Mom was born in Ladysmith, Wisconsin in 1939, daughter of dairy farmers and the youngest child of eight.  She graduated from Elmwood High School in 1956 and married soon after.  I am her eldest child, born in 1957 and two others soon followed, my brother in 1958 and a sister in 1960.

Her first marriage did not last long and she soon found herself raising three very young children on her own with no support from our father.  But she never complained, never made us kids feel like a burden even though she was working two jobs most of the time and barely had time to sleep, let alone have a life.  These were very hard times for her, but I don't remember it ever affecting how we felt about each other .  She had the ability to carry the load, though I don't know how.

She remarried in 1965 and we moved to Washington State in 1968 where she continued to work hard to raise her family.  Her second husband passed away in 1977 and she found herself on her own again.  She met her partner, Wayne, in 1978 and they have been together ever since.  Life has finally become kind to my mother, something long overdue.  She has a nice home, a man who loves her, her children around her and a grandchild, my daughter, whom she dotes upon.

Mom is getting very close to retiring now and she and Wayne plan to travel when she does.  They have already taken trips to the Grand Canyon and elsewhere in the states, plus one trip to Europe covering Sweden, Germany and a side trip into Poland.  As soon as she does retire they are heading for the New England states to catch the fall turning of the leaves there.

So here's to you Mom.  You've taught me everything that was important in life, given me the ability to laugh through the hard times, kept hope alive in my heart and always made me smile.

With all my love, Debbie