy 100th Birthday Grandma Marian!

Marian - 1st Communion

Marian - 16 Yrs Old

Today, my grandmother would have been 100 years old.  She lived a long and interesting life.  She saw the best of times during her childhood and some of the worst of times during her teenage years. She experienced the trauma of war as a younger mother and worried sister.  Grandma was a young mother, grandmother and great grandmother and unfortunately, a young widow.  She lived in interesting times!

Marian with Elaine, Norma & Pauline

 Helen Marian Gage Johnson was born in a farmhouse in Mapleton, Monona Co., IA on 10 June 1920 to Ora Silas Gage and Florence Christine Shawver.  By that time, her parents owned the farm they lived on in near Mapleton, IA and she had an older brother, Orland who had been born in 1918.  Her brother John Bernard followed in 1922, then Elaine, Pauline, Norma, Don, Byron, Duane and Gary.  She was the oldest sister amongst a family of ten children and she took that role very much to heart.  Grandma talked often of those younger years.  She often said that she squabbled more with Orland but Bernard or Bun as the family called him was her playmate and there were a lot of wonderful memories of playing around the farm.  Of course, there were chores, but I expect to Grandma Marian, that was merely a part of life.  There was a point as the younger siblings came along that her mother gave her charge of one of the younger ones…for Grandma that was Don.  Grandma told me of her learning to take care of her baby brother and I think that she loved all of her siblings, but she always had an extra soft spot for Don as he did for her.  Grandma talked about those younger years where she talked about having the privileges of parents who had a comfortable life.  She had store bought dresses and pretty things and her childhood was without care.  That changed after the depression hit. By 1932, her parents had to make a hard choice.  They weren’t able to make enough money to make the mortgage payment.  Rather than take the chance of having the property foreclosed on and causing a financial loss for their friends, Ora and Florence signed the land over to Lou Brenner and shipped their things to South Dakota and took the trip north to the unknown in Philip, SD.

Florence with Norma, Elaine, Pauline & Marian

Marian - 1 Yr Old

On paper, I am sure that the rental property looked like a decent opportunity.  There was enough land to raise crops and a house.  However, what looked like good land from Mapleton, Iowa was not good land in Philip, South Dakota.  Philip is located near the Badlands and was probably very poor farmland in the best of times, 1933 was not the best of times.  It was especially important to Grandma Florence that her children continue their schooling.  It was a hardship!   During that winter, Orland and Bun spent time in the cellar cutting seed potatoes for planting and soon after both boys became terribly sick with pneumonia.  While Bun recovered, Orland got much worse.  He ended up with severe pleurisy and abscesses in his lungs.  His parents were told at one point that he would not make it through the night.  Orland had been about 160 pounds and was down to 120 pounds and had lost all his hair.  The younger boys had problems with whooping cough and croup.  Nothing seemed to go well nor was it getting any better.  Once again, the family took off for “greener” pastures.

Loggie that Family lived in up on Hatter Creek

Chicken Coop made into a house in North Dakota

When I think of traveling across Montana in November with six children in a Model T, it boggles my mind.  Grandma Marian remembered it as being one of the happier times of her childhood.  They stopped at her Uncle George’s near Jordan, MT and they spent Thanksgiving there.  I have been to the Shawver ranch in Montana and I am not sure how they made it there.  When I was there, it rained and the trip out to the ranch was almost cancelled because of the road being washed out, and that was in August.  However, Grandma remembered the trip as riding horses with her cousins, going to dances at the neighbors and having fun!  When they left Jordan to head to Idaho, I suspect that Grandma Marian left the last of her childhood behind.  This was the early winter of 1934 and as a 14-year-old and oldest sister, I am sure she felt a lot of responsibility.  As they traveled across Montana, Bernard remembered stopping and building a fire so Grandma Florence could make meals.  The meals always involved eggs…as that is what they had (from Uncle George’s ranch).  They made it to Dover, ID and the family was in a rental while Granddad Gage scoped around with some neighbors (Harve Hespen and Louis Becker) and Orland was finally able to return to the family in early February.  By late spring, Grandad Gage had bought some land on what we know today as Hatter Creek near Princeton, ID.  Within a short time, they built what the family referred to as the “loggie”.  Schooling was still very important and between working for a local family to take care of children and boarding at the Ursaline Academy in Moscow, ID, Grandma Marian wasn’t home too much.  She was trying to do her best to help with expenses in the family.  Because of illness and moving…the oldest three Gage siblings all graduated in 1939 from Potlatch High School.  Bernard was amongst the youngest in the class with Orland and Grandma likely the oldest.  

Marian & Frank - 1939

It was a short time after graduation when Grandma met Frank Johnson…a friend of a boyfriend who had come up to Idaho after serving in the CCC’s (Civilian Conservation Corps).  One thing led to another and they were engaged in July (at the birth of her youngest brother, Gary) and married in October.  Soon after, the young couple headed to North Dakota which is where Grandpa Frank was from.  My Dad arrived in July of 1940, Shirley in October 1941, and Anne in November 1942.  Life was harder in North Dakota.  As a young wife, she struggled to take care of her father-in-law and sister-in-law.  Grandpa Frank worked whatever job that he could get, sometimes working as many as 4 jobs.  They bought a chicken coop and made a home with two rooms.  When work was tough to get, they were living on $ 17 a month of social security that her father-in-law received.  Grandma found it was cheaper to buy syrup for sugar than actual sugar.

I am not sure if she was just fed up…or missing home terribly but in January of 1943, her parents bought her a train ticket and she went back to Hatter Creek for a visit with her two toddlers and colicky baby.  Knowing my grandmother, she had decided that the family needed to move to Idaho where there were jobs to be had.  It was the first time that my great grandparents saw their oldest three grandchildren.  I am sure it was quite an occasion.  Grandpa Frank could not convince his father to come west, but within a few months, he joined them in Idaho.  

In the next few years, the young couple bought the old Hatter Creek school and made a home out of it and two more daughters arrived in the family, Mary Kay in 1944 and Frances in 1946.  Grandma Marian had 5 children within six years.  In 1952, they bought the old farm up on Mountain Home (north of Potlatch) and raised their family.  Life was never easy and there were always monetary challenges as well as family stress.  After their children were out of the house, they moved to Oregon City, OR for a new start and later moved to Canby, OR.  Grandpa Frank never had very good health and he died in 1975.  Soon after, Grandma Marian’s parents, Ora and Florence moved to Canby, OR.  I am not sure who was helping who at this point, but I know that the support was important.  Between work and taking care of her family, life was busy and fulfilling for Grandma Marian.  After the death of her parents in 1990 and 1991, life began to change.  Grandma Marian helped where she could but the family near her was working and involved in their own busy lives.  By that point, her oldest three were all retired and urging her to move back to Idaho. So in 2001, Grandma Marian moved to Idaho and began another chapter.  

Mother's Day - 2011

Grandma Marian was an intensely curious and intelligent worman.  In her youth, there were few opportunities to further her eduation.  After her move to Lewiston, ID, she embraced learning to use the computer, scanning and emailing relatives and friends.  She joined my Mom and I in our efforts at genealogical research and shared her stories and memories.  Grandma enjoyed being around her brothers and getting to know many of her Shawver cousins who lived nearby.  It was wonderful for us (the families of the Gene, Shirley & Anne) to have the opportunity to spend the time with her.  We had a wonderful 90th birthday party for her and I think she was flabbergasted at the fact that we had 150 people who came.  All of her siblings were there, her children, most of her grandchildren and great grandchildren.  Cousins from Montana, neices and nephews as well as her last surviving aunt.  It was a wonderful celebration that she thoroughly enjoyed.  Grandma Marian made it to one last reunion the next year.  It is a fond memory that at the dinner table at our house a few days before, she argued with her brother for almost 30 minutes about the name of some teacher they had back in South Dakota.  I suspect that she is up there arguing with him again as he recently passed away after his 100th birthday.  I miss her but am so glad that I had the opportunity to truly know her and feel as I didn't leave anything unsaid.  We love her and miss her....but am sure she is happy with her family up above and looking over us always!  Here are a few favorite photos!

Marian with siblings - 2010

Marian with children and spouses

Marian

Marian with Ora and Orland

Marian with great grandchildren - 2000

 

Loveletter to Mom

Dear Mom...
I never quite understood when you used to tell me how much you missed picking up the phone and talking to your Mom.  I wasn't able to understand because you can't understand until the day you lose your Mom.  It doesn't matter how old you are, the loss is always there.

I like to say that your Mom is always with you in your mind and your heart.  My mind remembers all of the nights playing your version of gin rummy until Dad came home from working graveyard.  Your special type of humor showing up while you talked on the CB radio or with your close friends.  I remember watching you play out in the yard until you almost collapsed with exhaustion only to get up the next day and do the same thing.  It was something else to watch you with that first computer and those that followed.  You taught yourself word processing, spreadsheets, databases and publishing. My mind still sees you sitting at the piano playing and singing song after song with the door open.  People walking along the road used to stop and listen.  I can still see you singing and filling up the church with your voice.  I can hear your laughter and jokes and even your irritation.  Anything that you did, you did it to the best of your ability.  You lived your life with passion, humor and love for your family.  There are a lifetime of memories that play in my head. They are wonderful gifts for our family to always treasure.


I miss laying my head down on your chest and feeling your arms around me.  You left a permanent impression on so many lives from your family to friends.  So many have a story to tell about something you said or did.  So, I hope that you are enjoying your Mother's day this weekend with all the women that meant so much to you during your lifetime.  I sure miss them all...but most of all, I miss you!     Happy Mother's Day!

Grandpa Frank & Old Cars

During the past year, I have been working on getting some of my grandmother's negatives scanned.  Many of them were from the 1930's and 40's.  There are many great familiar photos but much better quality.    There are two pictures of Grandpa Frank in an old car.  One is the familiar one of ol' 77 and the other one much earlier.

Sometimes I think that cars become a character in our own history.  My Dad can probably tell you every car he has ever had...come to think of if, so can I.  However, I don't have quite as varied of a history.  One of the best finds in my grandmother's negatives was an old picture that I suspect was taken about 1930.  Dad remembers his father telling him that he worked delivering coal for quite a while.  I believe that the other individual in the photo is a cousin.  Someone else would have to tell my the vintage of the car.  Even my Dad isn't sure.  My Grandpa Frank is in the driver's seat and I am sure that this was taken in Dunn Center, ND

It was a series of happy circumstances that my Grandpa ended up on Hatter Creek.  He was in the CCC's (Civilian Conservation Corps) and traveled from North Dakota to Arkansas with a side trip to New Orleans.  Grandpa ended up coming up north with a friend.  Went out on a double date with his friend and Grandpa ended up with his friend's date, my grandmother.  (No hard feels as they remained friends)  My grandmother was the oldest daughter in a family that was shortly going to be 10.  On the night her youngest brother was born (4 July 1939) - my grandparents got engaged.  As the story goes, Grandma's younger brother, John Bernard Gage (known to family as Bun) fixed up a car to race in the Tin Lizzy Derby in Lewiston, ID.  However, he wasn't old enough to drive the car yet as he was not 18 as yet.  So, he convinced his sister's fiance to race his car.  It is probably one of my favorite pictures of my grandfather.   I love the phone and the one below was also taken by my grandmother in August of 1939. 

My grandparents married a few months later in October.  They began their young married life driving across Montana to my Grandfather's home in Dunn Center,ND.  As my Dad tells the story, the 1927 Chevy through a rod and Grandpa had to try to put it back together out in the middle of nowhere.  

I love this photo of the younger couple...probably just married and getting ready to start their life together.  They had 35 years together and shared five children and 18 grandchildren.  Grandpa died at the age of 60 and Grandma survived him by another 35 years. 

Pizza and Beans

Aunt Pauline and Uncle Allen were favorites of mine since I was a child.  Pauline was my grandmother's younger sister and Allen was her husband.  I can still picture Pauline zipping about and Allen with his shirt unbuttoned with a beer in a beer cozy in his hand.  They were fun and there was always a smart ass comment.  There were a few times when I remember Pauline and Allen staying with us at our house.  They would stop by in their trailer and other than a nap or two, we were altogether visiting.  What wonderful memories!

Pauline had a way of looking at you and listening to you that made you feel as if you were one of the most important people in her life.  I haven't seen that talent in that many people but I have in my grandmother and her sisters...and I suspect that they got it from their mother.  Pauline made me feel special and important.  I think she did that for just about everyone.  I found it funny and endearing that just about every card I ever received always had a wonderful note in it which included what the current weather was in Waldport, OR where she lived.  They were lovely newsy notes that always made me smile. 

Allen was a big bear of a man with wonderful hugs and a twinkle in his eye.  I knew as a child that he had a bad back because my parents told me, but it wasn't something that he ever told me much about.  Allen was always good for a story and he was always teasing me.  I used to think that we had something special because we had the same birthday.  I can remember time and time again that I found myself sitting next to Allen to hear what he would say next.  I learned a lot of family stories at his side!

I think I must have been about 19 and it was the first trip that I drove to Canby, OR to spend spring break with my grandmother and great grandparents.  I started out my trip getting lost in Portland, OR because I took a wrong turn.  I ended up in a not so nice area :)  I got myself turned around and made it to Canby.  I spent a few days there and then decided to go down to see Aunt Pauline and Uncle Allen at Waldport, OR.  I was excited to go and see the ocean and have some wonderful seafood.  After another adventure in driving (this was my first long road trip), I made it to Aunt Pauline and Uncle Allen's.  After the initial greeting, Aunt Pauline was excited to show me her home town.  I changed out of my new tennis shoes and we began by walking around on the beach and then walking through town.  I learned at that point, that I wasn't the only person that Pauline made feel special.  Pauline was known and affectionately greeted by everyone.  What a wonderful special day that I spent with her.  I have never forgotten it!

When we got home, Pauline promised me a special treat.  I am not sure we were on the same page, because I was hoping for seafood.  Instead, Pauline brought out a frozen pepperoni pizza.  I was a freshman in college and my tastes had been elevated to Domino's and pizza delivery.  As we sat down to eat, Pauline took a pot off the stove of Allen's favorite beans.  Then I saw Allen grab a spoonful of those beans and place them on his pizza.  I can honestly say that I have never seen that before or since. 

We lost Allen back in 2001 and we lost Pauline on Jan 24, 2020 at the age of 94.  I suppose that I will aways think of that trip to Allen and Pauline's and remember the fun and enthusiasm of Pauline and the twinkle and teasing of Allen's.  Whenever I see the ocean, I remember walking on the beach with Pauline....and whenever I see a pot of beans - Allen definitely comes to mind.  I have missed Allen for the last 20 years and will miss Pauline terribly.  I can't help thinking of how lucky I have been to have known and loved these two wonderful people who always made me feel special.  I hope they knew how special and they were loved by me and everyone else who knew them!
 

My Aunt Anne!

Sometimes I think that it takes losing someone you love to remember how lucky you are to have had them.  I have always known that I was fortunate, but I am reminded because we lost my Aunt Anne this past week.  She is free from her pain and reunited with all those she loved – but I am sure going to miss her.

Anne - 1944

My Dad was the oldest of 5 and the only boy with 4 sisters.  Dad had an especially close relationship with oldest two of his sisters and I am sure it was a combative one at times.  He used to say that his day was shot if he didn’t make Anne cry before school.  I am not sure if it was Anne or Shirley who put the scissors through his hand…but I am fairly sure that he deserved it.

House in ND where Anne was born

 Dad was born in a hospital in Dickinson, ND in 1940 but both Shirley and Anne were born in the little house that their family lived in back in Dunn Center, ND by the local midwife, Mrs. Bell.  Anne always found it ironic that she married man with the last name of Bell and she was delivered by a midwife with the name of Minnie Bell. Grandma Marian either got fed up or was so homesick (maybe both) that she came back to Idaho on a train in February 1943 with a colicky baby (Anne) and two toddlers aged three and two.  Her father picked her up and brought her down to her folks place on Hatter Creek, ID.  There at the bottom of the road were my grandmother’s two younger brothers waiting with a sled to cart those little ones up to the Loggie (It was a log cabin and the snow was too deep for the car to make it).  It was there that my great grandmother finally got her hands on her three oldest grandchildren whom she had not yet seen in person.  This is a story that Anne and I talked about quite often.  Obviously, she didn’t remember the being placed in her grandmother’s arms that first time but I know she thought about it when she was able to hold her grandchildren for the first time. 

Loggie where the Gage family lived on Hatter Creek, 

Anne spent part of her early years on Hatter Creek in the old schoolhouse that her parents bought.  They lived there until she was about nine years old when they moved up to the Mountain Home area north of Freeze Cemetery near Potlatch, ID.  In Anne’s mind, she had an idyllic childhood.  Anne, Shirley and Dad (Gene) spent their childhood climbing trees, playing together and having a wonderful time.  They were each other’s playmates and while their parents never really had any money, they never thought of themselves as poor.  Although the next two sisters were relatively close in age, I don’t think they ever shared the same memories or perhaps the same joyful childhood.  By the time they were older, Grandma had a job and wasn’t at home as much…so there wasn’t the same carefree childhood for them.

Anne & Bill

I am not sure if Bill chased Anne or allowed himself to be caught.  He was her devoted boyfriend much to my father’s chagrin.  Bill was a year older than Dad…and perhaps Dad wasn’t quite ready to see his little sister go out with an older guy.  Bill and Anne always pushed the limits of her curfew and there was many a time that they spent so much time staying goodbye on the porch that Dad had to get up and dig Bill’s car out of the driveway because he had gotten stuck because of the snow or mud.  There was even a time when the two lovebirds were showered with snow – they didn’t know until years later that Dad helped it along.  After all it was too cold to walk out to the outhouse!

Anne & Bill's Wedding

My grandparents allowed Anne & Bill to get married when she was 15 – Grandma said that she knew if she didn’t then Anne would have presented her a grandchild in short order.  So in June 1958, Anne and Bill were married at St Mary’s church in Potlatch, ID and just over a year later that first grandchild arrived (Billy) then the following year, Rod, and the next year Kenny.  She took 1962 off and then had Alan in 1963 and Ronny in 1964.  Anne loved nothing more than being a mother and a wife. 

Anne & Bill's boys about 1965

Bill, Rod, Kenny, Ronny - 2008

She adored her husband’s parents and treated them with the same love and affection as she did her own parents.  Bill was an only child and his parents embraced Anne as a beloved daughter and they adored their grandsons.  Anne always wanted a little girl – but she wouldn’t have traded her boys for anything in the world.  Life couldn’t remain that idyllic for long.  In 1982, when the boys were all home celebrating their parents and grandparents wedding anniversary, a fire swept through the house.  The only one who didn’t make it out of the house was Alan.  Bill almost destroyed  himself trying to get in the house and get him out but to no avail.  Alan died of smoke inhalation.    I am not sure that was a loss that Anne and Bill ever recovered from.  I know that Anne told me on many occasions that you never get over it, you just learn to live with it.  Anne also had to be the rock for Bill and her boys – they remained the center of her life.  Nothing was ever more important to her than her family.

Bell Family - 2000 - Grandma Marian's 80th Birthday

Anne never had that girl she always wanted.  She did try to live a little vicariously with her nieces.  I am sure all of us have memories of her wanting to play with our hair while we wanted to be out playing with the boys.  I think Anne got her own back though…out of the twelve  grandchildren, eight of them are girls.  You can tell that Anne has left her stamp on all of them because I can see bits of her in every one of them. 

Bell Family 2012

As I sit here and think about Anne…there are a wealth of memories to sift through.  Anne has always been a part of my life.  I was always close to her…but we became especially close during my college years to the present.  I loved to go over and visit her at the cafeteria at the University of Idaho where she worked as a cook.  There were many family reunions that included picnics, weddings and funerals where Anne and Bill were always there.  I don’t think Anne and Bill missed one family gathering if they could help it.  When Mom and I got involved in genealogy, Anne became our compadre.  We spent many hours discussing and analyzing anything and everything that we found. Mom, Dad, Anne & Bill as well as their  granddaughter Angela, my niece Ashlie traveled back to North Dakota in 1999 or so.  We hit some of the important spots along the way like Yellowstone, Devil’s Tower and Mount Rushmore, but our real goal was to meet some cousins in Washburn, ND and see if we could figure out where Grandma was buried.   I will never forget our adventures.  I can still picture Bill walking his granddaughter’s cat on a leash.  In my mind’s eye, I can see  our cousin Sheryll, my Mom, Betty, and Anne sitting in the living room pouring through pictures.

Then my grandmother joined our little group (she moved to Idaho in 2001).  There were untold hours spent on family stories and family histories.  Unlike many families, we spent a lot of time talking about what our family had experienced during the last several hundred years.  Anne always figured that I had our family figured out so she was working on figuring out what she could about Bill’s family.  We never stopped our family search.  We shared our frustrations and triumphs.  We also shared our sorrows when my Mom died in 2005, Grandma Marian in 2011, her Bill a few months later in 2012  and Shirley in 2015.Perhaps the hardest cross she had to bear was the loss of her beloved Kenny this past January.  No one should ever have to face the loss of child and Anne had lost two of them.  The last time Anne and I had time alone we talked about her facing death.  As expected, she was rather matter of fact about it.  Anne liked to say that she slept with two angels every night, Bill at the head of her bed and Alan at the foot.  She smiled and said that Kenny had squeezed in there.  Anne’s pain is over and now she is reunited with her angels and all those that she has loved and missed.  If I know Anne, after she has greeted everyone – she has some questions and she will finally be where she will get her answers.  Next time I find something interesting…I will have to wonder if Anne found something out and is letting me know.  Just wish it was in person. 

Frank with Gene, Shirley & Anne in front

Here are some pictures of Anne with her siblings!

Mother's day 2011 - Left to right - Fran, Anne, Marian, Gene, MaryKay & Shirley

Left to Right - Shirley, Fran, Marian, Gene, MaryKay & Anne - 1975

MaryKay, Anne, Fran & Shirley

This is a particular favorite of mine.  You can see the pride in all of their faces.  

Anne with son, Kenny, granddaughter Rikki, grandson Brayden and mother Marian