Joan-one of my favorite people of all time.

Hilberta Elizabeth (Joan) Dahlin, forever 49, of Marina del Rey, California died peacefully on August 9, 2009, with her family gathered by her side.

She was born September 26, 1924 in Tarkio, Missouri to Gertrude Leoline Kaufman and Lyman Henry Sommer.

Hilberta and her younger sister, MaryAnn, traveled the world with their parents. The Sommer girls attended boarding school in Wichita, Kansas and graduated from Holy Family High School in Glendale, California.

After graduation, with the news of Pearl Harbor, Hilberta joined the Women’s Ambulance and Defense Corps of America. She was one of the first women to become a fulltime State Guard member. Hilberta subsequently received her bachelor and her master degrees from Northwestern University in Illinois.

Hilberta met her future husband, Carl Roy Dahlin, a US Marine, at a USO dance in Santa Barbara. They married in February 1945, and settled in Santa Monica, California until they took up residence on Harding Avenue in Venice, which the family occupied for the next 50 years. Here they raised their ever-expanding family, a great source of her pride and joy.

Mrs. D, as she was known by her students, was a beloved teacher. When the youngest of her eight children entered kindergarten, Mrs. D began her long and storied career in the classroom. She touched generations of families as a 6^th grade teacher at St. Mark’s Catholic School in Venice and then as a teacher and librarian at St. Monica Elementary School in Santa Monica where she remained until her retirement. Mrs. D received numerous awards and accolades for her achievements, including Outstanding Elementary School Teacher and Teacher of the Year as well as being honored for serving 54 years in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.

Joan will be remembered for her strong Catholic faith, her adventurous spirit, her love of traveling (both home and abroad), her sharp sense of humor and sense of fun, her selflessness and generosity of spirit, her preservation (insistence) of correct grammatical use in the English language and the positive impact she had on the lives of countless people. She will be sorely missed and fondly remembered by all who knew and loved her.

Joan was preceded in death by her husband, Carl Roy Dahlin, her sister, Mary Ann Sommer and her granddaughter, Jennifer Dahlin.

Joan is survived by her children Roy Anthony, Karl Hilbert (Janet), Jon Kristin (Theresa), George Kurtis (Irma), Erick Joseph, Mary Leolyn Carl (Bradford), Mark Thomas (Kerry), Karin Marie Dahlin, Lisa Ann Reid (Steve), David Dahlin Glover (Vanessa), Bob Fuhrmann, 24 grandchildren and 7 great grandchildren.

Joan visited my mom ,when I was taking care of her in Joplin, Mo, twice.  Both times were outrageous fun. I would take them both for rides to various parts of Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma and Arkansas. I had to make both ride in the back seat because of the noise generated as both talked at the same time. How they ever understood each other is still a mystery to me, and one science would do well to investigate.

Joan, my mom, and two nuns toured Europe decades ago for two months. They bought a mini-van and drove it all over. I should get with my sister and write down some of their adventures, as there were many. For instance, while in Holland, they got lost, drove down the wrong road, which happened to be an exclusive bike road. They got stopped by the local gendarme, who politely escorted them to the correct road, called ahead and had the local hotel ready for them when they arrived there. Try having that done over here.

I will seriously miss her charm and sense of humor. May you rest in peace, Joan, and say hi to mom.

The Carvile Plan…

The following is James Carvile’s suggestions on dealing with the GOP when it comes to healthcare reform:

“And strategist James Carvile became the first leading Democrat to suggest publicly that there might be political advantage in letting the Republicans kill healthcare.

“‘Put a bill out there, make them filibuster it, make them be what they are, the party of no,’ Carvile said. ‘Let them kill it. Let them kill it with the interest group money, then run against them. That’s what we ought to do.'”  Read more at this Politico article.

I think that the GOP needs to pay in a big way for this disaster.  What do you bloggers think ?

iggy donnelly

Monday, 08/17/09, Public Square

In Wichita, Kansas, school begins today.

Thanks in advance to all teachers.  It’s sometimes a thankless job, but so worthwhile.  You’re helping our tomorrows prepare.

How’s everything, everybody?

fnord