Alma Hegg

Because my Grandma Hagen died before I was 2 years old, Grandma Hegg was the only grandmother I knew. She was a big part of my life. When I was little, our family and my Uncle Don's family often had Sunday dinners at Grandma's house. She was a wonderful cook who could turn the cheapest cut of meat into a delicious meal. She always had both green and black olives - green for Kari & I; black for Kyle. At Christmas, she was the first up from the table to get the dishes done so we could open presents. She was nearly as excited as the kids! Her best friend was Mrs. Stokes. I never learned Mrs. Stokes' first name - Grandma came from the era when married women took their identity from their husbands. Grandma never learned to drive - she walked or took the bus. And when she walked, she walked fast - it was hard to keep up with her! She retained a Norwegian accent all her life. When we lived on Yates Ave. she called it "Jates", and when we moved to Joppa Ave. it was "Yoppa". I was always "Katleen".

When I was in high school, I would take the bus to her house once a week in the summer to mow her lawn (with a push mower). She always made me a big hot meal - pork chops and potatoes come to mind. This was when I really got to know her. She told me stories from her youth. Since she didn't marry until she was in her 30s, she kept house for her farmer brothers - Conrad and Jens. When they got the flu during the epidemic that followed WW1, she would take food to them on a tray and leave it at the top of the stairs. She was terrified of the flu her entire life.

When Grandma turned 80 the family gave her a big party. At that point, she decided she was old and stopped reading or watching TV. She began to go downhill from that point, eventually developing dementia. When I was in college, she began to wander and sometimes got lost. Finally in 1976 Dad & Don moved her to a nursing home where she lived until the age of 92, surviving the amputation of her leg when she was over 90.