tarnished and tattered

 I’m dedicating this Vintage Inspiration Friday post to a truly inspiring woman.
Kevin’s Grandmother Bertie, who is turning 98 - so I guess this qualifies her as vintage!

Born in 1912 she grew up poor with only an 8^th grade education. 

 Bertie married young & raised 4 boys in Pampa Texas, a struggling oil town.  

She was green before ‘green’ was in!  

They were totally self-sufficient.  The family raised chickens, grew vegetables, had a milk cow.  Bertie made everything from furniture to clothing. Like all of us, Bertie wanted a nice house & pretty things.

What she lacked in finances she made up for in ingenuity & gumption. If there was something she wanted, she found a way to make it happen.  When she heard that one of the oil companies in town were selling a building used as a recreation center, she bought it, moved it & placed it on a foundation she poured.
She salvaged windows, doors, & laid sheet rock transforming it into their family home.  

At school registration each year she made mental notes of the style of clothes being worn.  Using flour sacks or castoffs she meticulously fashioned shirts & trousers for her boys so they would be dressed equally as their classmates. No better.
No Worse.

 

Grandmother even made my FIL’s prom tuxedo!

 

I was honored when she passed down her old singer to me. 

Her determination & strong faith in God carried her through many tough times, the worst of which was losing a precious son at 16 to cancer.

When she was 80 her husband passed away, but Bertie was still going strong.  She surprised the family when she announced she was going on her dream vacation to Alaska...Alone!

Her greatest legacy is her family & although Bertie had limited schooling education was important to her.
 

The surviving son’s went on to accomplishes great things in life.

Uncle Bill has a master in political science, served as speaker of the house in the Wyoming House of Representatives & traveled the world as a teacher in American schools.

Uncle EJ graduated from Rice University on a basketball scholarship, toured Asia as a Christian College All American & served on the Spring Texas Independent School District Board of Directors. 

My FIL Ted has masters in communication from TCU & has been a professor there for over 30 years. He is a published author & international trainer for professional development has spoken in 40 states & 6 foreign countries.

All 8 of her grandchildren graduated from college, many with masters degrees.

Bertie taught me to not let anything stand in the way of my dreams & that no one but me can make them come true. 

 Happy Birthday Grandmother!

I love you!

Thanks Debra for giving us the opportunity to sing the praises of everything & everyone who inspires us!

Check out Common Grounds for more Vintage Inspiration today.

Next week I'll be sharing some amazing treasures Grandmother gave to me & a collage made in honor of her birthday!