Grandma Ruth

Grandma Ruth just turned 90 years old, she is the mother of five and grandmother of ten, and she was a nurse in World War II. 

My cousin Leah in Grandma's uniform

I have the honor of being able to have dinner with her once a week, just her and I. This is something all of my cousins are jealous of, and something I treasure greatly. Having such a large, close family, time like this is hard to come by. After all, she's got a lot of people that want her attention. But, needless to say, I'm the favorite granddaughter and get to hear all of her awesome stories :) 


When she talks about the war, its never about the bad stuff, it's about the places she's been and the friends she met. She's been in several different countries, and while I know shes seen more than she tells, her stories always leave us in awe. My cousins and I all think she's tough because she's thrown a grenade before. I wonder what she thinks when she hears that though...as I'm sure at the time, it wasn't so much cool and awesome as it was scary.


Grandma told me that she went to school to be a nurse because college was too expensive. It only cost her $250 for all of her training, room and board, and uniforms to become a nurse. I asked her once how she knew she could handle the sight of blood before she went to school, and she simply said that she didn't know. She just went.

Jackie with Grandma's other uniform on (and glass of wine!)

I admire my Grandma for many things, but this attitude towards life is one of the biggest. She became a nurse and went into the service and saved lives because she had to. She was dedicated to her country and served out of honor. This attitude has carried over to her family life and since has made us the strongest family I know. We don't always get along, and we have our differences. But we support each other because we have to--because we are a family.

All the grand kids and Grandma @ her 90th birthday party

If you would like to support the men and women in the service currently, please email me to get the address of the troop we are supporting this month! You can send a care package, or even just a letter to brighten the day of a soldier. Or visit the Any Soldier website to make a financial donation and find more ways to show the love :)   


Be the change. Make the difference.