Our Mothers Part 2

Adeline born in Iowa lived until age 96. Going through the depression, she stressed frugality and emphasized savings. At 90, she could still touch her toes. When I asked Tony, why his athletic, competitive mother touched her toes, he essentially said “to show me up.” She used to swim and workout with Jack La Lanne on TV. She added that she had a lot of fun dancing with the servicemen during the war years. Unfortunately, she had bad knees, but still gardened. To keep her mind sharp, she worked word games and crossword puzzles. She also painted, made ceramic dolls and was a seamstress. In fact, her celebrity shop sewed for the Nixon’s. She volunteered frequently at the school, old folks home, polling stations and at the USO.

At about 90 or 91, Adeline fell and broke her femur. Although her femur healed, she was in agony. She wound up in a wheelchair, because of her bad knees, which she hated. She demonstrated perseverance and didn’t take any crap from anybody. She told Tony that one time her boss got fresh and she smacked him. Her mother lived into her 90s also.

Helen, nicknamed Ridgie, born in Illinois, lived to the age of 93. She had surgery and developed bleeding in her neck and passed away about 10 days later. She smoked Camels until she developed cancer of the tongue while in her mid-80s and then quit. She was very social and loved country club parties. She drank a lot.

Helen was very competitive, and was a terrific golfer. She won many women golf tournaments well into her 70s. She even went to the driving range until about age 90. She developed a heart condition into her mid-80s and that slowed her physically. She kept her mind sharp and was an avid card player playing Spite and Malice and Bridge. She was a volunteer during the war and a DAR member as well

To Be Continued