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Mom was the oldest of three daughters of
Marion and Leo Thom of Ashton, Iowa.
Modest in demeanor and dressed with smart
elegance, her tiny frame and fingers hold
onto her trophy. My Mom is just so
cute, the beautiful features of her face and
hair are precious beyond belief to me.
My mother, Betty Lucille Thom had wanderlust
and moved to Denver to get her cosmetology
license in 1941.
At the Lakeside Ballroom overlooking the
park and
lake my Mother met a young man from Mason
City,
Iowa. Russell Walter Allen was his name;
they danced and laughed and looked out over
the lake and the view of the Rocky Mountains
just five miles to the West. You know the
rest - soon they married!
Purchasing a
home at 13th and Trenton Street, they later
moved to the newly built and growing Harvey
Park neighborhood to accommodate tree sons,
Russ, Trent and me, Kim.
Sadly, the marriage would end in 1965 and my
Mother's
faith and courage and determination would be
tested to the limit. My two older brothers
were always supportive for our Mother; they
were becoming independent and understandably
moving onto their own journeys of life.
Always living nearby in Denver, my
brothers loved our Mom and visited; they
simply were not at home as much.
My Mother became a single parent and never
missed work. She rented out our
basement and even sometimes a room on our
floor. My Mom had her room, I had mine
and a "renter" had the last room. From 1965
to 1973 we lived with seventeen different
people.
Having a heart and kind soul were strengths
of my Mom's. Even in stress and hard times
she gave to others, always willing to
listen, to loan small amounts of money when
she did not have a lot for herself. A simple
woman, not judgmental, and hoping she
would win the lottery, she was always making
a list of people she would give money to
help out.
For a young woman from Iowa with a Catholic
school education, my mom was very hip and
liberal. She went with the times; she could
share coffee and cigarettes with tenants and
friends over continuous kitchen table
conversations. My mom would listen to Perry
Como
or Glenn Miller and listen to me play Jimi
Hendrix. We went together to see the movie
Woodstock when it first came to
theaters.
Writing was a favorite hobby of my Mom's.
Sadly she did not have the energy to do it
often. Making a living and raising me kept
her busy most of the time, and worrying
about the future took up the last of her
energy.
When I write
for this site, I imagine her sitting next to
me gently correcting me; "we" are listening
to some Glenn Miller right now and she is
tapping her fingers to the tune.
My Mother retired to Windsor Gardens for the
last part of her life and was able to relax
and not worry as much. All of her neighbors
would say what a dear lady she was; she was
a beautiful person inside and out. My
friends would always ask how my mom was
comment on what a cool woman she was and how
she had treated them so well.
Only a few days before Mom passed away, I
was writing a thank you card to the staff at
the hospital and was not sure if a word had
one "L" or two. My Mom was barely hanging
on, her eyes were closed and
her tiny body and hands were resting. I
asked Mom if the word I was trying to spell
had one "L" or two and after a moment she
raised her hand up with only her
outstretched index finger, indicating her
correct answer.
Mom was soon moved to the Johnson Center of
Porter Hospice for a more comfortable
setting to allow family and many friends to
visit. Mom was tired and ready to go... my
Nephew Trevor Allen was alone with her - the
two loved each other dearly - when she gave
her last breath.
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Ivy Chapel at Fairmount Cemetery
Denver , Colorado 1986 |
Memorial services were held
Wednesday November 22, 2006 at
the Ivy Chapel at Fairmount
Cemetery.
The weather was beautiful,
helping to brighten such a sad
day.
The Ivy Chapel was full of love,
wonderful memories and red
roses. |
Betty "Tommy"
Allen,
July 12,
1923, Storm Lake, Iowa to
November 15,
2006, Centennial, Colorado
Thank you
Mom, forever in our hearts, all of our love!
For additional images and
commentary, please refer
to the Denver section. |
