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My grandmother, Dorothy Pearl (Ware) Crain, would have turned 100 years old today. A short thread on her normal (yet remarkable) life. 1/
Dorothy was raised in Portland, Oregon. Her father, who was born in 1869, was a preacher, and her mother was a radio performer. They divorced when Dorothy was young, and her mother later married a Portland police officer. 2/
Dorothy was a teenager during the Depression, but from what we understand was largely unscathed. She joined the Army shortly after Pearl Harbor, serving as a WAC in England in WWII. 3/
Dorothy collected patches and decals during the war she would later sew into a robe. During a visit to the continent following the war she located swastika patch, and later strategically attached it to the rear of her robe (she did not like Nazis). 4/
She met my grandfather, Ernie, after they both returned from their military service. They had gone to the same high school (now Cleveland High School in Portland), but didn't know each other at the time. After six months they got married, in April 1946. 5/
She worked as a homemaker, taking care of their four children. They moved to the country outside Eugene, Oregon when my mother was young, raising their family on "the farm." 6/
After their kids were grown they moved back to Portland. They briefly lived in an apartment in Lake Oswego, where they would run into Trail Blazers legend Maurice Lucas, who lived in the same building. Dorothy and Ernie later bought their final house together in Tigard. 7/
Both of my grandparents were alcoholics. They struggled with this for years, and were eventually confronted by their kids. Dorothy and Ernie agreed to seek treatment at a facility in Portland. Dorothy struggled with guilt over this for the rest of her life. 8/
After my parents divorced in 1988 we lived with my grandparents while my mother got on her feet. That house in Tigard was a second home to my brother and me; though we eventually settled in Beaverton, I can still remember every detail about that house and its sprawling yard. 9/
Dorothy was a big fan of baseball, basketball, and football. Each year she tracked March Madness on the bracket from their local paper, The Oregonian, filling out the winners of each game. 10/
Dorothy read her Bible every night and attended West Hills Christian Church every Sunday. Her faith was an authentic one, rooted deeply in her. 11/
Ernie developed dementia and struggled with it for years. Dorothy, who was five feet tall and weighed maybe 100 pounds, took care of her husband daily, grinding herself down in the process. 12/
Ernie died in 2000 after spending his last two months in a care facility, near our home in Beaverton. Dorothy was at his side every day. I only saw her cry once, a few months after his death, while she was in her kitchen making dinner. 13/
Dorothy's health began to fail in 2005, and she sold their house in Tigard and moved in with my mother in Beaverton. She eventually moved into hospice, and died on August 6, 2006. I was with her 30 minutes before she died. 14/
Dorothy will not be remembered by the world. But her legacy lives on in her children, their children, and now, their children's children. She was a loving and selfless person who loved the Lord, and these days, that's remarkable. Happy Birthday, Grandma. /end
