Performing for the Trinitarians in Hickory.. "Amor" and "Honey (The Honey Song)"

Carmen gave each person attending the event a signed collage Valentine's Day card. Each piece was made with a variety of papers, including tiny pieces of brightly colored foil from chocolate candy. Yes, she ate along the way. She had to pick candy that had no printing on the foil so she could use it in the artwork. Each is suitable and ready for framing.

The snowflake on the card is handcut and applied to the heavy card stock. The poinsettia is 5 layers of cut paper that can move. The other three feature clown faces - and my mom loves clowns. These are 5 of the 30 or so she made.

"Has Anybody Seen My Gal?

"As Time Goes By"

Carmen really didn't know she was being recorded. She relaxes at the piano - but does get a little more tired than she once did.

In the beginning ...

My mom was born in the northeast corner of Indiana in 1925, about a mile from the Ohio and Michigan borders. Her mother was Norwegian and father was German. Her little sister, Anita, and she played around the lakes, listened to their Norwegian grandmother read them the Bible and watched their mother play the piano.

During one period in her life, the family lived in Chicago. To this day I don't typically turn around when I'm in a crowd. I walk straight ahead. That's what she taught me to do when we lived in Charlotte. She had been in the Windy City during the time of Al Capone. Just keep walking ....

She studied voice, dance and speech at Michigan State University. That's where she met my dad, Elmer. They married on St. Patrick's Day in 1948. He was from Alma, Michigan. The war was over ...