HAPPY BIRTHDAY LUCY

     In 1922, the Lead-Deadwood area of South Dakota was still a little on the wild side, although it had been years since its more famous citizens such as Calamity Jane and Wild Bill Hickok had passed from the scene. Lawrence County had something for everybody. There was gold mining, logging, railroads, and ranching. Deadwood had a visit that year from a sports hero, when Babe Ruth played an exhibition game there as part of a nationwide barnstorming promotion.

     Also arriving in the Lead-Deadwood area in 1922 was a girl-child, born to William Pearl and Nellie Gorton. Lucy Ellen Gorton, with her flaming locks of auburn hair came into this world on March 11, 1922, ninety years ago today, one of seven sisters and one brother. Lucy would often tell the story of how the whole family traveled from South Dakota to the Tacoma area by way of a covered wagon.

     It was there that Lucy met a young man of German descent and she married Herman Earl Diedrich on February 28, 1940. The marriage proved very interesting as Lucy’s fiery Irish/English temper often ran up against Bud’s German stubbornness. Together they raised four daughters and enjoyed a marriage lasting over 60 years.

     Lucy was never shy about lending a hand or an opinion, and her daughters were all taught to fight for what they needed or wanted. Family was important to her, her immediate family as well as her extended family.  

     She was an excellent cook and it is safe to say that if you left Lucy’s home feeling hungry, it was your own fault.  If your pockets did not contain a foil-wrapped loaf of her famous banana bread it was because you refused it. She had a way of making me feel guilty if I did not eat something as soon as I came in the door. But it was always worth it.

     Lucy was a wife, mom, sister, cousin, and friend to all. She was always on the go, often taking cookies or her banana bread to missionaries, even though they belonged to a different church than she did. In her later years, as Bud slipped deeper into the grips of Alzheimer’s, she kept up the pace, but it was eventually too much for her, and she suffered a massive stroke.

     Lucy left us on May 7, 1998, just 74 years old. She spoke on many occasions of how much she missed her own mother, and we know that she was reunited at last.  At her funeral, there were over 500 friends and family who came to say goodbye.

     There is no doubt in my mind that she is busy on the other side of the veil, delivering cookies, banana bread, organizing birthday parties, showers, and doing what she can to make somebody’s day a little brighter.

     Happy Birthday, Lucy. We miss you down here and we love you.