Zoa Belle Krick's Obituary
Zoa Belle LaBoe was born to George and Clara LaBoe in Detroit, Michigan on March 18, 1919. George was a lumberman early in his life. He traveled and lived for a short period in the state of Washington. He later moved to Michigan where he worked as a machinist and met his bride to be, Clara. Clara was an elementary school teacher. They married and had one child: Zoa Belle. She always loved the uniqueness of her name. Her great granddaughter,'s middle name is Zoe and Zoa informed the family that the spelling was incorrect. And she sure knew about spelling,...she won her sixth grade spelling bee!Zoa graduated from Western High School in Detroit. She had interests in theater, sewing, and music. She was active in the Woodmere Methodist Church Youth Group and there she met a young man named Howard Krick. She became Zoa Belle LaBoe Krick when they eloped to Angola, Indiana in June of 1938. They did not have a big wedding, but their marriage lasted 67 years. (At their fiftieth wedding anniversary, she wrote a caption for a picture: ,"Fifty years and still in love.,")After Howard and Zoa were married, Zoa worked as a comptometer (adding machine operator) at a Detroit bank. She kept up that banking tradition by living frugally, keeping a detailed record of her daily expenses and sticking to a budget for her entire life. Zoa took care with her personal appearance and always tried to coordinate her outfits and jewelry. She had beautiful brown hair that later in her life turned pure white and she always enjoyed her visits to the hairdresser. Those who knew Zoa know that she cried very easily. She had deep emotions that were hidden behind her reserved manner. She cried at both hellos and goodbyes, whenever she heard The Star Spangled Banner, whenever she talked about her beloved parents, and sometimes for reasons known only to her. She was very quiet but would offer surprisingly strong opinions at unexpected times. She was a sensitive soul.Zoa and Howard had three children: Barbara, George, and Nancy. She became a full-time homemaker who loved to cook and sew. She made most of her daughters,' clothes, including Barbara,'s wedding dress and a winter coat for Nancy. She taught her daughters how to sew and for many years they worked together on sewing projects. Mom could always make those tough buttonholes or put in zippers. An appreciation of color and fabric texture was developed and shared by all three. In later years, Zoa developed an interest in quilting. She used some of the remnants from her mother,'s sewing basket. She made each one of her children and grandchildren a quilt of their own to treasure.She was a great cook with lots of specialty dishes that are all well remembered. We noticed if an ingredient was missing! A typical Sunday dinner consisted of roast beef, mashed potatoes and gravy, and green beans. It was simple, yet we marveled that the gravy wasn,'t lumpy and the meat so tender. No one could make it like our mom. She made spaghetti sauce with liver, bacon, and fresh vegetables, no Ragu for the Krick family. She loved to bake Christmas cookies and special treats like fudge. There are family recipes for fruitcake and boiled custard. Family tradition called for the boiled custard to be cooled by placing the pot in the snow. She liked to play the piano that was given to her as a little girl. Howard and Zoa became members of the Quaker Church in Detroit. She was the pianist and accompanied her daughter Barbara as Barbara led the congregation in singing church hymns. At home, she and her daughter Nancy played duets and would crack up laughing when they made mistakes. She was delighted to take Nancy to a concert of Arthur Rubinstein.Zoa enrolled her children in various arts training, and she never missed a chance to attend professional theater and musical productions. But she also went eagerly to her children and grandchildren,'s recitals, sports events, plays and performances. George was very shy as a little boy and hid behind his mother,'s skirts.When he was older, Zoa put up with his boyish pranks. One day she was in her kitchen when there was a very loud explosion. George and his friend Peter had used a firecracker to blow up a just completed battleship model that was floating in the basement washtub. Zoa was very tolerant of George,'s study of biology, even the preserved cat that George left under his bed when he wasn,'t dissecting it. She didn,'t even mind the jars of cow eyes or fetal pigs that decorated George,'s room. Zoa was an active member and officer of the Ladies,' Auxiliary Group of the Friends Quaker Church in Detroit, and later at the Mason Methodist Church in Tacoma. They studied the Bible, raised money for the church by hosting bake and craft sales, and visited those in the community who were ill.Throughout her married life she cared for elderly friends and relatives. This is a quality that was preserved in the occupations of all three of her children.She was so happy that she had raised three wonderful children and was very proud of them. She said herself that she had done a good job raising them! After raising their children, celebrating many family occasions, sorting, letting go, re-sorting, and packing, Zoa and Howard left their house on Sussex Ave. after 27 years. Howard retired in 1980 and they made the cross country move to Tacoma, Washington, in 1984 to live close to George and Pat and their children. They liked the idea of not shoveling snow! Howard and Zoa lived in an apartment on Proctor St. for many years, sharing George and Pat,'s family life and enjoying visits from the rest of the family. They explored many countries and particularly enjoyed their travels to Europe, Nepal, India, Russia, Scandinavia and Hawaii. Zoa rode on an elephant and saw the Taj Mahal. Zoa kept a detailed journal of all of these adventures. As the family grew to include 3 granddaughters, 3 grandsons, and 2 great grandchildren, Zoa loved to hear stories about them all. These stories brought her great joy. She had quite a collection of family photos of all those she loved and those who loved her. During the last years of her life, Zoa shared an apartment with Howard in an assisted living community. Her caregivers appreciated her patience and endurance. All who knew her appreciated her quiet strength.
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