On to my grandmothers! My dad’s mom was born Bertha Mae Grogg. She was born in the Johnsville area in 1910 and died in 1988. Her parents were Samuel Grogg who lived in and around Congress Township, Morrow County Ohio and Lottie Strickler who was born in North Bloomfield Township in Morrow County Ohio. My Grandmother was one of seven children, four boys and three girls and she was the oldest of the three girls and child number four.
At some point when she was young, she had a severe infection of some kind, I do not know the details, but it left significant scars around her neck. I can’t remember ever seeing my grandmother without wearing a scarf around her neck. She was a tiny petite woman who dressed impeccably. She married Ivan Shroll and as she told the story, she was married long enough to get pregnant before they divorced. Ivan was quite the womanizer. I never knew him. He died when my dad was seven. Her second husband was Bill Pry.
During her life she ran a truck stop in Galion that was well known for its good food and great hospitality. My grandma did most of the cooking. She was an amazing cook and could make anything taste good. Although, I never tested her on liver! She also helped Grandpa Pry with his construction business helping out where she could and staging the houses for sale before staging was an actual thing.
Before she married my grandpa Pry, she worked in a coat factory where she honed her sewing skills. She was a very good seamstress. She was good at crochet using the smallest hooks and thread. I still have her crochet hooks and I am amazed that anyone could use hooks that small! She did a lot of embroidery work and I have many of the pieces she did. One is a quilt where she embroidered all the state birds and flowers, there were only 48 at the time, and my great grandma, Lottie Grogg, did all the quilting. She made two of those quilt tops and I have both but only one got turned into an actual quilt. I think I inherited her love of needle work as I enjoy doing most types of needle work. I currently have both an embroidery and cross-stich project waiting on me to finish. They will have to wait as I am currently busy rehabing our Galion house.
Anyway, my grandma Pry was a kind, generous woman who loved her family very much and never forgot a birthday or anniversary. In that regard, I do not take after her as I regularly forget anniversaries and birthdays. They seem to sneak up on me, and it is something I try to be better at and tend to fail spectacularly in the trying. She was also someone who you didn’t give any sass. She might have looked like someone you could push over since she was so small, but I would never recommend trying it. She was both sweet and tough.
I remember when we went to visit, usually on Sunday afternoon when they were in Galion, as they spent winters in Bradenton, Florida, she would always have some kind of sweet for my brother and I. I especially remember the crystal Fostoria jar filled with M&M’s in the living room and the always present package of Archway oatmeal cookies.
She was the one who took me to buy my first pair of pierced earrings. My mom did not want me to get my ears pierced, but my grandma prevailed. Thank you, grandma!!! They were 14k gold topaz studs. I still have them. She told me that you should always wear good earrings when you got your ears pierced so you would not get an infection. At some point, she gave me her set of cameo earrings and necklace that my dad bought her when he was around 12 years old with money he earned doing odd jobs for his grandparents and I believe his paper route. My dad had great taste in jewelry. It is a beautiful set and while I wear it rarely – I am afraid something might happen to it – I have it where I can see it and remember both my dad and grandma. When she died, I inherited her diamond earrings. I had my ears pierced a second time so I could wear them right along with all the dangly earrings I love.
And like my grandfathers, there is the both/and quality to her life. She was kind and she was a force of nature. She was not one to mess with. She was quiet, but she could also be boisterous and I loved to hear her laugh. She worked hard all her life but she knew how to stop and have fun too. And for a small woman, she loved the biggest cars. Her favorite being her Lincoln Continental which was her go to purchase when she needed a new car. But mostly, she was my grandma who loved me very much.
As I grow older and reflect on who I am, I realize my grandma Pry’s influence is entwined throughout every aspect of my life. Growing up I had thought I was more influenced by my maternal grandmother. And while her influence is strong, it is my grandma Pry’s influence that is imprinted in all I do. And for all she was to me, and the love she freely gave, I am grateful.
Peace,
Beth
Beth's Blog 