TSGS Cruiser Blog

Sunday, May 10, 2009

"Happy Mother's Day!"

Happy Mother's Day to everyone! I can not go visit Mom, but I can remember her today in a special way:

Bernadine Long
11 Jul 1921 - 01 Oct 1997



My favorite photo of Mom



One of my very first photos that I took as a kid was of Mom in our house in the country (Warrick County, Indiana)
She was the mother of four children: Glen, me, Tina & Don.
She told us story after story about her family that always fascinated me and kindled my life-long love of genealogy. Mom did not like country living and times were kind of tough for work for Dad as a construction worker during the two economic recessions of the 1950's. After I graduated from high school, we moved back to Evansville: Mom's beloved city and home. Every year, without fail, Mom went out to decorate all of the local family grave sites in all of the various cemeteries with flowers... it was a very important responsibility on Memorial Day to remember family members who had died. Don, took her around each year after Dad died with me taking her around every two or three years. Now that Mom is gone and younger brother, Don, passed away in 2000, the responsibility, actually duty, is for me to decorate the family graves. I try to make Mom's the first & most special grave to decorate & remember. I miss you, Mom!
While Mom was the first woman in my life, this is the second woman... the mother of my three sons! Becky McIntyre [adopted name... birth name Meredith] with our first son, Phillip G. West (the other two sons are JJ & James). Happy Mother's Day, Becky!

- Submitted by JGWest

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