Happy Mother's Day!!

A Photo of my brother and I, with our mother. Taken 31 Oct 1986.
Courtesy of author's own collection.

I have been thinking about how I wanted to celebrate Mother's Day here on my blog and I think the best thing I can do is talk about some of the mothers in my family tree. Here is a picture of my brother and I with our mother.

The first mother I am going to showcase is Sarah Jane (Dickerson) Hoppes. She was the mother of 12 children. She was born on July 31, 1869, in Indiana and died on October 25, 1967, in Marion County, Indiana, at the age of 98. She is one of my brick walls. I have been unable to find out much about her parents and family. Sarah Jane Dickerson was my paternal 2nd great-grandmother.

The next mother I am going to showcase is my maternal great-grandmother, Carrie Evaline (Elam) Back. Carrie was born on Apr 27, 1897, in Morgan County, Kentucky. She married Junius Back on May 19, 1915 in Morgan County, Kentucky. She was the mother of 11 children all of which lived long lives and 5 of which are still living today. The first child to pass away was in 2005 at the age of 76. Grandma Back lived to be 96 years old when she died on December 24, 1993. I was only 8 years old at the time of her death, but I still have many wonderful memories of her. She was a sweet and beautiful lady.

In contrast to the above mentioned mothers of large families I am going to mention another great grandmother, Ina Leah (Corder) Koger. She was born on October 5, 1909 and died on September 7, 2006 at the age of 96. Some of her story was detailed on a previous blog, Throwback Thursday. Grandma Koger had 3 children. Her first son Earl Winifred Koger was born and died on October 14, 1929, living only a few hours. He had something wrong with his heart. Her second son, Ralph Wendell Koger was born on May 10, 1931, in Fowler, Benton County, Indiana. Ralph served in the military and traveled the globe while serving this country. He went to Arizona, England, and Northern Africa, just to name a few. He loved photography and took pictures during his travels. He loved old cars. He purchased one when he got back home in 1956. He and my grandfather remodeled Ralph's 1932 Chevy.  On September 5, 1956, Ralph purchased an insurance policy on this vehicle. 10 days later he gets into this vehicle and never comes home. He sadly crashed not too far from his home.  He was only 25 years old. Grandma Koger's only daughter, my grandmother, is still living.  Sometimes I sit and wonder what she thought and how she felt every time Mother's Days came around. Was it a celebration or a time of mourning?

As I sit here writing this post, I contemplate my own feelings about Mother's Day.  On one hand I celebrate the fact that I am a mother of a handsome 7 year old boy. But on the other hand, I mourn for the children I have not had. My dream was always to be the mother of a large family, much like the first two mothers I showcased. However, I can relate a little more to Grandma Koger as I struggle with infertility issues. That being said, I appreciate everything all of the mothers that have come before me have done to shape who I have become. I will leave you now, to go celebrate with your mothers. Tell you mother, grandmother, aunt, wife, sister, or daughter, how much you love and appreciate them. Without mothers we would have no society, no freedom, no love, and no humanity.

Happy Mother's Day to All Who Mother!