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My mother was born February 9, 1943 to Richard and Virginia Drake. She was welcomed home by
her older brother, David Drake.
I don't know much about her childhood, (maybe someone can enlighten me and share some details), but
she has always said she had a VERY happy childhood growing up. She said her mother was very proper and taught her how
to be "a lady." From what I understand they didn't hurt for money as grandpa worked in Chicago at a advertising
firm. She said they took trips as a family and would spend summers at a ranch.
Apparently, she had somewhat of a "wild" side. She met
my Dad, Phillip Marquardt, who didn't have two cents to rub together. As my mother told me, he wasn't who my grandparents
would have picked out for her. At the age of 18 she eloped and secretly married. When my grandparents found out,
they made her do it over again at a church so everyone could be present. They had 4 children begining with the adoption
of Linda in '69, followed by the birth of Holly '70, Tim '72 and Katie '78. They moved around quite a bit living
in Illinois, Oregon, Missouri and Washington state. She stayed at home with her children until 1983 when she got a job
as a bookkeeper for Kalmus Enginering out of Maltby, WA. They were married 28 years when there marriage ended in
1989.
In 1989, she met business man Jim McCall (Brown) whom she later
started a recycling business with in Bothel, WA. Seven years later they were wed. They moved to Des Moines,
WA. and managed an apartment complex. Their year long marriage was cut short, by Jim being diagnosed with lung cancer
in March '97 and dying in September the same year.
In November 1999, with the help of the computer technology and the world wide web, my mom
met and married Dick Gentry in Maui. She moved into Dick's condo in LaHinna, HA. and got a job at a local
title company. They moved to the main land in 2002, buying a beautiful home with a pool in Ridgecrest,
CA. to be close to Dick's mother.
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My beautiful mother with Cop, one of her
many dogs.
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Love of pets!
My mother has always loved animals. At one time we had 4 dogs, 5 cats and 1 bunny!! She had
her favorites: Barney dog, who was so protective of my mom all she had to say was "Ouch, or Help" and the dog would
come running. And Button; a special needs cat after an encounter with the toaster. But Mom still loved her and helped
her with her hair ball problems...YUK!
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Character
She enjoyed laughing and having a good time.
She had a quirky sence of humor and personality, that some might call "dorky." She loved sci-fi horror films, "B"
movies that play on channel 12 late at night. :) She called them her weirdo movies. She found the super natural
stuff interesting; psychics, ouiji board, fortune tellers, and tarot card readings.
She loved to find a bargin; antique shops, thrift stores, and garage sales.
She always made friends everywhere she went. (Even though she would claim not to like people.) People
were just drawn to my mother. She was a fun lady to just sit and talk with. She made others feel comfortable
and right at home.
When leaving her home it usually took awhile. She would ask if you have everything, if you need anything, and
then say "oh, take some homemade cake with you, because I can't eat all of this." She would follow you to the door and
out to your car and then give you a hug that would actually be a series a squeezes and her saying, "euuuhhh, euuuuuh, I'm
going to miss yoooooou. followed by a couple pats on the back. She would ask if you forgot anything and usually say
she forgot something and run back inside to grab it for you. She would tell you to be careful and drive safe and ask
you to keep in touch. As you drove away she would wave her hand and smile telling you she loved you.
My mother was beautiful inside and out. I love and miss my mother very much. I feel her time here was too short
and that I could have gotten to know her so much better.
All she ever wanted was to be happy and happy with someone. I am so glad she met Dick because he seemed to make her
happy. She would say he spoiled her, and treated her like a princess. That always made me so very happy to hear
her say that; she didn't have an easy adult life and she deserved to finally be treated like gold. I just wish it could
have been longer.
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