INURNMENT: Glenwood Cemetery, Glenwood, Iowa
Memorials may be made to the Nebraska Humane Society or Glenwood Public Library.
Kate Osterhom was born in Salem, Iowa on July 17, 1914 to Elwood Elias and Carrie McDowell Friend. She was the youngest of three children with older sister Bertha Almeda and older brother Bayard Jim Friend.
Her father, known as E.E., was the town barber, and her mother, Carrie, worked at the telephone company. Her parents divorced when Kate was very young, with many of the marital problems related to E.E.’s frequent forays into Illinois for the purchase of moonshine.
Kate and her mother subsequently moved in with Grandma McDowell, who happened to be a midwife, making many housecalls with the local Doctor in a horse drawn carriage. It was at this young age that Kate learned to fend for herself, while her mother worked long hours as a telephone operator. The most time that Kate got to spend with her mother, was at night, sleeping with her at the telephone company, next to the switchboard. Looking for something with better hours, her mother subsequently got a job at the Mount Pleasant State Hospital. It was here that Carrie met Kate’s eventual stepfather, “Lanky Phil” Phillips.
In 1928, when Kate was 14, her mom and “Lanky Phil” got jobs at the Glenwood State Hospital. This included room and board for the two of them, but Kate could not live there. Thus, once again she fended for herself, boarding at various homes in Glenwood, while she attended high school. She also had to work during this time for her own spending money, and especially enjoyed her job at Bradley’s Five and Dime, where she became great friends with Evie Osterholm Dalton, who also happened to pass away this past week. Kate did well in high school, was one of Glenwood’s first cheerleaders, learned to play the saxophone and was a catcher on the local softball team.
After graduation in 1932, Kate worked at various jobs in Glenwood and eventually met and married George Boles. George had a good job at the Glenwood State Bank and Kate was finally no longer on her own. Unfortunately, three years later, George developed a severe sinus infection which spread to his brain and he passed away. Now Kate was not only alone again, but she had young son, Gary, to care for also. However shortly thereafter, Orrin arrived on the scene and they were married in 1941, prior to his shipping off to Europe during World War II. While he was overseas, their first son, Douglas was born and now Kate was alone with two sons, but she now had the Osterholm family as part of her support system, especially it patriarch, Oscar. Orrin was discharged early, secondary to injury, and after a fairly long rehabilitation, he and Kate were reunited in Glenwood. Shortly thereafter, their second son, Phil was born.
At this point, Kate’s life looked as if it had direction with her family of three boys in place, and Orrin gainfully employed. The only problem was that Orrin decided that he wanted to go to law school. So off to Lincoln, Nebraska they went, and Kate became the main breadwinner, in addition to her duties as mother and homemaker. Orrin’s contribution to the family income depended on how hot the cards were at the weekly poker game that he hosted at the house. Kate’s days during this period consisted of rising early in the morning, so she could get the boys fed and off to school, including Orrin, walking several miles to her job as a nurse’s aid at the hospital, where she was on her feet all day long, then walking back home at night, so that she could cook supper and do her house chores. She never complained, and years later when asked how she survived all this, her short reply was “it wasn’t that bad”.
She did survive, and Orrin graduated and started his long career with State Farm Insurance. Kate had also progressed in her career to the point where she actually drove to work and had gained employment at the Lincoln Public Library. This was the start of a lifetime love for the library, and she became what they called the “go to” person, as she seemed to know where every book in the library was located. Rather than waste a lot of time with the Dewey Decimel system, they would just ask Kate.
Orrin’s long State Farm career consisted of what seemed to be an endless succession of moves back and forth between Lincoln and Colorado. This didn’t bother Kate, as there was always a library for her to go and work at. After nearly 30 years, Orrin retired, and Kate’s days of working were also over. Finally, the hard working, independent Kate had her well deserved “Golden Years”, with Orrin at her side, culminating in their Golden Wedding Anniversary in 1991. It was at this joyous occasion, that Kate could look around the room at all of her family and friends, and see the fruits of all of those long years of fending for herself.
Kate is survived by sons and daughters-in-law Gary and Patti Boles, Doug and Joan Osterholm and Phil and Deb Osterholm, along with 6 grandchildren and 7 great grandchildren. We will all miss her deeply and never forget what she has done for us, but we know she is in a much better place today.
Visitation:Monday, March 13, 2006
1:00 PM
,
Service:Thursday, March 16, 2006
11:00 AM
202 N Vine
Glenwood, IA51534
Sign Guestbook