My grandmother passed away in December (2019) at the age of 97. As I begin to chronicle our family's happenings in this blog again, I am dedicating this family blog to her, our original family historian. This is my way of keeping history for our family and carrying on the legacy that she began.
Her life was filled with love for family, volunteerism, and a determination to have fun and travel. She did loads of genealogical research, tracing our family roots all the way back to the Mayflower (William Bradford), Aaron Burr (the guys who shot Alexander Hamilton), and many other founders of our country. Her research made it possible for me to be able to join DAR (daughters of the American Revolution), although I never did.
My grandmother was an amazing woman in so many ways. She graduated from college and was a teacher for many years. She supported my grandfather in so many ways, but perhaps the greatest was encouraging him to process, talk about and be proud of his service in the Air Force in WW 2. Together they attended many 330th bomb group reunions over the years and in the picture above, she is receiving the flag that draped my grandfather's coffin during his military burial.
She was the town historian for Watertown, CT for many years and she worked tirelessly to curate antique items for the town museum.
She set a wonderful example of commitment and dedication in marriage. My grandpa and she truly celebrated each other’s victories and accomplishments and were each other’s biggest fans.
My grandmother worked hard to raise awareness of the significance of historical buildings and she even participated in a few public protests when historic buildings were scheduled to be demolished. I love the picture of her with the bull horn (below).
My grandmother encouraged a love for reading in me at an early age, introducing me to the "latest" Caldecott winners and honors, Blueberries for Sal, One Morning in Maine, The Biggest Bear, Make Way for Ducklings, and many others.
My grandmother was a writer herself. She wrote loads of letters to me when I was in college, spurring me on, letting me know how proud she was that I was pursuing education. She also wrote quite a few newspaper articles and was interviewed for scores more. She went on to write her own book on the history of her beloved town, Watertown. It contained a compilation of pictures and stories from days gone by.
So Gram, I'm going to do what I can to remember what you taught me about our family of the past while working hard to keep a history of our present day family. But, as I write each post, you're the inspiration for recording these memories and you're the impetus behind seeing the importance in the happenings of everyday life. This blog is dedicated to you.
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