A Letter Remembering Aunt Gert

Dear all,

Let me tell you about my Aunt Gert.

She passed away this month at the age of 98. She married my mom’s brother when my mom was only 6 years old; there were 16 years between my mom and her brother. My mom recalled how in 1946 they took a train from New York to Colorado to attend the wedding where she was the flower girl and her sister June a bridesmaid.

I found this iconic photo of my mom and her mom taking their first airline flight to visit Artie and Gert in 1960, back when ladies dressed up to fly on a plane.

As a kid I was introduced to Aunt Gert via the weekly letters she sent to us in the mail. Sometimes the envelope was thick and that meant it was a Round Robin and contained a letter from Aunt Gert and Aunt June. I always wanted to read those and see what my cousin Peggy was up to. I’m 11 days older than Peggy and we have always been very close.

Aunt Gert did not love to travel but they visited New York a few times when I was growing up. I recall getting to take the day off from school in second grade to go to the Statue of Liberty with Aunt Gert, Uncle Artie and cousin John. I love this 1971 photo which shows the newly built World Trade Center in the background. Don’t mind the grouchy face, I think it was hot that day.

In 1974, my family and Peggy’s family flew with our grandmother to Colorado for a family reunion at Aunt Gert’s house. We all had a wonderful time making memories, taking photos and laughing as Uncle Artie danced around the grill and told us ghost stories at night.

Aunt Gert was an efficient hostess and ensured we not waste cups by having us write our names with a marker on the plastic cup for the week. Peggy and I were awed by her photo book collection. An entire closet was dedicated for her photo albums which at that time numbered about 50. She took a few out of the closet to share with us and I went home determined to buy a book to keep my photos in too!

Adjacent to the kitchen was Aunt Gert’s stationery and writing alcove. The small wooden shelves on the wall displayed her extensive collection of mailbox figurines. On the desk, her typewriter was surrounded by an organized stash of Hallmark cards and 8 1/2 by 11 inch colorful stationery paper with matching envelopes for letter writing.

Writing letters was like a job for Aunt Gert. She knew everyone’s birthday and anniversary and sent a card for each holiday. She would even hand write the number of your wedding anniversary or age on your birthday card! It became a huge endeavor as her kids had kids who had kids and her nieces and nephews procreated as well. My two boys grew up getting birthday cards each year from Aunt Gert even though they had never met her.

She not only excelled at letter writing and taking photos, but also at playing Bridge and knitting. She knit Christmas stockings for all the family including stockings for Mike and me when we got married and stockings for each of my boys when they were born. Then she knit an additional stocking for her to keep in her home and display at Christmas time.

After college, my boyfriend Mike and I decided to drive across country to live in California. We packed up my Ford Mustang, put my photo albums and some clothes in a rooftop U-Haul and set off on our adventure.

After a week or two of camping at National Parks in Wyoming and South Dakota, we arranged to stay near Denver with Aunt Gert and Uncle Artie. They were so cool. They let us have the whole basement area to ourselves and even do some laundry. I got the idea that Aunt Gert didn’t like doing the laundry when I read the words on her laundry room wallpaper: “I HAte Laundry RoomS”. Yes that’s me with those stylish 80s glasses.

Being the gracious hosts, Uncle Artie asked if we would like a ride in his Model A car. We said yes and Aunt Gert got her camera. Unfortunately the Model A was not interested in giving us a return ride and we did need to be towed from where ever it was Uncle Artie took us. Still a good time was had by all.

Aunt Gert and Uncle Artie attended my wedding to Mike in New York. They cut a rug on the dance floor and the wedding was well attended by lots of aunts, uncles, and cousins.

I was blessed to be able to visit with Aunt Gert a few times the year I worked in Aspen, Colorado and a few more times more recently on ski trips with my kids.

We stayed connected through the years with her letter writing and sending cards.

According to the 1950 U.S. Census, she declared her occupation at that time as Keeping House and took this job very seriously.

In her weekly letters she would tell us about the different household chores she accomplished. It could be folding laundry or weeding the garden, the yearly washing and ironing of curtains or dusting of the mailbox collection, or even the visit to the Hallmark store to buy cards in bulk. It was fun to read these letters, and educational as well. Who knew there was so much involved with “Keeping House”.

In her letters we got a glimpse into life as an aging widow who lives alone.

Staying connected was important to her and she gave us updates about her family and friends.

Staying active was important to her and she let us know how many miles she walked around the lake and when she gardened or shoveled snow from the walkway for the mailman.

Keeping her brain engaged was important to her and she let us know which books she had read and who she played Bridge with.

She never embraced technology and refused to write her letters with a computer. She insisted on using her typewriter with the cursive writing which was so cool. She also believed in sending Christmas cards and letters.

Recently in her January letters, which she sent to 40+ of her loved ones, she would let everyone know how many Christmas cards she was still waiting to receive. I was guilty only once when one year I chose not to send cards at all. After reading her letter I quickly found a card and wrote a letter to send so I would no longer be on the naughty list.

When you did write her a letter, her next letter sent out to the family would include a whole paragraph with a short summary update about you for her to share. That’s how you knew when you were on the nice list!

In her letters she would tell of her visits to the nearby Mexican restaurant. Aunt Gert would go alone and order Chili Rellenos. Inevitably, one of the waitstaff would pay for her meal and sometimes even sit down in her booth for a chat. When Peggy and I visited in 2017 after our fun weekend in Telluride, we took her out to lunch at that Mexican restaurant and she loved it.

She lived alone in her home for another 25 years after her husband died in 1996 and her children had long gone to build their own families. In 2021, She celebrated her 95th birthday right in her own home. Amazing!

When my son Buddy and I visited her a few years ago she was so proud of her family and the birthday party they held for her 90th. She had a large photo over her kitchen table of all the relatives, her 4 children, their spouses and children and many great grand children. She used a pen with a laser light to point to each family member and tell us their name and who they belonged to.

She even had pulled out a few photo albums to share pictures of my mom and photos from our family reunion in 1974 with me and my son.

I am so glad I knew and loved Aunt Gert and I hope you enjoyed hearing all about this amazing woman. She would end all of her letters with a handwritten signature so I’ll do the same.

Love,