« A Mother's Goodbye | Main | Happy Birthday, Mother. Where Are You? »

Saturday, 10 May 2008

Remembering Mom Mom McGarvey

By Nancy Leitz

After my Dad died in 1977, my Mother no longer felt secure in her little apartment in Burlington, New Jersey. We thought she would be happier and safer in Cooper River Plaza where my brother, Jack and his wife, Peggy,lived.

It was a lovely complex with two high apartment buildings right in the park where the Cooper River winds through and every day in nice weather you will see roller skaters and bicyclists and joggers and just plain walkers.

We took Mother to see an apartment on the first floor (she had a terrible case of claustrophobia, so no elevator) and she loved it and looked forward to moving there. She was already 77 years old, so packing her things herself and moving would have been impossible for her, so we invited her to our house and Roy picked her up and brought her here so that she could be comfortable while all of her children packed her things and set up the new apartment.

We packed everything in our cars and a rented truck and when we got to the apartment, many hands made light work of putting her furniture in place, hanging her pictures, sorting out the closets and putting up the little table where she had pictures of her grandchildren at every stage of their lives. There were dozens of them.

In the kitchen we put away her dishes and pots and pans and had everything ready for her to cook. The whole thing took about two days and when we took her to the apartment tears ran down her cheeks when she saw how nicely we had all fixed up her little place for her.

It really did look cozy and warm and you had the feeling that she had lived there for years. There was nothing for her to do except settle in.

Next, we had to order the special TV channel called Prism (forerunner of ESPN) because Mother was the world's greatest sports fan. She loved the Phillies, Eagles, Flyers and 76ers. If you wanted to win a bet about who was the quarterback of the San Diego Chargers or the goalie for the Red Wings, you called Mom Mom. She could tell you who won the Cy Young Award in 1967, or the Heisman Trophy in 1954. She was phenomenal.

So, she settled in at her little place and always slept until 10 or 11AM every morning. After all, the game might have been on the west coast the night before and she wouldn't have gotten to bed until the wee hours. Everybody knew not to call her before noon.

My brother,Jack, lived in Building 2 on the 10th floor and Mother lived in Building 1 on the first floor. Because she didn't want anyone disturbing her early in the morning, Jack made her a card to put in her window that signaled to him that she was up having her coffee and all was well. He could spot the card with his binoculars and didn't have to call to see if she was okay. So that was one call she avoided.

Every Sunday, Roy and I would drive over to see her. When we got to the main entrance to the building there were two sets of doors. The outer door required a key or you could be buzzed in by a resident who was expecting you. The inner door was attended by the doorman, George. He was to greet all residents and visitors. That is how it was supposed to work but seldom did.

Most days the outer door would be propped open with a door stop and the inner door was held open by George's chair, which was tipped back and held George's slumbering body. He was asleep almost every time I saw him and the residents and visitors alike tiptoed past him so as not to disturb his sleep.

When we would get to Mother's door she would invariably say, "Did you see George?" and we would dutifully say, "Yes, George is there." Then she would say," Oh, I feel so safe knowing George is on duty and wouldn't let anybody in who didn't belong here."

This went on every Sunday until Mom Mom died in 1984. She never knew, and no one ever told her that George spent all afternoon in his chair sound asleep "guarding" the building.

But Mom Mom loved that little apartment and looked forward to the company who came in to enjoy whichever game was on. One of the things that everyone remembers best about her was the way she talked back to the television. Being the world's greatest feminist, she despised the "Ring around the collar" commercial. When the wife was being berated by the announcer because her husband's shirts had dirty collars, Mom Mom would jump out of her chair and shout, "How about him? When is he going to wash his neck?"

Another one that got on her nerves was, "Winston tastes good like a cigarette should.” She would be outraged and point her finger at the screen and say, "AS a cigarette should. As. As. As.”

Then there was the one for Immodium. The announcer would intone, "Four out of five people SUFFER from diarrhea.” Mom Mom would smirk and say, "Does that mean that one enjoyed it?"

We were lucky to have her for so many years and she was in perfect health both physically and mentally until about two weeks before she died. She had a stroke and never recovered. We had a wonderful time at her funeral luncheon with everyone telling their favorite Mom Mom story with a great deal of love and affection. There were plenty of them, and they remind us of how much we miss her.

Posted by Ronni Bennett at 05:30 AM | Permalink | Email this post

Comments

Posted by: Granny Annie on May 10, 2008 7:50:27 AM

Posted by: kenju on May 10, 2008 10:05:50 AM

Posted by: Darlene on May 10, 2008 11:08:21 AM

Posted by: Darlene on May 10, 2008 11:12:57 AM

Posted by: Joy on May 10, 2008 11:19:38 AM

Posted by: Claire Jean on May 10, 2008 3:29:09 PM

Posted by: Grannymar on May 10, 2008 4:15:12 PM

Posted by: Nancy on May 10, 2008 6:30:47 PM

Post a comment

Name:

Email Address:

URL:

Remember personal info?

Comments: