Marian Louise Eckstrom

Mom’s Life
Our Mom, Marian Louise Eckstrom, died peacefully at the home of her daughter and son-in-law Theresa (Bill) Harty on Sunday, June 22, 2014 in Yacolt, WA. Mom was born on what undoubtedly was a cold day on December 10, 1923 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Her parents were the late Hjalmer Eli and Mabel Adamson Eli. Her mother passed away when Mom was 1 ½ years old and she went to live with Grandma Adamson. She was a farm girl who went to a one-room country school where she first met our Dad, Russell Eckstrom. She graduated from Milaca High School in 1942. In June of 1943 at age 19 Mom traveled alone on a train that was loaded with soldiers to Fort Bragg in North Carolina where Dad was on a three (3) day pass from the Army. She arrived at Fort Bragg safely, but found out her blood test results from Minnesota were lost and she and Dad had to wait one more day to get married. They were married on June 12, 1943. Their first daughter Louise was born on May 4, 1944 and when Dad went off to Europe to fight the war, Mom lived with Dad’s parents. To help support the war effort while Dad was in Europe Mom worked in a federal munitions plant watching ammunition shell casings go by as an inspector. When Dad returned from the war, they began their lives as farmers, buying a farm “just down the road” from Dad’s parents. Then their family expanded rapidly with Warren (1946), Mary (1947), Theresa (1948) and Donald (1950). When Grandpa Eckstrom died in 1950 and Grandma moved to Washington State, Mom and Dad bought their farm and we lived there until 1957 when we all moved to Washington State. There the family was completed adding Cathy (1959) and Russ (1964).
Mom was always the homemaker who took the best care of her family that any wife/Mother could. Her husband and seven (7) children were always her priority. When her children grew up and left home and Dad retired in 1985, Mom enjoyed embroidery and reading and visits from her 7 children, 13 grandchildren, 23 great-grandchildren and 7 great-great-grandchildren. Mom became a Seattle Mariners fan in 1995 and watched them religiously. Once when her granddaughter Billi Jo suggested they change the TV channel when the Mariners were losing 10 – 3 Mom told her “We never turn off the Mariners”. You could tell when she read articles about the Mariners from the newspapers because she would quote stats to you and talk about what certain players were doing. In 2012, after yet another losing season Mom finally turned them off and just enjoyed reading. Mom and Dad celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary in 2003, the year Dad died. Mom’s oldest daughter Louise and her husband Will took care of Mom until Louise became ill and passed away suddenly in 2009. From 2009 until Mom’s passing, her daughters Mary and Theresa (Terry) took loving care of her. Mom was a gentle and sweet person who hardly ever complained and was always smiling and loved to laugh. From our earliest memories from Minnesota and on to Sunnyslope Road, Retsil and Manchester in Washington there was the sound of “the girls” (Mom and her daughters) laughter ringing through the house. It is a joyful memory of Mom that will always bring a smile to our faces.