It’s April, my mom’s birthday month. Julie Allen was born on April 18, 1920. She was quite a character, and it took me syears to fully appreciate how unique she was, especially as she aged. Mom spent most of her life as a homemaker, raising my two brothers and me. After we kids moved out, our folks moved into a mobile home park shortly before his retirement. Julie pretty much took over their little estate.
She owned the toolbox, using it for small repairs and upkeep, indoors and out. My brothers and I disapproved her using ladders for changing windows and screens, but mom was unstoppable. She kept a garden and the yard going into her 90s, mowing the lawn with an electric mower, loving to boast about never running over the cord. When her edger broke, she was undaunted, getting on her hands and knees to trim the sidewalk edges.
Mom’s neighbors (most of them younger) adored and admired her. She tended her garden, raked leaves and even shoveled snow. She was so diligent about her yard one of her neighbors declared, “I swear, Julie, you catch those leaves before they even hit the ground!” She had a sewing machine and did repairs for anyone who asked, never charging them, taking whatever donation they offered. Sometimes she performed near miracle fixes, and I know because she did my repairs, too.
After dad’s passing, mom became curious about computers, so I bought her an I-Mac. Her first software was a pool game so she could have fun learning about her new toy. She played every night, pretending to compete with one of us three kids. I showed her how to make greeting cards and do email, both of which didn’t take her long to learn—all of this in her early 80s!
Her mobile home park’s laundromat was a community space, including a regulation size pool table. We had our own balls and cues and played some intense 8-ball while our clothes washed and dried. Believe me, she always held her own. Below is my favorite photo of mom playing pool. Note the fine form—she was a shark!
It was tough watching her capacities fade in the later years. A year and eight months after turning100, Covid ended her life. I miss her so much, it feels good to write this tribute in her memory.
© 2026. Leslie Charles, Speech Coach, Speaker, Author, Funeral-Life Celebrant. leslie@lesliecharles.com