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| Joanne with her Remarkable Mom |
I'm honored to be the daughter of a remarkable
woman from the “Greatest Generation."
My
mother, Marie Walter McDermott was born in 1920, the year that
Congress finally ratified the Nineteenth Amendment, which gave women the “right to vote.” I think that
Mom must have sensed this female birthright because she never
let the gender-biased restrictions of the early 20th
century of “being a women” prevent her from following her dreams.
For
instance, she told me that her family was willing to finance the
college education of her brother, but
not for HER,
because money would be wasted on a female who would only wind up
married with kids. This was the 1930's mindset of many of that time, but it
didn't stop Mom. After working long hours as a secretary in New York
City's Rockefeller Center, she commuted via subway to Columbia and
furthered her education by taking night classes.
When
she was in her early twenties, World War II erupted and her younger
brother was drafted into the Army. Against her parents' wishes, she heeded the call and enlisted in the
Waves, ready to do her part for the war effort. She served her
country proudly and even today tries to attend her fellow women vet
meetings. As a young girl I was impressed by her stories of her Wave adventures - - and even more so, her travels after the war. Mom did
not “settle down” as expected by her family. She boarded a bus
with Wave girlfriends and traveled across the country and even
worked in California for a time. Sometimes I chuckle when she
wonders why her children live in different parts of the U.S. - must
be something in the genes!
After
the war, she met and married my Dad and settled into the role of wife
and mother. But she was no traditional Mom. She juggled cooking,
housework and more importantly, the raising of 5 children. Since my
Dad was not very good at “fix it” jobs, Mom would tackle all
kinds of non-traditional household tasks from repairing the toilet to
painting a ceiling with young children in tow. I remember once that
she literally saved the house from burning down by tossing blankets
over a fire that my little brother started in his bedroom.
After
working for the Lipton Tea Company one summer while I was in college,
I encouraged Mom to apply for a position there. Of course, she
landed the job and began another career in the Consumer Services
Department. When her boss retired, she did not think twice and
applied for his position. At that time, men were in the management
ranks. But, Mom persevered. The company even sent her for an
interview with a psychologist to make sure that she could handle it!
Of course, she could. Mom was offered his job with the caveat that
she could not expect the salary that her boss received. That just
was not done! She did not waste time grumbling. She assumed the
position and of course, excelled. Eventually, the company had to
increase her pay to an equitable level. But it took her some time to
“pay her dues” and break Lipton's “glass ceiling.” After
strong women like Mom, other women were promoted at fairer salaries.
After
her retirement from Lipton, Marie became a caretaker for my Dad, who
had macular degeneration, which left him with very poor eyesight.
Mom still found time for keeping fit with daily pool exercise and
took art lessons. The walls of her condo apartment and our homes are
filled with her creations.
When
Richard & I retired and moved to Punta Gorda, Mom decided she
liked Punta Gorda, too. She decided to move to South Port Square, and today
lives independently there! At age 90, she relocated there and made a host of
new friends! When she called Century Link to order high speed
internet, they told her that “they just didn't have many requests
from South Port Square for that kind of service.” When they found out that
she was 90, they decided to do the installation for free! She has
fun on the computer with her football pool and keeping up with her
grandkids on Facebook and Email. Why, Just 2 weeks ago, she decided
that she wasn't getting enough outdoor exercise. So, she went over
to Acme Bike and ordered herself a recumbant tricycle!
I'm
so honored that Pat Cote asked me to speak about my remarkable Mom.
She had always been my role model and influential in helping me
attain my own personal and career goals.
Thanks,
Mom, for being a role model to the women of our family and to others
along the way.
Speech given by Joanne Collins at Isles Yacht Club for Mother's Day 2013
Have you ever stayed in a YURT? We hadn't - - so we took this opportunity to stay at Treebones Resort. Our yurt was a 23 ft. diameter tent complete with a comfy queen-sized bed - check out the picture below! The tent was located close to the edge of a cliff and we could hear the seals barking in the distance.
My handsome nephew, Ben Spanbock, married beautiful Addie Ricketts at the Chaminade Resort, Santa Cruz, CA on 8/1/13. What a wonderful blessed occasion! Most of our family attended from all parts of the U.S. - Mary & Al from Indiana, Paul & Diane from South Carolina, Kevin from California, and of course, us, from Punta Gorda, FL with Ben's 92 year-old Grandmother, Marie McDermott! Three of Ben's cousins also came long distances - Michele & her "SO", Bryan, from Kona, HI, Holly & Andrew from New Jersey and Annie from South Carolina. My sister, Claire, was radiant in her blue lace dress and her & Howard's grandkids were just adorable as the ring bearer and flower girl. Check out the photos by clicking Wedding Photos.
So...usually in June here in Punta Gorda, sailboaters are "laying low" (staying in port) to avoid those pesky afternoon thunderstorms which are prevalent this time of year. But did that stop us? Oh no...we decided to lead an Isles Yacht Club cruise to a new destination - the Pink Shell Resort and Marina in Fort Myers Beach! Check out our group photo on the right (just double click to make it bigger).
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