One for Lettie

No her....No me

You met my Grandmother Lettie Thompson in the early episodes. Her journey from Buxton to Fort Dodge was challenge enough for many but in raising 3 daughters and a son in the 1920’s she also became a valued member of the Fort Dodge community until her passing in 1978.

Julia Child had nothing on Lettie. No matter the raw material (and I do mean raw) she could create something incredible…. and don’t get me started on her baked goods. Oooooh la la. (I get a kick out of people who don’t like fruitcake because Lettie’s version based on dark molasses, candied fruits, walnuts and whatever else went into it creation was….(sorry there are no words)

As we are now in our 2nd month here at My Integrated Life, I hope you’re finding something to like, listen to and learn from.

And now….

One for Lettie, was included in a solo concert which was part of lecture/performance series at Grinnell College. The images you’ll see are from the Brown Family photo archives and feature Lettie Thompson, her daughters Adele Thompson, Eleanor Hawkins and Mary Alice Brown. You’ll also meet Lettie’s sisters Anzul and Katherine.

Lettie worked hard as a domestic worker, including for the local Catholic church. She always missed her brother Shelby who passed away at age 19 from pneumonia that was the result of working long hours in the local refrigerated creamery facility.

My sincere thanks to John Andelson and the late Paul Nelson for technical and moral support in producing my Grinnell concert.

Watch for an upcoming podcast featuring Jon Andelson and Mark Baechtel, the editors of My Integrated life and the minds behind ROOTStalk, Grinnell College’s fine magazine of art and literature.

ONE FOR LETTIE

Iowa Writers’ Collaborative

Below is a list of the members of the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative. Please support their work by sharing and subscribing. Paid subscribers are invited to attend real-time events and occasional Zoom calls among our writers. Your support keeps this reader-only supported service going. 

Nicole Baart: This Stays Here, Sioux Center

Ray Young Bear: From Red Earth Drive, Meskwaki Settlement

Laura Belin: Iowa Politics with Laura Belin, Windsor Heights

Tory Brecht: Brecht’s Beat, Quad Cities

Doug Burns: The Iowa Mercury, Carroll

Dave Busiek: Dave Busiek on Media, Des Moines

Iowa Writers’ Collaborative, Roundup

Steph Copley: It Was Never a Dress, Johnston

Art Cullen: Art Cullen’s Notebook, Storm Lake

Suzanna de Baca: Dispatches from the Heartland, Huxley

Debra Engle: A Whole New World, Madison County

Arnold Garson: Second Thoughts, Okoboji and Sioux Falls

Julie Gammack: Julie Gammack’s Iowa Potluck, Des Moines and Okoboji

Joe Geha: Fern and Joe, Ames

Jody Gifford: Benign Inspiration, West Des Moines

Rob Gray: Rob Gray’s Area, Ankeny

Nik Heftman: The Seven Times, Los Angeles and Iowa

Beth Hoffman: In the Dirt, Lovilia

Chris Jones, Chris’s Substack, Des Moines

Pat Kinney: View from Cedar Valley, Waterloo

Fern Kupfer: Fern and Joe, Ames

Robert Leonard: Deep Midwest: Politics and Culture, Bussey

Letters from Iowans, Iowa

Darcy Maulsby: Keepin’ It Rural, Calhoun County

Tar Macias: Hola Iowa, Iowa

Alison McGaughey, The Inquisitive Quad Citizen, Quad Cities

Kurt Meyer: Showing Up, St. Ansgar

Vicki Minor, Relatively Minor, Winterset

Wini Moranville: Wini’s Food Stories, Des Moines

Jeff Morrison: Between Two Rivers, Cedar Rapids

Kyle Munson: Kyle Munson’s Main Street, Des Moines

Jane Nguyen: The Asian Iowan, West Des Moines

John Naughton: My Life, in Color, Des Moines

Chuck Offenburger: Iowa Boy Chuck Offenburger, Jefferson and Des Moines

Barry Piatt: Piatt on Politics Behind the Curtain, Washington, D.C.

Dave Price: Dave Price’s Perspective, Des Moines

Macey Shofroth: The Midwest Creative, Norwalk

Larry Stone: Listening to the Land, Elkader

Mary Swander: Mary Swander’s Buggy Land, Kalona

Mary Swander: Mary Swander’s Emerging Voices, Kalona

Cheryl Tevis: Unfinished Business, Boone County

Ed Tibbetts: Along the Mississippi, Davenport

Kali White VanBaale, 988: Mental Healthcare in Iowa, Bondurant

Teresa Zilk: Talking Good, Des Moines