Florence Catherine (Brady) Youngern

I am so sad to tell you that my Grandma Flo passed away today (not to be confused with Carl's Grandma Natalie whom we also recently lost). I guess we all knew it was coming, but none of us knew exactly when the day would come. Sadly, my Grandma had been struggling with the mind-crippling disorder of Dementia for well over 5 years. It felt as though God was taking her up with him little by little, until today when he needed her totally and fully. It's like Grandpa told me about 3 years ago, "Annie, it's like she's somewhere in between here and heaven".

(....movie star gorgeous, eh?!)

My Grandma was the most gentle person I have ever been around. She had a sweet little voice that always said the right thing at the right time. She seemed to be the "Master of Motherhood". I still don't know how she raised six daughters . . . that is double what I have . . . our "chaos" times two! How did she deal with the drama? The arguing? The name calling? The hormones??

From what my mom has told me, Grandma set high standards for her girls and expected them to act a certain way. My mom said she was stern, but also very even-tempered, and hardly ever raised her voice. She also told me that every day she and her sisters would come home from school, there would be some sort of homemade baked good waiting for them to eat as their after school snack . . . really Grandma? Now you're just making me look bad! :)

The best part about her was the love she radiated. Maybe she was able to love other people so well because of the love she received from my Grandpa. Their life-long romance seems as though it was written by a best selling author. The first time they met, Grandma was turn-off by his "over confident personality" and actually told one of her friends, "You can have this one". But fortunately, his charm won her over and they were married right before he was deployed as a Darby's Ranger in World War II. I was told by one of my aunts that Grandma went to church every day while he was away at war, to pray for his safety. Her prayers must have been heard, because Grandpa returned from the war (unlike MANY of the people who he fought with) and ended up working as a CPA at her father's very successful accounting firm in downtown Grand Forks (which he later took over).

I am certain they had their struggles, but they never stopped taking care of each other. Grandma took care of him and the rest of their family for most of her life. Planning business dinners, laying out his clothes everyday, keeping the home spick-and-span at all times, making all the meals, sewing clothes for the girls, to name a few. When her mind and body wouldn't allow for her to take care of him anymore, he turned the table and took care of her. He has worked tirelessly to keep his bride at home, where she would be the most comfortable. He hired nurses to be at the house around the clock to make sure she was being taken care of in the manner which she deserved. Many people tried to advise him to put her in a home, but he just would not cave to the idea of her being anywhere else but by his side.

(This is my favorite photo . . . ever)

Grandma and Grandpa snow-birding it in Maui Absolutely nothing could separate those two. Over a year ago, my Aunt Jan decided to leave her home in Colorado and move to Grand Forks so she could take care of Grandma. Our whole family owes her our gratitude. What an unbelievable gift to have given to my grandma, my grandpa, and all of us. Thank you Jan, for taking such great care of her.

Grandma (on the right) with Lorraine Sullivan

When Grandma met Ella

I think about my Grandma often and will always remember the orange rolls we had when she hosted the many "coffee" gatherings at her house, the way she would always drink her coffee out of a very small cup, her unbelievable organization skills, her banana bread, her brownies, the way she warmed up the plates in the oven before she would serve us dinner, the stocked pop fridge in the garage, the matching outfits she would make for my cousin Katy and I when we were young, her smile, her laugh, her petite frame, and above all, the love she gave us all.

Grammy, we love you very much, and look forward to seeing you again.