Virginia Simmons 's Obituary
Good morning, merry sunshine,
How did you wake so soon?
You've scared the little stars away,
And shone away the moon.
I watched you go to sleep last night,
Before I stopped my play,
How did you get way over there,
And, pray, where did you stay?
This was one of my grandma Ginger's favorite poems. She recited it to me at the crack of dawn so often throughout her life, especially when I was little, just as her father had for her. Reading this nursery rhyme over, it's such a beautiful piece of serendipity, as it's the perfect representation of how her shining spirit illuminated all of our lives. She was our ''Merry Sunshine".
Virginia “Ginger” Ellen Kathryn Simmons was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota on February 15, 1922 to Charles Reynold Kuhn and Elizabeth Mary Vanderberg Kuhn.
By her own account, Ginger had an idyllic childhood and was doted on by her parents and elder sister by 18 years, Blanche "Bee" Mae.
Her oldest lifelong companion was Betty Jane, a little doll she received from Santa Claus when she was four. Betty Jane suffered some wear and tear over the years, but family member, Patricia restored Betty, as good as new! Ginger said it was "the best present she ever received". Her tradition of tucking Betty Jane into bed each night and waking her each morning delighted everyone.
An avid reader, Ginger found interest in any book or subject. We would be in a bookstore, she'd pick up a book, and by the time the family was leaving, she'd already finished it! Her childhood summer mornings, before it got hot in Minneapolis, would find her walking down to the school library, to get a stack of any many books as she could carry. She'd bring them home on the cool steps to the basement and read all day. Dog stories were some of her favorites, and she would dream of the day where she would have one of her very own.
She demonstrated a great talent at drawing from a young age. Her sister, Bee, beautifully preserved a colored pencil sketch of ice skaters she made at age 6, which our family has on display brightening up the wall in our library today. The sketch is reminiscent of a favorite grade school memory, when her father took her ice skating. When she got older, they would play tennis together. She'd always laugh because she "grew up in the land of 10,000 lakes" and never had any desire to learn how to swim!
"There was always a band in my life!," She would say.
In Junior High and in High School, it was the "Pirateers," incorporating drums, sax, trumpet, and string bass. She played the piano, clarinet, and alto saxophone, before settling on the tenor sax. She managed this, despite her petite frame, as her signature instrument.
Also high school, she worked in her father's auto parts store, where she developed her lightning-speed typing skills. Also at that time, her school band took the train up to Winnipeg , Canada where she had the honor of playing her saxophone for King George VI and Queen Elizabeth during their royal tour!
At Minneapolis Knitting Works, a clothing manufacturer, she worked in the payroll department. She and one of her colleagues took tap dancing lessons together. Shortly after they learned some routines, they received calls to perform around town. The shows would be so late, Ginger would race home from work, take a nap, then get ready to go out and perform! They did this frequently.
In 1941, Ginger married fellow Minnesotan, Arnold Paul “A.P.” Simmons, following her high school graduation, between music gigs, in Minneapolis. Friends since she was 15 and 3 years her senior , A.P. was absolutely smitten by Ginger. Leading up to his proposal, he found a Mechanical Drawing class she was taking at her high school, and signed up as a post graduate. Friends described them as a "movie star couple," due to their glamorous looks and charming personalities.
A.P. then went off to war, and she belonged to the local musician's union. Ginger was asked to join another outfit which led to her all-girls, "Rhythm Chicks" band, playing for USO dance. In a fortuitous turn of events, a girl who had played with the Rhythm Chicks, recommended Ginger to take her place in Ada Leonard's big band when she left. So Ginger toured the East Coast playing theaters with Ada Leonard's big band, the first all-girl group to tour with the USO during World War II:
"When I joined the big band in Cincinnati, I had to take a train and find my way there. I think that living in the city and having gone places with my Sis, I just knew how to do those things. My Mom said I was 'too conceited to think I couldn't do everything I wanted to do.'"
Upon the conclusion of the war, Since trios "were a big thing at the time," she formed the Ginger DeVan Trio, [named after her mother's maiden name,Vandeberg], with Minnesota locals Glen Ostrout on jazz guitar, and Bobby Davis on piano, with Ginger on tenor saxophone:
"My combo played stage bars in nightclubs. Played all the current tunes . Bob was a terrific piano man. His mother was a piano teacher, but Bob couldn't sight read! Anything new, and Glen would call out the chords to him. These trios played in stage bars, also something new."
When the outfit they were playing with folded, Ginger decided they could make it on their own:
"I wrote to a booking agent in Kansas City and got us some bookings: The club we played in Omaha had a big display board in the lobby with my picture, credited as, 'Ginger DeVan and Her All-Boy Band'. Somehow this came home with me, and my dad had it up in the basement for years!"
They played the circuit, all around the Midwest and East Coast:
"Wisconsin; Alexandria, Louisiana; Omaha, Nebraska, Canyon Lake South Dakota. It was my life! Lots of put-together on the spot jobs. Many pick-ups--sometimes just the piano and I. My favorite part? Just playing! Audience or not!"
A.P. became a Master Sergeant in the United States Air Force. Upon his return, the couple's early years took them around the country. When they moved to California, Ginger's childhood dream came true when she finally got her own pet dog, a Collie/German Shepherd mix she named Rikki. With A.P. away at war, Rikki and Ginger formed a close bond, sharing everything - from special moments down to dessert! Son Tony was born in Sausalito, California. Their next move, to Hawaii, was a short but memorable year: Ginger, baby Tony and Rikki explored the island, she remodeled their little home and even took hula lessons! Daughter Jill was born in San Antonio, Texas; and daughter Anna at McChord Air Force Base. They built a home in Puyallup, which Ginger and family would call home for over half a century! Much has changed since their early days in the neighborhood, where Ginger once looked out the front window to discover a cow had wandered into the front yard!
Everything Ginger did she wanted to do from scratch, whether it was redecorating the house, painting, wallpapering, or drapes.
She made every holiday a memorable occasion. Ginger loved making traditions which was evident in all of her celebrations. She was an extraordinary homemaker, cook - a highlight being her sumptuous pies - and a Midwestern hostess to the core: It was a regular occurrence for her to interrogate a stuffed party guest who'd refused a third helping of food exclaiming: "What's wrong? Don't you like it?!"
When A.P. passed away in 1976, Ginger began working at Midland National Life, an insurance company, and quickly became the rock at its center. Working in securities, she needed to be fingerprinted. The only problem was - they discovered she had NO FINGERPRINTS! She could have become an accomplished thief! Fortunately, she just stuck to reading Agatha Christie crime novels. She worked there until her mid-eighties, quitting only as her boss decided to retire!
A master seamstress, Ginger taught her daughters all about fashion, sharing her love of design and sewing, and they would frequently collaborate on sewing projects together. She returned to school, studying fashion design, alongside her daughter, Jill. Ginger was always eager to share her expert guidance and tricks of the trade. She always saw to it that her daughters were fashionably dressed. Even in her later years, she loved designing and sewing dresses for me, as recently as this past January.
A devoted life-long Catholic, her faith gave her much comfort during difficult times. She held a special fondness for our Blessed Mother, and I would be remiss if I neglected to mention her gratitude to St. Anthony, who she credited frequently with locating her many lost items over the years.
Even when her health wasn't at its best, her spirit and sense of humor never faded:
"Listen to the birds singing. Watch the leaves on the trees blowing. There is more to be happy about than not!" She would say.
Once when being wheeled out of the ER x-ray room, there were 5 or 6 police in the hall. One waved to her, to which she replied, "I DIDN'T DO IT!!!" She later told me, "Hey, I didn't want them to think I was fleeing from the scene!"
Ginger was like a second mother to me. When I was born, she said, "I get a second chance to be a mom!" Reading me to sleep every night of my childhood, we'd cuddle close, "As snug as a bug in a rug," she'd say.
She was never short of her own stories, often emailing me with her latest adventures:
"Hey! I got my driver's license yesterday. A piece of cake! No glasses. I think I could qualify for a job there: The clerks had walkers and the gal taking the pictures was on oxygen!"
"Something banged upstairs, so I went up to make sure your Mama didn't fall out of bed. It was just the remote."
And this one, capturing her ever-present, child-like wonder:
"On our way home the moon was beautiful! A paper moon! Like somebody cut it out of paper and pasted it in a dark sky! We watched it and when it went behind a cloud , it shined out all around the edges. A few times sheer clouds, like lace, were around it. It was fun to watch."
She told me: "When I wake up to the sunshine I remember this little poem!"
Now whenever we see sunshine, we will always think of her...
I never go to sleep, dear,
I just go 'round to see
My little children of the East,
Who rise to watch for me.
I waken all the birds and bees,
And flowers on my way,
Then last of all, the little child
Who stayed out late to play.
It's been an honor for me, for all us, to have been a part of the 95 chapters of her story. And now we will write this next chapter, in honor of you.
Love you, Mombo.
What’s your fondest memory of Virginia ?
What’s a lesson you learned from Virginia ?
Share a story where Virginia 's kindness touched your heart.
Describe a day with Virginia you’ll never forget.
How did Virginia make you smile?