I received the usual monthly call from Dione Marine that the Selle Club was having its September meeting at her home across from Selle Grange.
As usual, I had too much to do---three story deadlines---to make it to the meeting. I've probably attended only one other meeting this year, and that was way back when we were all griping about the winter.
The "too busy to make it to the meeting" changed instantly, however, when Dione told me not to bring dessert. Just bring buttons because Isabel would be showing us how to make bracelets from button assortments. And, don't bring dessert, she said, because Nita Schoonover will be bringing a cake to honor Wilma Erickson on her 95th birthday.
There was no way I was going to miss this occasion, so I told Dione I would make sure to bracket enough time to be there for Wilma, with camera in hand.
I forgot my buttons but did not forget the camera. I also took along a card that said it's now how old you are but how you are old. Perfect for Wilma, who is the most amazing 95-year-old I've ever known. She still drives everywhere. She orders her huckleberries---a gallon for herself, four gallons for her daughter-in-law. She's on the go all the time, and, as one person said yesterday, she could pass for mid-70s any time.
Yesterday, unaware of the upcoming festivities, Wilma handed over a sheet of paper, with neatly written information, to Isabel who's also heading up the cookbook project where the extension clubs will supply recipes for an upcoming publication designed to earn funds for the Bonner County Fair Foundation. Apparently at the last meeting, folks were trying to think of the extension clubs in the area. Wilma had thought of two more not on the list, and she was determined to talk to someone out at Vay to see if a club was still going out there.
After the meeting and the usual potluck luncheon, Wilma's surprise came. At first, she didn't want me to snap too many photos, cuz I had suggested that "this was for the paper."
"I don't want to draw attention to myself," she insisted. Well, she didn't win the argument and finally submitted to a few shots around the cake. I hurried to get a photo to the paper, but it turned out someone had already beaten me to the punch, submitting a photo taken with Wilma's son Ed, probably on her actual 95th birthday, Sept. 6. That photo appeared in this morning's paper, allowing me to expand a bit on this occasion in the blog.
Wilma is much loved wherever she goes because Wilma is not only an inspiration for those of us wondering how we'll fare as elders, but she's also probably one of the sweetest, kindest, most thoughtful women I've ever known. Her genuine humility is always apparent.
I found a biography that she had submitted back in 1991 as a member of the Selle Club, and I thought I'd include it in today's posting. By the way, I believe Wilma's been a member of the Selle Club for more than 60 years.
Wilma was born Sept. 6, 1913, in Independence, Kans. She attended school at Wrencoe, Idaho; Peru, Kans.;, Sandpoint High School and Lewiston Normal School. She married Severt Erickson June 30, 1945 and adopted their son Edward on Aug. 21, 1952.
~~~~~~~
Here is the rest of her story, in Wilma's words:
My father was a freight clerk for the Southern Pacific Railroad in Independence. He obtained railroad passes to Aberdeen, Wash., for us and his parents to visit his youngest sister. On our way home, my grandmother became ill. We got off the train in Sandpoint where she was treated by Dr. McKinnon, father of Malcolm Mckinnon, the dentist.
While in Sandpoint, my folks read real estate ads and later bought a 160-acre "stump" ranch at Wrencoe from Mr. and Mrs. Hugh Chronic. In April, 1918, my mother, brother and I joined my grandfather at Wrencoe. Due to World War I, my father couldn't get released from his RR job until September when he came to Idaho in a freight car with our furniture, cow and chickens.
On July 19, 1919, our home was destroyed by a forest fire. My father started work as a freight clerk in Coeur d'Alene where my brother and I entered first grade. In 1921, we returned to Kansas for two years.
I taught school at Wrencoe and the Lincoln School in Sandpoint, worked in Washington, D.C. and Newark, New Jersey, as a clerk-typist for the War Department. Our office made out checks for the soldiers' dependents.
We purchased the Panida News Stand, and I worked there until Edward Eric arrived. Severt sold the News Stand and worked as an accountant and office manager until retirement.
~~~~~~~
That's just a brief summary written by a remarkable woman who has done so much more with her life since her bio was written 17 years ago. All I've got to say probably reflects that of Wilma's large following of fans: if she's an example of what life can be life at 95, bring it on!
Happy Birthday, Wilma!
Here is the rest of her story, in Wilma's words:
My father was a freight clerk for the Southern Pacific Railroad in Independence. He obtained railroad passes to Aberdeen, Wash., for us and his parents to visit his youngest sister. On our way home, my grandmother became ill. We got off the train in Sandpoint where she was treated by Dr. McKinnon, father of Malcolm Mckinnon, the dentist.
While in Sandpoint, my folks read real estate ads and later bought a 160-acre "stump" ranch at Wrencoe from Mr. and Mrs. Hugh Chronic. In April, 1918, my mother, brother and I joined my grandfather at Wrencoe. Due to World War I, my father couldn't get released from his RR job until September when he came to Idaho in a freight car with our furniture, cow and chickens.
On July 19, 1919, our home was destroyed by a forest fire. My father started work as a freight clerk in Coeur d'Alene where my brother and I entered first grade. In 1921, we returned to Kansas for two years.
I taught school at Wrencoe and the Lincoln School in Sandpoint, worked in Washington, D.C. and Newark, New Jersey, as a clerk-typist for the War Department. Our office made out checks for the soldiers' dependents.
We purchased the Panida News Stand, and I worked there until Edward Eric arrived. Severt sold the News Stand and worked as an accountant and office manager until retirement.
~~~~~~~
That's just a brief summary written by a remarkable woman who has done so much more with her life since her bio was written 17 years ago. All I've got to say probably reflects that of Wilma's large following of fans: if she's an example of what life can be life at 95, bring it on!
Happy Birthday, Wilma!
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