My mother and father moved to Boulder in 1978 from Butte. They had married young and raised 12 children, seven boys and five girls.
Mom took energetically to her new community. She was an active member of the Assembly of God Church (now Life Church), where she sang in the choir. She also worked for Shop Rite/IGA and as a seamstress for Easter Seals and the Montana Developmental Center, making wheelchairs for disabled children and other individuals. She was a pioneer in bringing a Christmas bazaar to town in 1980.
And the baking! Mom was a very good cook, and an especially excellent baker. She could never have enough baked goods on hand, especially her lemon merengue pies. She was always whipping up something for a bake sale in town, and there were often bidding wars for her pastries — they would sell even before they were placed on the tables!
Mom enjoyed making crafts and working with her flowers and garden. She liked to play the piano and sing. And she loved fishing; once, a big one bent her pole into Georgetown Lake and pulled our boat around for over an hour before the rod finally broke off.
Mostly, though, she was a wonderful mother, grandmother and friend. Mom stayed firm in Christian values through prayer and fellowship and instilled those values in her children. She was a vibrant woman who always had a kind word for those she met. She had a wonderful smile and infectious laugh and was a lover of life with all its intricacies.
Mom died on Oct. 25. She had spent a lifetime living up to her name, which in Hebrew means a compassionate, loyal and faithful friend. Her joy, friendship and love will be missed immensely by all who knew her, most of all by her family.
