Happy Birthday Mom! (July 14, 1943 – July 14, 2004)
Today would be my mother’s 66th birthday if she were alive. Sadly, G. Janet (Spotted Bear) Gunderson died five years ago July 14 in a car accident while driving to her home on the Fort Berthold Reservation in North Dakota.
My family members and all my mother’s friends miss her dearly. And we are thinking of her today. G. Janet was the director of the Three Affiliated Tribes social services program at Fort Berthold. She dedicated her life to helping others. My mother had endless compassion for people. She worked continually for hundreds of women and children who miss her as much as we do.
I was thinking of my mother when I chose a name for this blog. She really liked tiger lilies. Just a few weeks before she died, I painted some tiger lilies on an old car in her yard. She asked me to. It was a fun day with Mom. After talking with my Aunt Alyce Spotted Bear, I decided to associate the blog with a memory of my mother. I opted for the Mandan language word for tiger lily, which translates as “the buffalo’s fire.”
Meanwhile, happy birthday Mom.
We’re keeping the fire burning for you.
Jodi Rave
Jackie
Jodi, I am so sorry to hear about your mom. She would have been four years older than me and that is such a tragic loss at such a young age. Hopefully, you still talk to her and tell her how important she was to you. I think the photo is perfect to remember her by: a joyful event.
Jodi Rave
Thank you Jackie. Love and prayers to you, another special woman.
TIFFANY RAVE
Dear Sis,
I miss mom so much, me and my children all thought about her on her birthday. I love this article it is so cool, this was a special gift to mom on her birthday. I love this picture, I remember the day.
Love Tiffany
Jodi Rave
We all love and miss Mom. And we will until the day, we too, shall leave this earth. Love you, sis.