My Grandma

My grandma died holding my mother’s hand last Sunday, January 4th. Her death was not unexpected, and it was peaceful.  I’m good with words, but when it comes to my grandma all the words I know don’t seem to be enough to say what I mean, and what I feel for her. Words don’t feel big enough to hold her the way she held me.

Below is part of my Uncle Norm’s eulogy for her and it places us in the greater context of our family history:

Elaine S. H. is survived by her husband of 41 years, 5 children,
9 grandchildren and 2 great-grand-children.

She was the descendant of teachers of life:

Great-great-grandfather Quiggle, born ~1830, fought in Civil War,
honorably discharged from a Michigan regiment. My grandmother’s
ability to produce those discharge papers got me 2 semesters of
scholarships at the University of Michigan, when I needed it.

His, son, Great-grand-father Henry Quiggle, was a captain of
ships on the Great Lakes. We kids have very fond memories of
him. My special memory is of being taught nautical knot tricks
on the stairs of the family home. He held several patents,
including a sailboat that folded into 2 suitcases.

His daughter, grand-mother Lucy Mabel Quiggle, was born in
1900 and died in 1969. She married Loren Darvel Jackson,
who was a wonderful grandfather to us, and a real character.
Lucy taught me to cook (its not a science/measurement, but an art)
and to sew – I still have a great whip-stitch for mending things.

During the Depression, Grandpa Loren broke down at the dinner table,
saying that the barber-shop he owned hadn’t made enough to heat the
place that day, let alone feed the family. He decided to give folks
haircuts on credit – pay what you can, when you can. For folks
going on job interviews he provided free shave and haircut. He
was paid in everything from eggs, to chickens, to sacks of beans.
His customers were exceptionally loyal and he retired in 1955 to
Florida after selling his prosperous barber-shop. Grandpa Loren
fell out of a tree on his 85th birthday, while trimming it,
injuring his ego, but nothing else.

Elaine was born May 3, 1921 and in 1941 married Francis
William S. and they had three children: Norm, Diane and
Tom.

In 1955 the family moved from Detroit to Hillsdale, Michigan,
where Dad was the Superintendent of Allied #4. Mom and Dad
were both Deacon’s in the First Presbyterian Church there.
Mom was on the Standing Committee on Christian Education.

On June 18, 1961 Dad died of a cerebral aneurysm. Mom got
all three kids through college.

In 1967 Mom married Jack in Hillsdale, gaining an instant
family: Greg and Steve. These kids all graduated college.

In 1996 Mom and Jack moved to Phoenix and Scottsdale, AZ.

In 2004, after a mild stroke and recovery, Mom and Jack moved to
Ann Arbor, MI.

On Jan 4, 2009 Mom died easily while holding her daughter’s hand.

We are the legacy of all these people’s love and teaching,
especially Elaine’s.