My Grandma Welker

This blog post is dedicated to the memory of my Grandmother: Wyona Louvina Powell- Welker who passed away on Wednesday September 23, 2009 after suffering from dementia and alzheimers disease. I love and miss my grandmother very much. The past few years have been very rough for everyone involved. She moved into a manufactured home next dorr to my mom and dad's house in Pomerene back in 1997 when I was attending college at Eastern Arizona College in Thatcher. I was able to go and spend quite a bit of time with her when I was there at EAC before she moved. She was an independent and strong woman with a beautiful smile. Her favorite color was lavendar. In preparation for her funeral I have been putting together posterboards with lavendar scrapbook paper, flowers and pictures of my grandma. A lot of tears were spilled in working on this project. There were some pictures of my grandma that I had never even seen before. It was hard to see the pictures of when she was with my grandpa and not put them on there, but I really don't know if she would have wanted those on there, so out of respect for her I kept them off. There's a few pics of her with him on there but they're respectful of her feelings and of the situation. There's this one picture that I love, it is a newspaper clipping of when they used to square dance and she just has this HUGE and beautiful smile on her face in this picture.
My son David is having a really rough time with her passing away, even though he's been prepared for it for quite a while, when I told him the news he cried a lot. He used to go over and talk with her a lot when she lived next to my mom and dad before she went to live in the care facility up in Peoria, AZ. He would go over and watch television with her, speak with her about life, geography, etc.... He has such a kind and sweet spirit and was so patient with her when she would say things over and over again and ask the same questions over and over again. I remember one time he had gone over to my grandma's with my mom and my mom came back cracking up so hard. And we wondered why she was laughing. She came into the room using her walker and he asks her "Great Grandma, what's wrong with your legs?" and she smiles and giggles a little bit and says "Oh they're just getting old, David" so he contemplates this for a bit and says "Oh, like your face?" He doesn't like me telling that story but it's so hilarious and so cute.
I used to love to go to my Grandmas, she was an awesome cook. I remember her cooking fried rabbit or dove that one of my brothers or cousins had shot with Grandpa. We used to spend a lot of time out at the old farm that they used to have and I have MANY MANY fond memories of that farm. After she and my grandpa divorced, I remember helping her move into town on Relation Street in Safford. I went by that place recently and the trailer she had lived in was torn down. Then I remember her moving into a manufactured home over in the Lexington Pines Mobile Home park.
I remember her cookies. I remember helping her make those cookies. I remember her telling me to make sure I chewed all my food and getting after me if I didn't. :o)
I remember the organ that she had and playing it along with my cousins.
I remember how her dementia started. She had surgery on her Cyatic (sp) nerve in her back and after then was when she started repeating herself. And over the last few years it progressed into dementia and eventually I believe it turned into full on Alzheimers. It was really hard to see her like that and to have to tell her over and over again things that happened. She would ask where my uncle dallas was or if I had seen him and I'd tell her he passed away and it was like telling her for the first time, she never remembered what you told her. One time I went to go take care of her while my mom and dad were busy taking care of things for her to prepare to take her to the Assisted Living Facility and she asked me "Have you seen my kids? I can't find my kids anywhere, they're supposed to get ready for a birthday party." And so I would tell her "Grandma, my dad is next door" and she said "Who's your dad?" and I would say "Randall" and she'd say "Randall's got kids?" And she'd ask "Well have you seen Dallas?" So finally I just started saying "Nope, I haven't seen him in a long time." It was just way too heart breaking to tell her over and over again that my uncle had died back in 07. One time she had asked about him and said "A little boy died?" And I said "Grandma, he's a grown man with children and grandchildren of his own." Sometimes she would mistakingly call me by my cousin Kris Ann's name. Which I didn't mind because there's been several relatives that have mistaken me for her.
Anyway not long after we moved her into the care facility she fell and broke her hip and had to have it operated on, and it seemed from then on was when she started to really slip away. We were told several times over the last few months it could be anytime that she passed away and so we were prepared.... there towards the end we found ourselves just praying that she would go just so that she wouldn't suffer anymore and so that we would all be at peace. Well on Wednesday, I was at my ex's mom's house waiting for his grandparents to come over and visit the boys when my mom called me and told me that she had passed away. I cried a lot but it was more of a letting go cry. I kind of lost it when I drove by the mobile home she lived in next to my moms house which is being rented by a young family.
I know my grandmother is happy and is in a better place and I know without a shadow of a doubt that she is with my uncle now and that she is not suffering anymore and that she is watching over all of us. The other day David said "Mommy when we go to Great Grandma's funeral I am going to wear my black tie because I know that Great Grandma will be watching over me and will think that I look nice in my black tie." The faith of children huh? Danny has cried a little bit over it. We will be going to her funeral on Monday in Pima. I love you Grandma Welker and miss you very very much. Love Always, Your grand-daughter... Lori Welker