"I was born and raised here and owned a resort on Little Grand Lake,
after that we moved out to Montana for 8 years and then to California for 35
years. When my husband passed away in 1999, a year later my children wanted me
to move back to Duluth. We came and took a look at Keystone and it was a nice
place for me to live. I have met a lot of good friends here and I really like
it, I have been here for 7 years. We have a great Activities Director who always
has all kinds of activities going on, and it keeps me busy. If you want to keep
busy, meet new friends and have a great place to live Keystone is the place for
you!"
~Dolly Johnson
Eleanor Wilson
Keystone Bluffs
by Ericka Sell
Hard
work hasn’t been just a part of Eleanor Wilson’s life – it’s been
her way of life. A native Duluthian, Eleanor was born the youngest of nine
children in December of 1911. “My nickname was ‘honey,’ because I was
the littlest one in the bunch,” says Eleanor.
Eleanor
never knew her father, who died in a train accident in the fall of 1911. She
resided in Lakeside until the age of six, when Eleanor, her mother, and
youngest brother moved to a farm in
Belfast
,
Maine
.
Eleanor
spent nine years of her childhood in
Maine
, and many of her fondest memories revolve around working on the family
farm. “I should have been a boy instead of a girl. I’d go to school,
come home, change my clothes, and off to the barn I’d go.”
She recalls waking at 5 am to do chores before riding her saddle horse
nine miles to a one-room schoolhouse at 8 am. Then at 4 pm she would return
home for more farm work. “They were wonderful years. When I lived on the
farm, nothing was ever too hard – we just did it.”
Helping her family, especially her mother, was very important to
Eleanor. Since her Norwegian mother didn’t know how to write English,
Eleanor wrote to all five of her sisters for her mother.
“It was a big job – there were a lot of us you know.”
Upon returning to
Duluth
, Eleanor met her husband at the Lincoln Hotel, where she was employed as a
housekeeper. Romance flourished when John arrived as the new, Finnish night
clerk.
“I met him in July and we were married in October of 1932,”
recalls Eleanor. The two lived in an apartment on
Fourth Street
for fifty years, during which time Eleanor worked at Minnesota Mining,
Firestone Retread Shop, and as a housekeeper at St. Mary’s Hospital.
Eleanor and her husband loved to dance. “He had a shuffle of his
own,” remembers Eleanor. “We had the best of times.”
Despite John’s passing in the early 1980’s and her hip surgery in
2007, Eleanor’s passion for dancing remains strong.
“You take everything in stride, as long as you keep going. I used
to dance here with my walker, and now I still dance in my wheelchair, making
my feet go.”
She lived at The Lenox Place for twenty-three years before moving to
her current apartment at Keystone Bluffs. Some of her favorite activities at
Keystone include the musical programs, dice, and especially birthday
parties. “It’s just like a bunch of kids. They strive to keep you young
here.”
And so it seems to be working – or maybe it’s an accumulation of
all the hard work from her past. Whatever the case, Eleanor is clearly
achieving her goal of remaining young at heart.
“I loved my life and all I conquered along. It’s just been one
happy life, and I hope and pray I’ll make it to 100.”
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