22 years later...mom's life story

 March 19, 2011 Saturday Super Full Moon

While looking in my files out in the garage I came across a folder I’d titled “Mom’s Life Story”. I seem to have forgotten that I once tried to capture her life story. Here is only the beginning of what is in the folder.  I will add more of her story as I find the time. I began taking notes of mom's storytelling at her house on Taylor Street in Santa Cruz, CA on January 12, 1989.

Vonnie with her mom Marie 

 

My mom, Vonnie was born on January 23, 1939 in Seattle, WA on a rainy day. She was a breech baby and her mom, Marie (whom we called Nana) was pronounced dead at birth. Mom almost died too. Fortunately, Nana survived.

Nana is originally from Afognak, Alaska but was going to school in Washington State to become a teacher when she had mom. After her studies she returned to Alaska.

Back then you had to travel by boat to get to the mainland of Alaska. Mom's little brother, Duffy dreamt the boat was going to sink and so they changed their travel plans. And the boat they were going to take did sink!

Leaving Seattle, mom was seven years old. When Nana, mom and Duffy left Seattle they made their way to Old Harbor, Alaska. Then they went to Lazy Bay Cannery in Alitak in an outboard skiff. Alitak is seven miles south of Akhiok village. 

Lazy Bay Cannery courtesy of Timothy Smith

When bush airplanes arrived in the village everyone ran to the beach to greet it. Akhiok village back then had a population of 61. Alfred Noemoff was there. Mom had blue eyes. My dad, Joseph saw Nana, mom and Duffy in the plane and told his friend “I’m going to marry that girl someday.” Mom was 9 years old and dad was 11 years old. They married three years later at ages 14 and 16 when mom became pregnant with my older brother Tom.

 Duffy, Nana and mom

They went to Mary Phillips house. She had keys to the schoolhouse and was a nice, laughing lady. They lived in the schoolhouse and ate powdered eggs with water and scrambled that with canned spinach.

Akhiok village, courtesy of Timothy Smith

Upstairs were two bedrooms. Duffy and mom shared one and Nana and my step-grandpa Scotty shared the other one. There was a small living room and small kitchen on one side of the schoolhouse. The school was one big room. In the attic was government food. There were approximately 20 desks. There was a pump in the kitchen to pump water from the well. There was an electric light plant in a shed with an engine in the back to turn the school lights on and was loud.

The village used gas lamps. They had a battery radio. They heated irons on the stove. Scotty showed movies in black and white such as Roy Rogers & Dale Evans and Gene Autrey.

The mail boat brought the movies and was rare. Uncle Robert always gave mom candy bars…Cup ‘o Gold. They went out to the mail boat in a skiff.

Akhiok, AK - photo by Judy A. Peterson

When they lived in Larsen Bay Uncle Robert brought them a cow. He hoisted the big black pregnant cow, dropped it in the water and it swam to shore.

 Larsen Bay, AK - photo by Judy A. Peterson

Happy Ozhuwan had two bulls and kept wondering why they never had any babies. Happy couldn’t read or write.

The cow that Uncle Robert brought to them birthed seven bulls, which they put out on an island. She provided fresh milk and they named her Star because she had a black and white star on her forehead.

 

At Larsen Bay they caught fish by throwing rocks up river. The rocks stunned the salmon and they were able to catch them with their hands and throw them onto the beach. During salmon season there were lots of bears.

 Larsen Bay, AK - photo by Judy A. Peterson

Uncle Robert married Nana and Scotty in Larsen Bay in a radio shack because he was a captain of a ship.

 

Scotty, my little brother Jon and Nana (much later)