7/7/1923 – 1/16/2016
Born July 7, 1923 to Esther Carridell and Theodore Wolfe in Birmingham, Alabama.
She was # 3 of four children, brothers Ted (Wolfie) and George (Bub) and younger sister June.
We grew up hearing the joy-filled stories of their youth during the Great Depression on Kney Street in Memphis, TN. Many children lived on that street and they all played together, shared meals, collected metal and old tires together for the war effort later on and because everyone was in the same depression, the same circumstance, they took it all in stride. Her stories were so vivid that truly to this day, most of my siblings also believe we lived through the Depression ….and are quite proud of it.
She attended Humes High School in Memphis and learned to type there. She had a very kind teacher there she would speak of, but I cannot remember her name. It was with fondness she spoke of Humes. All of her siblings attended and she would say her beloved brothers cast large shadows for her to follow.
Her parents never drove, never owned a vehicle so traveling about the city was on street car. Mom spoke of those days with great love. Her Mother tailored men’s suits at home and her Dad worked on the railroad as a mail sorter, traveling daily from Memphis to Birmingham sorting the mail by hand. Amazing stories.
She wanted to be a teacher and began college. She was a part of the steno-pool for the railroad, Graybar and liked that job.
We grew up with myriad stories of WWII and her brave soldier brothers and then her first boyfriend who was a neighbor who died in WWII, Ian. Again, the stories were so prolific, I as one child believe I too went through the war. She had taken her Sunday School class to Shelby Park in Memphis on that fateful day December 7, 1941. We were there with her during this recollection.
She belonged to a “business woman’s sorority” Beta Sigma Phi…..where she met our Father at a Valentine’s dance and married him. She later spoke about Beta Sigma Phi being a lifesaver to her over the years, because when Dad graduated from Finley Engineering with a degree in Architectural Engineering, they moved often, from job to job. The sorority was an instant support and group of friends for them at each new location. She went up the ladder in Beta Sigma Phi to the highest level and was a lifetime member.
This woman made ALL of her own clothes. Gorgeous things and we grew up with her making all of our clothes, wonderful little dresses. It was a dream for sure and we girls sewed many of our own original creations throughout high school and beyond.
Our Mom always told us why she had so many kids so quickly, because she and Dad were older than their friends when they married and then Dad going through school, they just wanted to get that American Dream going. She had 4 babies in 6 years. She read to us every evening and when we were moving to a new location, we went to the library and got books about the new State and learned all about it. Each of us had library cards by the first grade because of our Mother and used them often.
There was a time in the early 60’s when we lived way out in the country and Mom wanted to get a car and learn to drive (hard not to at this point). Dad told her “no.” Well, as she told it, she broke everything in their bedroom (of course we kids were oblivious, none of us ever saw or heard them argue EVER) and her girlfriend came over the next day with her stick on column station wagon, taught Mom to drive and she got her license. That was that. A truly original bra burner we always said.
She was a Girl Scout through and through. All of her daughters received their First Class standing because of her commitment to us and the many, many lessons we learned from those years. At one point she had 40 girls in her troop. Amazing. Her son went on to receive his Eagle and she was just as dedicated to him.
Our Mother raised us with the idea that she would rather paint or garden or do anything else but cook, even though she was an amazing cook when she did. Consequently, with 3 girls in the home, eager to be homemakers we all did the cooking. Our Mother was one of those who was so very thrilled when Swanson Foods created “tv dinners.” She thought of those as personal gifts and pot pies, a dream!!!
She was a creative spirit and painted most of her life. Painted with all of her grandchildren, encouraging their expression. She taught painting for years, volunteering. She touched many lives in a beautiful way.
When Dad retired they got/SHE got them involved in The Walking Club at Fontenelle Forest Nature Center….and again, included the grandchildren in this beautiful experience.
She went back to school and completed her degree in Art Appreciation at UNO!
The day she retired from Northern Natural Gas/ENRON, she called me and said “I got them.” “You got what I replied?” “My tap shoes….” So, there she was taking tap classes at 65, then clogging, then got our Dad involved and they traveled to Nursing Homes and County Fairs tapping and clogging away. They were the youngest in their ‘troop’ and participated into their 80’s.
Mom took Karate in her 60’s. Dear Lord! It was something else attending a karate meet and have the person on the bleacher next to you ask “which child is yours?” and my response “the one with the white hair.”
We learned to stand up for ourselves because that was modeled for us. When we moved to Omaha, our final location since we would soon be entering junior high school and our parents wanted to give us roots, we studied Nebraska and Omaha. Mom took us to a number of the gorgeous old buildings in downtown Omaha that were scheduled for demolition so we could experience their grandeur. Again, we got library cards and visited art museums as we did everywhere we lived.
Art was so important to our Mom. Marla attended Dijon University in France and Mom saved her money and met Marla over there for a trip of a lifetime and certainly seeing many of the masters she so dearly loved and admired.
Every Sunday night our Mom would make cinnamon rolls. At some point as adults, we ask her why was that her ritual. She said “Because when Monday comes, you will each go to school and Dad will go to work and I want this night to be very special for all of us.” We had no idea as children what this meant to her.
She did not begin working out of the home until each of us were in Junior High or High School, busy with our own activities.
She loved the gym when working at ENRON and swam daily. She was a long time member of Toastmasters and enjoyed it immensely. Again , I attended many of her early morning meetings to watch her go through the motions of whatever that particular lesson was. She was also active in Desk & Derrick an organization within ENRON for the secretaries.
We were members of Pearl Memorial Methodist Church for many decades. She and Dad taught Sunday school there and were very active in other aspects.
We all learned to give to others because of our Mother’s influence and teachings. She never missed any of our events at school or church and during our youth was our greatest cheerleader for sure.
She painted up until a few months ago, even though her eyesight no longer allowed her to see.
Not everyone knew that our Mom fought cancer over and over and over. Beginning in the 50’s she had colon cancer, long before it was a known killing disease. We grew up with her telling of that brilliant Dr. who found it and cut out 2 ½ feet of her intestines. Hearing this as children, you just don’t forget. She almost died of pneumonia when we were tiny and because she thought she was on death’s door, instilled in her daughters an independence and ability to take charge that is beyond our peers. Over the years she developed breast cancer, liver cancer that came and went a couple of times and a cancerous brain stem tumor that another brilliant Doctor removed. Each time she lost her hair, she always wanted it to grow back red and curly. We laughed about this, and that hair never did accommodate. She overcame it all and died because she was tired. Of course she was.
What happens when a loved one dies is that your mind swirls with memories. We have 92 ½ years of memories that I pray will hold us through our remaining years. She loved the Lord and hated the Devil and would make such comments often.
Compiled by Kerry Evans Adams
Omaha – Preceded in death by husband Monroe Sr. Survived by children Debra (Dennis) Robinson, Kerry Evans Adams, Marla (John) Rice-Evans, Monroe, JR. (Maxine), grandchildren Angela, Michelle, Stephanie, Natalie, Jesse, Monroe III, 4 great grandchildren, sister June Little, family & friends.
Visitation Wednesday 5-7 PM. Funeral Service 10:00 AM Thursday at Roeder Mortuary. Interment Forest Lawn Cemetery. Memorials to Sure Foundation Ministry.
Roeder Mortuary, Inc. – Ames Chapel
4932 Ames Ave – Omaha, NE – 402-453-5600
www.RoederMortuary.com
