Grant Family

In Loving Memory: Edith M. Grant

2010-12-02T09:30:00.008+01:00

Much of what we are, who we become, is due to our parents.

My brother, sisters, and I were blessed with great parents who raised six healthy, happy, productive children – despite, in my case, my parents not having great material to work with.

In memory of Edith, today I would like to share some of the qualities that defined my mother.

Creative

You may not know that Edie had a creative streak that was most certainly the source of my creative side and is also passed to my children and many of her grandchildren. If Mum had not chosen to devote nearly all her efforts to building the family, I could have easily seen her as an author or artist.

Family

But for Edie, it was all about Family. When we were young – six kids, often ready to kill each other – I remember her saying “Someday, your brothers and sisters will be your best friends. Other good friends will come and go but your siblings will be friends forever.”

At the time, it sounded mad; but she was right. Today all six children, 12 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren enjoy wonderful relationships and regular family gatherings. Mum fostered in each of us that strong sense of family that is foundational in all our lives.

Selfless

My mother was unselfish – almost to a fault; I can never remember a time she put her needs or wants first. She always wanted to help her children, her husband, and her friends. She was a very trusting, generous person and sometimes people took advantage – which hurt her deeply. But it never changed her cheerful, optimistic view of the world.

Strength

To me, my mother’s most defining characteristic was her strength.

Edie had determination, as you would expect of someone who successfully raised six children, and one husband.

My father told me that it was Mum’s idea for him to go back to college and earn a degree – he was making a good living at Yellow Cab in Pittsburgh, two children, more coming every year or so. She was determined to do the best they could do for their growing family; good enough was not acceptable, it had to be the best they could do.

Of course, sometimes that determination was exhibited in other ways. Like when we were young, it was not terribly unusual to go to bed with a room colored beige and wake up with it being freshly painted green – always green.

This inner strength, this determination, was passed through to the children, including me. Edie would coach us: “You can achieve anything you want to achieve”, “Don’t let anyone tell you that you are not capable”, even the somewhat biased “You are better than anybody else.” More than just words, Mum made you believe. She made you believe in yourself. There is no greater gift you can give to your children.

In addition to Mum’s inner strength. She was physically strong. If not for Alzheimer’s, I am certain my mother would have lived well past ninety years.

When Mum entered hospice, the attending physician came in to take a medical history on Mum. All the kids, Dad, and Mum were packed into the little hospice room, just like our family room in Liverpool 40 years ago. As the doctor clicked through all possible medical conditions, heart disease, lung disease, cancer, diabetes, etc., the answer was always the same, no, no, no. The doctor completed his history and stated, “Well, with the exception of Alzheimer’s, I guess your mother is a perfectly healthy.” Yep.

Nevertheless, the unfortunate medical prognosis was that Mum would only be with us a few more days – seven at most, but it could be anytime. However the doctors did not know of Edie’s strength, and as Mum’s determination carried us well into the second week, the doctor’s stopped trying to predict and just said, “It is up to Edie, she is in charge.”

Two weeks ago, all the children and Dad were lucky enough to be with Mum on the last day she was awake and alert. The amount of joy I felt when she smiled brightly in response to my “Hi Mummy!” is indescribable.

Last week, my father asked the doctor if there was any chance Mum might open her eyes one more time. I happened to be with Jean and Dad via Skype as the doctor explained why that it was no longer medically possible. The disappointment in their faces as the reality of the doctor’s words sank in was heartbreaking.

Yet the following day, Thanksgiving Day, Dad went to Mum’s side, took her hand and said “Hi Edie”, as he often did. My mother opened her eyes and looked at Dad; then her eyes fluttered closed. It was the last thing she did.

I don’t know how it was possible for Mum to connect with Dad one last time in this way; maybe it was the sound of my father’s voice, her husband for 56 years, that gave Mum the strength to say “goodbye”.

Edith's Tribute Fund at Alz.org
Mum's Photo Carousel

Désalpe 2009, St-Cergue

2009-10-03T12:36:00.001+02:00

Every autumn in Switzerland, farmers bring their cows down from the mountains to winter in cozy barns. This event is celebrated in St. Cergue and other villages with local festivals featuring food, wine, traditional music, children's games, and of course, decorated cows and cow bells.

Visiting St. Cergue for Désalpe weekend has become somewhat of a tradition for us, if you can call two years in a row a tradition. We met our friends the Gibsons in St. Cergue and had a lot of fun. The weather was perfect -- a "bluebird" day, as they say.

Max, Daniel, and I went for a hike up the mountain, following a ski trail up and a hiking trail back down to the village. The views of the Jura are beautiful as you can see in the pictures and it feels great hiking in the mountain at this time of year (or any time of year).

Trockener Steg 2,929 Meters

2009-05-04T12:00:00.005+02:00

One last day of skiing for me at Zermatt today. Snow was beautiful, in fact it kept snowing as I was skiing. Most the day was mixed sun, clouds, and snow. Went to the top, Matterhorn glacier paradise (3,883 m -- the highest point in Europe accessible by cable car) but the runs and conditions were better between Trockener Steg (2,929) and Furggsattel (3,365 m) so I kept taking that chair. Our season started on December 7 in Sainte-Croix and ended on May 4 in Zermatt - five months later. Of course you can continue to ski at Zermatt all summer long, albeit on a very reduced area. Maybe if I get the itch in July...

I posted a video below of the cable car ride to Matterhorn glacier paradise from YouTube (not taken by me) to give you a sense of the ride up.

2009 World Ice Hockey Championships

2009-05-02T00:00:00.006+02:00

Attended the 2009 World Ice Hockey Championships held in Bern and Zurich Switzerland. We saw two games on consecutive weekends: USA vs. Latvia on April 25 in the preliminary round and USA vs. Russia on May 2 in the qualification round. Both were very exciting contests with USA beating Latvia 4-2 and Russia beating USA 4-1. USA eventually played Russia again in the semi-final round, losing 3-2. Russia continued on to beat Canada in the finals 2-1.

Aunt Jean and Uncle Bob visit Nyon.

2009-04-04T10:45:00.002+02:00

We love visitors and had a great time with Aunt Jean and Uncle Bob when they visited us in Nyon in early April. Jean had work in London, so combined that trip with a few extra days "en Suisse". We're glad she did. During the short visit we showed Jean and Bob around the area visiting Lausanne, Montreux, Vevey, and of course, Nyon.

Top of the World, Ma...

2009-02-25T12:00:00.003+01:00

Since we were unable to make our annual trip to Gore Mountain in the Adirondacks, we spent a few days at Zermatt, Switzerland. It is about 2.5 hours from our home and is known for the famous peak "the Matterhorn", which you will see in a lot of these pictures. It is not the highest peak in Europe, but it is the most dramatic. In Zermatt, I believe you can see 10 of the 11 highest peaks in Europe. The highest we skied was at 3800 meters, and top to bottom it is about a 13 kilometer ski.

Sensational Samoëns.

2009-01-25T12:00:00.006+01:00

Was very fortunate to be invited by my neighbor to a ski weekend in Samoëns, France. The weather was perfect with tons of snow. And the area is one of the most secenic in the Alps; perfect for both winter and summer sports and hiking. Pictured here is my neighbor Barrie, on the left, his college buddies, and me on the right.

Il neige à Paris!

2009-01-09T12:00:00.003+01:00

We had a great opportunity to visit Paris just after the new year. I combined the trip with some work and Jackie and the kids took in all the usual highlights: Eiffel Tower, Musée du Louvre, Musée d'Orsay, Arc de Triomphe, Champs-Elysées, and of course Disneyland Paris.

Joyeux Noël

2008-12-25T10:30:00.018+01:00

Our first Christmas in Switzerland is a mixture of the familiar and the new. We kept many of the family traditions, such as Dad being first up to check if Santa Clause paid a visit, setting holiday mood music, starting coffee, fire up the camera, and finally giving word to three anxious children that it is okay to come upstairs (in America, our bedrooms are upstairs, so you go downstairs to see what Santa brought). Pause at the top of the stairs for the annual photo, then let the ripping begin -- Legos everywhere. We miss having family here for this holiday especially. But we had a wonderful Christmas eve dinner at "chez Grant" with our Swiss family, the Gibsons, including Grant's mom Pat.

Montreux Marché de Noël

2008-12-19T18:36:00.005+01:00

We had looked forward to the Marché de Noël (Christmas Market) for a long time, and we finally got the chance to visit this week in Montreux; we were not disappointed. Montreux hosts a very large Marché de Noël that includes endless wooden huts with vendors selling beautiful gifts, many hand crafted. I love the sight and smell of all the tradional foods, including the fondue we enjoyed for dinner, roasted chestnuts, grilled sausages, hearty soups, and of course, Glühwein, a warm spiced wine. And it would not be Montreux if there was not a jazz band playing favorite and familiar tunes -- I am looking forward to the Montreux Jazz Festival in July. Max, Ali, and I even rode a huge ferris wheel and got the birds-eye view of the market. It was a lot of fun and we were a bunch of tired puppies on the train ride home to Nyon.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2008-11-29T00:00:00.005+01:00

We were quite lucky to to enjoy a very traditional Thanksgiving feast with our American friends and fellow Welch Allyn expats on the Saturday after Thanksgiving at "chez Gibson". Since Thanksgiving is not celebrated here in Europe, the kids were in school all week, so Saturday was our Thanksgiving.

Jackie and Suzanne special ordered a turkey at the boucherie (butcher shop) around the corner from our apartment, with the help of our French-speaking British neighbor Odette, and it was one of the most delicious birds we ever tasted. Of course, it cost about four times what you might expect to pay back home, but it was worth it.

Thanks to the magic of the internet (and the NFL), we were even able to replay the late football game between Dallas and Seattle on the the big-screen TV.

We all missed our family on Thanksgiving, but this day felt like we were back home. The kids played basketball at a neighborhood park, we were serenated by the Hannah and Mercedes on the piano, and we all ate at twice the normal rate -- perfect.

Pie anyone?

Sledding at St. Cergue

2008-11-23T00:00:00.000+01:00

If you received a Holiday card from us, the picture of Max, Ali, and Daniel was taken during this sledding excursion in St. Cergue, which is just 14 km from our apartement in Nyon. The kids had a lot of fun, as you can see; they even met some English-speaking friends.

One of the differences between the weather here vs. back in upstate New York, is that the temperature is relatively mild in the valley where we live in Nyon. There is no snow on the ground and the temperature is about 0° to 5° C (hovering around 32° F) at this time in early December. Yet, anytime we want to play in the snow, just go up in the mountains and it is a winter wonderland.

A day in Genève.

2008-11-09T00:00:00.002+01:00

Flat Stanley was the excuse to go for an afternoon walk around Genève. These are some interesting images ranging from a quick snapshot of Max in Ali in front of a storefront billboard, to an interesting self/family portrait on a carousel ride, cannons from an ancient arsenal that the kids love to play on, to a pizzeria that reminded us of home (Syracuse).

Aiguille du Midi... Top of the World.

2008-11-08T12:00:00.014+01:00

Well not exactly "top of the world", but this is the top of the Alps. Aiguille du Midi (3,842 m), is right next to Mont Blanc (4,810 m), the tallest mountain in the Alps and western Europe. "La Dame Blanche" (the white lady) is home to a year-round glacier. This region is a great location for skiing (we are looking forward to coming back), as well as mountain climbing, hiking, and pargliding.

On this clear day we took a cable car up to Midi from the quaint village of Chamonix. There is no snow in the village at this time of year, but there is plenty up here! The kids had a lot of fun crafting their first snowballs of the year.

Happy Halloween

2008-10-31T00:00:00.003+01:00

Halloween is not celebrated in Switzerland typically, however we got together with our neighbors and threw a tradional Halloween party for the kids. Games included mummy, donut eating contests, apple bobbing, balloon stomping, and of course, the kids all went "trick or treat" around the building. It was great fun and a reminder of home for the Americans and a maybe an introduction to a new tradition for the local children.

Château de Chillon

2008-08-10T17:28:00.005+02:00

When we arrived in Switzerland in July, one of the first things that impacted our normal patterns was finding everything closed on Sundays with the exception of restaurants, some museums, and parks. So even though we were pressed with a lot of work to get the apartment set-up and daily life functional, we had no choice but to relax and spend quality time with the family on Sunday -- no trips to Home Depot possible :)

One of our first excursions was to Château de Chillon, located on Lac Léman (Lake Geneva) just outside Montreux, Switzerland. It is about a thousand years old and made up of 100 buildings that were gradually connected over centuries to form the current Château. In the early years, the Château was a home to the Counts of Savoy, the longest surviving royal family in Europe when officially dispanded in 1946. It is said the Château was never taken in a siege, but did change hands several times through treaties.

We visited Château Chillon with the Gibson family, pictured, who are our "partner" expats here in Switzerland.

Waterman Elementary School Third-Grade Class Celebrates Arrival of Summer with Field Trip Aboard Judge Ben Wiles

2008-06-17T01:52:00.005+02:00

Ali and her third-grade classmates enjoyed a break in the rainy weather aboard the Judge Ben Wiles today. Judge Ben is operated by Mid-Lakes Navigation of Skaneateles, NY. The children and several parents and teachers sailed south about four miles along the east shore of Skaneateles Lake before returning to port along the west shore.

Waterman Elementary School, Second Grade Farewell Concert

2008-06-13T03:08:00.005+02:00

Daniel and his second-grade classmates at Waterman Elementary School in Skaneateles, NY, bid farewell to the school they have attended for the past three years with a delightful concert today. They actually performed the concert three times over the past three days. These students will attend State Street School next year and the following two years through fifth grade. Of course Daniel will be attending Collège du Léman near Geneva, Switzerland next year. We will miss this school and all our friends.

Memorial Day Parade, Skaneateles, NY

2008-05-26T19:34:00.006+02:00

Daniel and Ali participated in the annual Memorial Day Parade in Skaneateles today. Parading with Cub Scouts and Girl Scouts through the village to St. Mary's Cemetery for a brief ceremony honoring those who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country. Then, after a short march, another ceremony at Shotwell Park, where memorials stand for local veterans of the Korean War, Spanish-American War, Vietnam War, World War I, and World War II. The morning is capped with flyover by two F-16C Fighting Falcons from 174th Fighter Wing, Hancock Field, Syracuse, NY

Memorial Day Ski Adventure

2008-05-26T03:24:00.008+02:00

Technically, not Memorial Day, but on Memorial Day Weekend. After a hearty breakfast of pancakes, bacon, eggs, and coffee, my waterskiing buddies and I got on the lake relatively early this morning (not earlier than a dozen or so fishermen). Water was as smooth as a billiard table and a refreshing 51 degrees Fahrenheit in beautiful Skaneateles Lake -- no problem if you are willing to wear a water (wimp) suit.

We finished the day off with dinner at my favorite restaurant, Doug's Fish Fry.

.

Elaine and Frank Skibitski Celebrate 50 Years of Bliss

2008-05-25T05:00:00.001+02:00

Yesterday, the Skibitski, Casey, and Grant families gathered at the Inn Between restaurant in Camillus, New York. Elaine and Frank took their vows June 28, 1958, in St. Mary of the Assumption Church, Rome, New York. After a beautiful dinner, Elaine and Frank were driven off by their favorite son, John, in a car decorated in "Just Married" style.

Scott Gordon's Graduation Day

2008-05-18T05:47:00.008+02:00

Kathy and Phil Gordon hosted a beautiful dinner in celebration of Scott's graduation with honors from SUNY Brockport today. Dinner was held at Delmonico's Italian Steakhouse in Rochester, NY. Scott will soon be off to Bearcat country where he will pursue his PhD at the University of Cincinnati.

Skaneateles State Street School's Spring Concert

2008-05-17T03:47:00.006+02:00

Last night, Ali performed in the Skaneateles State Street School's Spring Concert. The third, fourth, and fifth graders performed a variety of material ranging from Antonín Dvořák to Smoke on the Water by Deep Purple. Ali and the other third-graders performed Lightly Row (traditional), Pickin' & Grinnin' (Stoutamire & Henderson), and Canon in G (Thomas Tallis). The kids all sounded great. There was a very interesting rendition of Phantom of the Opera (1925) that was performed in support of the silent film, as would have happened in 1925.

Daniel's First Holy Communion

2008-05-05T03:08:00.008+02:00

Yesterday, Daniel took First Holy Communion at St. Mary's of the Lake Church in Skaneateles, NY. It was a beautiful day and we celebrated Daniel's milestone with family at our home following the ceremony. We were lucky enough to have two of Daniel's grandparents present (Elaine & Frank Skibitski), nine aunts and uncles (Ed Grant, Kathy and Phil Gordon, Darlene and Jim Cash, Ellen Rood, Jean and Bob Cash, John Skibitski), and seven cousins (Jessie, Jeff, Julian, and Jack Gordon; Stevie and Kevin Grant, and Eric Cash). The weather was beautiful and Daniel was a perfect angel.

First family trip to Switzerland.

2008-04-30T04:55:00.014+02:00

On April 11, Jackie and the kids hopped aboard a Continental Airlines flight in Rochester, NY and headed to Geneve, Switzerland (via beautiful Newark NJ).

Green Bay Packers vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

2007-08-11T06:00:00.003+02:00

We were fortunate to get tickets to experience a Green Bay Packers pre-season contest against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Saturday, August 11, at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, PA. Max, Ali, Daniel, and I also had field passes so we could walk around and get a close-up view of the players' pregame warm up; we even got a chance to say hello to head coach Mike McCarthy. The Packers won the game 13-9 and went on to a terrific 13-3 regular-season record, and one playoff win shy of the Superbowl.