- Date Of Birth: September 8, 1928
- Date Of Death: April 12, 2015
- State: Arizona
Hawkins, Ella Mae. Mom died on April 12th 2015 to claim her mansion in Heaven and to be with her Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Dad, Kathy and her many friends and relatives who have gone before. Mom was born on September 8, 1928 to Mamie (Trovall) and Henry T. Cahape in La Crosse, WI and joined her beloved brother Tom. Shortly after graduating from Logan High she married William C. Hawkins (Bill) after a 5 year courtship. Kathy was born the next year and then I (Rebecca) tagged along in 1952. Mom worked at the rubber mills during WWII and later at Autolite on an assembly line. Having enough of that she went to secretarial school. After working as an elementary school secretary, she attended the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse and graduated with honors. She taught English and was the drama coach at La Crescent High and later transferred to Western Wisconsin Technical College where she taught English and Careers. Mom retired early to lovingly care for Dad who had suffered a stroke – just as she had cared for my sister, Kathy who died at age 21 after a long illness.
Mom was smart, hardworking, caring and devoted to her family. She set the bar high. She had a mischievous sense of fun and a twinkle in her eye. She loved to entertain and our home was always open to guests. She loved to travel and was never afraid to try new things, including golf. After she retired, Mom and Dad wintered in Arizona, and the RV Park gave them an entire family of new friends. Mom loved music. She played the cello starting at age 6, and she loved to sing.