Memories of my mother: Loraine Faith Sherwood Wright 9 Mar 1926 – 31 Dec 1985
Temple:
Mom grew up living near and playing on the banks of the Snake River in Idaho Falls. She watched as they built the Idaho Falls Temple on her old playground, and sometime later after attending LDS Business College in Salt Lake City, UT, she became the Secretary to the Temple President, David Smith. He was the first temple president of the I.F. Temple. When she left on her mission to the Northern States Mission, where she spent most of her time in Illinois, President and Sister Smith gave her a nice book of Thoughts with a lovely inscription inside the front cover:
Gems of Thought compiled by Milton R. Hunter copy write 1949
In appreciation of your Loyalty and service to the Church and to Sister Smith and myself while working together in the Idaho Falls Temple. Faithfully yours, President and Sister David Smith.
“Of what should a man feel proud if not of his friends.” You have been so loyal and fine. From President and Sister David Smith.
After her mission she again worked at the Temple, and she also worked as a temple secretary for President Killpack. He was Temple President when mom and dad got married and sealed. When just the two of them showed up, he asked where her boys were, and they had been left at home. Dad had not adopted them legally (as he didn’t think he should take the place of their father, if some day they wanted to use the names they had been born with – E) and they didn’t think they could have them sealed to them. President Killpack said to bring them to the temple with them, so the next day I believe they went back to the temple with mom’s three little boys and President Killpack sealed them together as a family. I don’t know if it was completely legal, but in those days you didn’t have to go about things with all the paperwork you do now days. The boys all went by Wright as their last name, and no one ever said anything about it. After my one brother had served a mission, and gone on to marry and have children something caught up to him/them, and the church contacted him and said who is R.A.W? We don’t have any actual records on him. So… R.A.W later went through the legal steps to have his name legally changed to R.A.W. My dad Morris I Wright, is the only dad he ever really knew and remembers.
Temple:
Mom grew up living near and playing on the banks of the Snake River in Idaho Falls. She watched as they built the Idaho Falls Temple on her old playground, and sometime later after attending LDS Business College in Salt Lake City, UT, she became the Secretary to the Temple President, David Smith. He was the first temple president of the I.F. Temple. When she left on her mission to the Northern States Mission, where she spent most of her time in Illinois, President and Sister Smith gave her a nice book of Thoughts with a lovely inscription inside the front cover:
Gems of Thought compiled by Milton R. Hunter copy write 1949
In appreciation of your Loyalty and service to the Church and to Sister Smith and myself while working together in the Idaho Falls Temple. Faithfully yours, President and Sister David Smith.
“Of what should a man feel proud if not of his friends.” You have been so loyal and fine. From President and Sister David Smith.
After her mission she again worked at the Temple, and she also worked as a temple secretary for President Killpack. He was Temple President when mom and dad got married and sealed. When just the two of them showed up, he asked where her boys were, and they had been left at home. Dad had not adopted them legally (as he didn’t think he should take the place of their father, if some day they wanted to use the names they had been born with – E) and they didn’t think they could have them sealed to them. President Killpack said to bring them to the temple with them, so the next day I believe they went back to the temple with mom’s three little boys and President Killpack sealed them together as a family. I don’t know if it was completely legal, but in those days you didn’t have to go about things with all the paperwork you do now days. The boys all went by Wright as their last name, and no one ever said anything about it. After my one brother had served a mission, and gone on to marry and have children something caught up to him/them, and the church contacted him and said who is R.A.W? We don’t have any actual records on him. So… R.A.W later went through the legal steps to have his name legally changed to R.A.W. My dad Morris I Wright, is the only dad he ever really knew and remembers.
Mom also recorded Patriarchal blessings while she worked at the temple. The youth of the church would come to the Temple on a Saturday morning, and the Patriarch would give them their Patriarchal blessings. Mom would take down the blessings, using her secretarial short hand. She told of how she was never able to take short hand as well and accurately as in the temple. She felt the spirit guiding her as she would take the shorthand and then type up the Blessings. She knew that every word she typed up was exactly what the Patriarch had spoken as he’d given the blessing from the Lord for their lives. She loved working in the Temple.
Mom also used to sing in choirs and she’d sing solo’s different places as well. She has a piece of music for the song The Temple By the River, written about the Idaho Falls Temple. I know she loved that temple.
Mission:
Mom was a working gal, and didn’t seem to be getting married, so… she decided to serve a Mission. As she approached the age of 21 when she could serve, they decided to change the age of Sister Missionaries to 25. She continued working and as she was about to turn 25 the age was changed back to 21. She sent in her paperwork to Salt Lake, and President George Albert Smith passed away, so her mission call was among the first called and signed by the new Prophet David O McKay. Mom always had a special place in her heart for President McKay.
She used to talk about her mission experiences. I remember her talking about serving in Rockford, Illinois, and having to go early on Sunday mornings to the Odd Fellows Hall to clean up from the night before, and sweep up beer bottles, and trash, before they could set up chairs for them to have Church Services there on Sundays. (A few years ago a friend of mine in Japan, D.F., had her mom visiting from Illinois. We got to talking and she remembered being a child and attending church at the Odd Fellows Hall in Rockford, IL. We think it was a few years later than when my mom had been there as a Sister Missionary, but she figured her mom might have remembered my mom perhaps.)
Pierced Ears:
While she was serving her mission several good friends served in the same mission, but so far apart they rarely saw one another. On one transfer day mom was going to be trading spots with her good friend and asked for permission to go a day early, so that they could see one another. One of the companions had been a nurse before her mission and was going around the mission piercing ears. She asked if mom wanted to have her ears pierced and no, she did not. Later that day she was laying on her bed studying, in the other room and the two sisters (her friends) came in pinned her down and pierced her ears. She decided since they were already pierced she might as well live with it. She later was holding a baby and had on small hoop earrings, and the baby got it’s finger stuck in her earring and pulled and tore her ear. She had problems with that ear and got infections in her earlobe her whole life time, even though she only ever wore clip on earrings occasionally the rest of the time.
When I came along, she did not want me to get my ears pierced. I asked for years, and she would say when I was 16, and as I got a bit older she'd say when I was 18. She found a cute card that had Luc from teh Peanuts gang on it, and it said, 'How would you like to get your ears pierced for your birthday?!?' she coulnd't NOT by the card so she hid it in her dresser drawer for abt. 6 months and for my 12th birthday I was finally allowed to get my ears pierced!
Rings:
Whenever my grandmother Cecil Florence Carstensen Sherwood had each of her four babies, Grandpa Ernest Clark Sherwood gave grandma a ring. I don’t know what the other rings were, but the one he gave grandma for my mothers’ birth was a small diamond ring in what today is a beautiful antique filigree setting. My grandmother actually passed it on to my mother when she was in her twenties, (it was a very small diamond, and the other rings had bigger stones from what I understand). My mother wore that ring for years, and at some point had gained some weight and had to have it cut off her finger so it was then missing a piece of the ring.
I remember growing up seeing it and being told the story and understanding somehow (I am guessing my mom told me) that some day it would come to me, as her only daughter. I used to sneak into her room sometimes and open the golden piano shaped musical jewelry box she kept on her white French provincial dresser. I’d pick up the ring and hold it up to my hand, squeezing the one side of the band that was still intact between my fingers and looking forward to the day when I would finally get to have the ring on my hand.
When mom was sick and in the hospital and then died, I was with dad and looking through some of her things. In a drawer of her dresser was a small heart shaped box and inside was the small antique ring from when she was born. Dad and I thought that since she now had her mom’s ring, though she wasn’t going to wear it, she had decided it was time to give me the other small ring, perhaps for Christmas. Dad took it to the Jewelry store and we got it fixed and fitted for my finger. I have worn that ring for 20 plus years nearly day and night. The last time I took it in to have it checked, the jeweler suggested very strongly that I not wear it except on special occasions (he said weekly to church is fine and other events), but not daily and that in fact no one ought to wear jewelry to bed as it gets constantly rubbed against things, and it wears them down. I was wearing out my ring and I would not have it as an heirloom to pass down to my children if I continued wearing it daily. I was so depressed, it was one of the few things I have of my mothers, and it was a special something that gave me a connection that I felt wearing it on my hand to constantly remember my mother. For now I have put it away to save for special times and to be able to pass along to my daughter. I cried when I realized I couldn’t wear it at all times. I almost want to buy a small heirloom type ring to replace it with, or to have a ring made new to replicate it so that I can have something to wear to keep me close to my mother every day. I haven’t worn it in several months now. My finger after 20 years still feels naked…
Pancreatitis:
The following year my mother got sick with Pancreatitis on Dec. 18, 1985. (it had been my birthday when she got ill and went to the hosp). Early in the day, She had been out grocery shopping and running errands, where coincidentally she ran into several old friends that day and had a little visit with each of them, in preparation for the family all coming home for the Christmas Holliday. I was in NY, my brother R, his wife T and their baby T were in Provo, dad, and the two older boys were in CA, and my youner brother R was home in ID. When my younger brother arrived home from school, that day he found mom very sick throwing up bile and in a LOT of pain. He took her to the hospital, where she was put into ICU.
The next morning I was preparing to come home from NY and tried countless times to call home before I left. My flight from NY was a bit delayed leaving due to snow and weather in NY. I arrived in Denver and had missed my connecting flight. I sat all day long and tried to call home to let mom know of my changed flight plans. I called and called and never got an answer. As I waited for the later flight out of Denver, I thought perhaps that mom had gone into town to have lunch with her sister, Aunt D, since she lived near the airport, and so I decided to wait until I figured my younger brother would be home from school to call again. Finally when I called I got an answer. It was my oldr brother RA instead of my younger brother RJ, and it confused me, since RA and T weren’t supposed to be coming in until the next day on Saturday since T was an Elementary School teacher in Provo. RA told me that mom was sick and in the hospital, that’s why she hadn’t been home and answering the phone.
I spent the next several hours in the Denver Airport, knowing very little other than my mom was in the ICU and I could do nothing but wait. Finally we got on a flight, it was a puddle jumper as far as I’m concerned, 20 seats, every seat was an aisle seat, but every seat was also a window seat. We took off and as we approached Idaho they announced that there was a lot of ice and snow and they couldn’t land in Idaho Falls. They suggested Twin Falls, and I started thinking, dad has a brother L in Twin Falls I could call if necessary, perhaps. Then they decided to land in Pocatello. I was closer, but what to do… There were only a few of us on the flight that were going to be stopping in I.F. but there was another airline with a large flight that had had to land in Pocatello as well, and they arranged for a bus for their passengers and the four of us from my flight were allowed to go on the bus to I.F. as well.
It had been hours since I was supposed to have arrived and I had no idea what I was going to do when I finally arrived in I.F. I was worried sick about my mom, and felt so alone while I traveled by myself all day long. Hard as it was, it was so nice to see loving familiar faces when I got to the airport in I.F. off the bus from Pocatello in the snow. Uncle J (my mom's younger brother and my younger brother RJ had come to pick me up. They tried to prepare me somewhat to what I would face when I saw my mom. She had, had a stroke some time during the time she’d been in the hospital (just over a day). She was in a lot of pain and on morphine. She had wires and things attached to her. When I got to the hospital RA, T and T were there, and I don’t remember who else right now as I write this. I went in to see mom (someone went with me, don’t remember who). I went in and started to cry. I remember my mom opening her eyes, and looking at me and she mouthed, “I Love you.” to me. That was the last time she was that conscious and the last words she ever spoke (even without sound) to me.
Rings:
Whenever my grandmother Cecil Florence Carstensen Sherwood had each of her four babies, Grandpa Ernest Clark Sherwood gave grandma a ring. I don’t know what the other rings were, but the one he gave grandma for my mothers’ birth was a small diamond ring in what today is a beautiful antique filigree setting. My grandmother actually passed it on to my mother when she was in her twenties, (it was a very small diamond, and the other rings had bigger stones from what I understand). My mother wore that ring for years, and at some point had gained some weight and had to have it cut off her finger so it was then missing a piece of the ring.
I remember growing up seeing it and being told the story and understanding somehow (I am guessing my mom told me) that some day it would come to me, as her only daughter. I used to sneak into her room sometimes and open the golden piano shaped musical jewelry box she kept on her white French provincial dresser. I’d pick up the ring and hold it up to my hand, squeezing the one side of the band that was still intact between my fingers and looking forward to the day when I would finally get to have the ring on my hand.
When mom was sick and in the hospital and then died, I was with dad and looking through some of her things. In a drawer of her dresser was a small heart shaped box and inside was the small antique ring from when she was born. Dad and I thought that since she now had her mom’s ring, though she wasn’t going to wear it, she had decided it was time to give me the other small ring, perhaps for Christmas. Dad took it to the Jewelry store and we got it fixed and fitted for my finger. I have worn that ring for 20 plus years nearly day and night. The last time I took it in to have it checked, the jeweler suggested very strongly that I not wear it except on special occasions (he said weekly to church is fine and other events), but not daily and that in fact no one ought to wear jewelry to bed as it gets constantly rubbed against things, and it wears them down. I was wearing out my ring and I would not have it as an heirloom to pass down to my children if I continued wearing it daily. I was so depressed, it was one of the few things I have of my mothers, and it was a special something that gave me a connection that I felt wearing it on my hand to constantly remember my mother. For now I have put it away to save for special times and to be able to pass along to my daughter. I cried when I realized I couldn’t wear it at all times. I almost want to buy a small heirloom type ring to replace it with, or to have a ring made new to replicate it so that I can have something to wear to keep me close to my mother every day. I haven’t worn it in several months now. My finger after 20 years still feels naked…
Pancreatitis:
The following year my mother got sick with Pancreatitis on Dec. 18, 1985. (it had been my birthday when she got ill and went to the hosp). Early in the day, She had been out grocery shopping and running errands, where coincidentally she ran into several old friends that day and had a little visit with each of them, in preparation for the family all coming home for the Christmas Holliday. I was in NY, my brother R, his wife T and their baby T were in Provo, dad, and the two older boys were in CA, and my youner brother R was home in ID. When my younger brother arrived home from school, that day he found mom very sick throwing up bile and in a LOT of pain. He took her to the hospital, where she was put into ICU.
The next morning I was preparing to come home from NY and tried countless times to call home before I left. My flight from NY was a bit delayed leaving due to snow and weather in NY. I arrived in Denver and had missed my connecting flight. I sat all day long and tried to call home to let mom know of my changed flight plans. I called and called and never got an answer. As I waited for the later flight out of Denver, I thought perhaps that mom had gone into town to have lunch with her sister, Aunt D, since she lived near the airport, and so I decided to wait until I figured my younger brother would be home from school to call again. Finally when I called I got an answer. It was my oldr brother RA instead of my younger brother RJ, and it confused me, since RA and T weren’t supposed to be coming in until the next day on Saturday since T was an Elementary School teacher in Provo. RA told me that mom was sick and in the hospital, that’s why she hadn’t been home and answering the phone.
I spent the next several hours in the Denver Airport, knowing very little other than my mom was in the ICU and I could do nothing but wait. Finally we got on a flight, it was a puddle jumper as far as I’m concerned, 20 seats, every seat was an aisle seat, but every seat was also a window seat. We took off and as we approached Idaho they announced that there was a lot of ice and snow and they couldn’t land in Idaho Falls. They suggested Twin Falls, and I started thinking, dad has a brother L in Twin Falls I could call if necessary, perhaps. Then they decided to land in Pocatello. I was closer, but what to do… There were only a few of us on the flight that were going to be stopping in I.F. but there was another airline with a large flight that had had to land in Pocatello as well, and they arranged for a bus for their passengers and the four of us from my flight were allowed to go on the bus to I.F. as well.
It had been hours since I was supposed to have arrived and I had no idea what I was going to do when I finally arrived in I.F. I was worried sick about my mom, and felt so alone while I traveled by myself all day long. Hard as it was, it was so nice to see loving familiar faces when I got to the airport in I.F. off the bus from Pocatello in the snow. Uncle J (my mom's younger brother and my younger brother RJ had come to pick me up. They tried to prepare me somewhat to what I would face when I saw my mom. She had, had a stroke some time during the time she’d been in the hospital (just over a day). She was in a lot of pain and on morphine. She had wires and things attached to her. When I got to the hospital RA, T and T were there, and I don’t remember who else right now as I write this. I went in to see mom (someone went with me, don’t remember who). I went in and started to cry. I remember my mom opening her eyes, and looking at me and she mouthed, “I Love you.” to me. That was the last time she was that conscious and the last words she ever spoke (even without sound) to me.
My dad was able to get back up to ID the following day, with my two oldest brothers. We spent most of that time over Christmas break at the hospital (someone was there at all times) with my mom.
Mom was in the hosp for two weeks. She started to get better at some point in the middle and they had her sitting up in a wheelchair. I remember thinking how hard it would be on her to be in a wheelchair and to have to depend on others to physically help care for her. My mom did NOT want to be a burden on anyone else. In the following week after Christmas my mom had a second stroke, and this one was completely disabling. After a day or two they did a cat scan and saw that there were actually nearly zero percent brain activity. We had a decision to make... We had to decide if we should turn off the life support as that was all that was keeping her alive at that point. We talked about it as a family and hard as it was going to be... we decided as a family that was what we would do.
(My Uncle J wrote me the following:
The most difficult blessing I have ever been asked
to give was to administer to your mom and release her
from this life. I can't even remember who all was
there other than your dad,and (my aunt M his wife). It was a
difficult time for all. I had been visiting with your
mom the morning she fell ill. I left her at noon and
went back to Rexburg, where we lived at the time. It
was early evening when we received a call from (my Aunt) D
that Loraine was very ill and in the hospital. It was
a terrible shock since she had seemed very well when I
left at noon. She had been so excited about the
Christmas season. The house was all decorated for the
events. You were all coming home to be with her for
a few days.
Love to you and to your family.
J)
to give was to administer to your mom and release her
from this life. I can't even remember who all was
there other than your dad,and (my aunt M his wife). It was a
difficult time for all. I had been visiting with your
mom the morning she fell ill. I left her at noon and
went back to Rexburg, where we lived at the time. It
was early evening when we received a call from (my Aunt) D
that Loraine was very ill and in the hospital. It was
a terrible shock since she had seemed very well when I
left at noon. She had been so excited about the
Christmas season. The house was all decorated for the
events. You were all coming home to be with her for
a few days.
Love to you and to your family.
J)
My Uncle gave my mother a special blessing, and she passed on her own, a few hours before we would have turned off the life support. It was a blessing to me, that she was able to pass on her own, so that I didn't have to live with the fact that we had taken her off of life support, since even though I knew it was the right thing to do it would still have been hard to do.My mother got ill on Dec 18th, and passed on Dec. 30th, after being ill and in severe pain for two weeks. It was so hard to see her in pain. It was so hard to say goodbye and let her go, but on the other hand it was a blessing that she passed on and I knew she was no longer in pain.
Education:
My mom is that she loved young children! She began a private Kindergarten class and taught two classes a day for several years when I was a small child. When we moved to Calif. when I was 4 yrs old, the laws there were a bit more strict, and she began working in preschools, but her love was kindergarten. She went to night school and received her degree in Early CHildhood Education. When we moved back to Idaho, my parents bought a nursery school and she got it licensed and taught a pre-school and private kindergarten for several years. She LOVED to teach young children to READ and write! That was her big joy!
Family fun times:
A few other memories I have of my mom are these: It wasn't often that she would get down and dirty with us kids, (I am kind of like that as a mom too). I remember one day we were out playing in the backyard, and she came out and somehow we all ended up (all us 5 kids), and her, in a big huge water fight with the hose. She had on a dress and everything, so it was definitely not something she would have normally done with us, but I remember that.
Also, for the years that we lived in S. Calif, I remember her comming in and waking us up on a wat. morning or a summer morning, and asking us kids if we'd like to go to Disneyland or Knott's Berry farm for the day? Who would possibly say NO to that!?!?! We loved Disneyland. I remember all of the old ticket books of tickets she'd have in her top dresser drawer. We'd always end up with lots of extra tickets left over from the easy rides, and we'd never have enough of the 'E' tickets for the cool/fast roller coaster rides! We had lots of fun times and memories of spending time together as a family at Disneyland as child.
http://vintagedisneylandtickets.blogspot.com/2008/02/walt-disney-world-october-1971-ticket.html
http://vintagedisneylandtickets.blogspot.com/2008/02/walt-disney-world-october-1971-ticket.htmlI miss my mommy! It has been over half of my life time that she has been gone. She has never been here to share the special times of my life - My marriage, my births, my kids... that is hard for me at times.
I loved my mom. I need to work harder at sharing the things I remember of my mom with my kids so that they will come to know and love her like I do.
