1. She was born on February 4, 1887. Her parents George and Sarah named her Mary Francis Daniell.
2. She had two sisters, Sarah Mathilda, the oldest, whom we all called Tilly, and Marionette, who moved away and we never had much to do with her as she died young.
Marionette, Tilly, seated and my very blond grandmother.
3. She met my Grandfather when she was 8 or 9 years old. His family moved into her neighborhood and Gram became best friends with his sister, Katchen. Gram taught them to speak English, as they were from Germany and didn’t speak a bit of English when they arrived.
4. Papa fell instantly in love with her and pursued her all through their teens. (Today we would call this stalking! LOL)
5. Her father insisted she finish college before she even considered marriage.
6. They married right after graduation on June 1, 1921, and were married for nearly 65 years before she passed away.
7. They had one son, Robert, and my mother, Rosamond. They always thought of Tilly’s son George as their own too. They adored him.
8. Gram taught school in the Boston Public Schools. She taught 5th grade.
9. She was a member of the DAR, The Eastern Star, and worked for the Christian Science Monitor in Boston.
10. She was always busy working for charities and I can’t recall a time until she was very old that she actually rested.
11. She adored her grandchildren, there were five of us, Carl, Erica, my brother Richard, sister Melodie and yours truly!
12. She made the best cookies and also warm milk with honey and a pat of butter in it. To this day it calms me.
13. Sadly, she passed on December 2, 1984. I feel lucky to have had such a great and wonderful grandmother.