MY MOTHER AND DAD HAD 27 GRANDCHILDREN AND I CANT REMEMBER HOW MANY GREAT-GRANDCHILDREN THEY HAD. I LOST TRACK OF MEL’S GANG.
I DO KNOW THAT WHEN ANY OF US HAD A NEW BABY SHE WAS THERE TO TAKE CARE OF THE CHILDREN.

TWO THINGS THAT I WOULD HAVE LIKED TO DO FOR HER IN HER LIFETIME: GET HER TO WEAR SOME KIND OF JEANS FOR FREEDOM IT WOULD GIVE HER AND I WOULD HAVE LIKED TO SPEND SOME TIME WITH HER ON READING AND WRITING. WHEN SHE LEFT CALIFORNIA IN 1967, WE ALL MISSED HER. MY YOUNGEST CHILDREN DO NOT REMEMBER THIS WONDERFUL GRANDMOTHER.

BACK IN PITTSBURGH, PA. SHE LIVED IN AN APARTMENT AND WHEN SHE WAS UNABLE TO TAKE CARE OF HERSELF AND ILLNESS TOOK OVER SHE WAS ADMITTED TO JOHN KANE HOSPITAL WHERE SHE ENDURED 8 YEARS AND DOROTHY TOOK CARE OF HER NEEDS. BROWNIE WAS WITH HER TO THE END AND I AM ALWAYS GRATEFUL TO THEM. THE ONLY THING THAT MADE THE LOSS BEARABLE IS THAT WE WERE FRIENDS AND, I WAS NEVER AT ODDS WITH HER.


ZOE THOMPSON, DAUGHTER
2005