Alice Margaret Vogt

Alice Margaret (Gray) Vogt was born to Clarence and Grace Gray on November 27th 1922. She left this life to go to heaven on September 15th at 10:45 pm. She was 101 years and only 2 &1/2 months shy of 102. She was the 2nd of 15 children. She was born in Attica Kansas. Her family (parents and 3 bothers) moved to Aurora Missouri with her grandparents and two of Alice's uncles. Clarence and Grace Gray and family eventually moved to a 40-acre farm north of Aurora.

She attended a one-room schoolhouse through 8th grade. She and her brother Bill were walking home from school one day and she grabbed him and threw him in the ditch and proceeded to whoop him. Bill kept asking him "why are you whooping me Alice" and she kept asking him "Am I whooping you Bill?". After several minutes, Bill finally said "Yes Alice you're whooping me". She jumped up and answered, "Then don't be telling those kids at school, I can't whoop you".

Being from such a large family and growing up during the depression, needless to say- they had no luxuries, but they had cousins who would send them hand me downs. In one of those boxes was a pair of high-heeled shoes. Alice walked all the way to school on the old unpaved Sandridge road in those high­ heeled shoes as her brothers made fun of her. When it was time for recess, everyone was playing baseball and as Alice got up to bat everyone was laughing and telling her she can't run in those shoes. THAT made her mad. She hit that ball with all her might into the woods out of sight and as she told the story, she didn't have to run, she sashayed around those bases in her high heeled shoes.

Like my uncle has always said "We weren't poor, we just didn't have anything". My Mom always said "We didn't have any toys, we had to make our own fun" and that they did.

With that many kids, when Alice's parents went to town, she and her brother Bill had to watch the younger kids. It was butcher time and Bill and Alice spotted those hog heads hanging in the shed and decided to have some fun. Her sister Donna told the story always starting with "It was the most terrifying day of my life" followed by infectious laughter. Bill and Alice picked up those hog heads and proceeded to hold them up like masks and chase the kids around the house with them. Family reunions were so much fun just listening to the many stories.

She was tough, she was determined, she was fun loving, and she was a hard worker. Needless to say, with that many siblings Alice spent her day helping with the garden, washing clothes, doing dishes, and watching kids as well as many other chores and duties. She has often said the best day in her life as a child was when her dad brought home that gas powered wringer wash machine, before that Grandma and she washed on a washboard. She learned how to work and worked hard the rest of her life. Alice was many things, but lazy was not on the list.

She started working at the age of 13 in a mattress factory, sewing mattress tops, then walked across the street to the city

hall building to make men's dress shirts. At the age of 16 she worked at a cap factory. Being a family of 15 kids, she had never eaten in a restaurant so after giving her mother the money she saved back a little and treated herself to a pimento cheese sandwich and a coke sitting in the diner at the end of the bar in front of the big glass window so people could see that she was eating out.

At the age of 19, Alice took a train to Kansas City, Kansas to work at North American Aviation during WWII. They put waist guns on B25 bombers. She was a little biddy thing, small enough to crawl back in the tail of the plane and hold a buck bar to flatten the rivets as they came through the metal. She made friends easily and met two sisters who talked about their cousin who was in the Army and wanted her to meet him, his name was Ossie. After the war was over Alice met Ossie and even though she had always said she would NEVER get married and NEVER have children, they were soon happily married. Alice worked for Elko Printing and walked the picket line for better wages for women.

Alice had cooked since she was a small child and Ossie LOVED her many wonderful dishes she prepared: fried chicken, chicken and noodles and pies to name a few. The only problem was she was used to cooking for a LARGE family but she finally learned to cook for two, then five and a few extra.

Alice (Mom) was generous. She donated her time and energy in many places. When I was young, she made men's robes for

General Hospital downtown KCMo. Over the years, she made lap quilts for nursing homes. She made quilts for "restart" a program to help people starting over. At Calvary Lutheran, she was part of a group that made hundreds of quilts. She sewed together quilt blocks and then sewed and bound the back and binding. The proceeds went to a mission program and the ones not sold were donated. In her 90s she made 106 dresses for the 11Dress a Girl Around the World" program. She continued making little girl dresses for other groups that provided hearing aids in 3rd world countries. When our people at Our Redeemer Lutheran Church decided to do their own cleaning at Church Mom volunteered to clean the bathrooms. She referred to herself as "the Latrine Queen" She volunteered at church to

help with the Free clothing store. She was also on the alter guild for many years, not only changing and washing the alter linens but also making many of them as well. She also washed and set up the communion trays. She took a couple of blind friends to church on Sundays for years. She also took them to meetings and Blind association conventions. After I was in college, my roommate had been the driver for her parents who were sight impaired and was no longer living at home, so my mother took them to do errands and they became close friends.

Alice had a great sense of humor. She was witty, clever, and fun loving. Growing up with Alice as your mother and Ossie as your Dad there was always laughter in our home. When we were young, we lived at 504 Norton. Joyce had the bedroom upstairs which was called a sun porch because it had windows around 3

sides. She once had a slumber party with several of her grade school girlfriends. When Joyce's friend Margie came downstairs for a drink Mom asked her if she wanted to scare them. She of course said Yes. So, Mom put Margie on her shoulders and gave her a broom to scrape across the screens on the windows. It wasn't long before those girls were all in Dad's bedroom squealing about the ghost. He found Margie and Mom laughing about their prank. We have many slumber party stories, and my daughter has slumber party stories about her grandma being the life of the party.

Joyce tended to always miss curfew so one night as Joyce was sneaking up the steps to the 2nd floor Mom was waiting for her. Joyce of course didn't turn on the lights. Mom was on all fours and the second Joyce's bare legs hit that top step; Mom shook that full head of hair on Joyce's bare legs. Joyce screamed, ran in and jumped in bed with Dad as Mom rolled on the floor laughing. We have soo many stories about her pranks and her sense of humor.

Alice's children's friends were often there when it was meal time (on purpose) to have some of her tasty meals. Everything was yummy, but OH THE PIES!!! You could look at the side of a slice of pie and see all the layers in the crust. At church dinners, no left-over pieces of pie were ever brought home by Alice. And after learning which were whose favorites, she would make a pie to send home for their Birthday or just because it was their favorite. Joyce, Meg and I were determined to learn how to make her crust. So one day we asked for a pie making lesson. She proceeded to scoop up a hand full of flour into her bowl, we scooped it into a measuring cup to measure how much was in her "scoop". Then she threw some more in her bowl. Then there was a pinch of this and a little of this and that which we meticulously measured as Meg wrote down the recipe. We were all three confident and feeling excited that we were going to make Mom's pies. But then as she started mixing the ingredients with her hands, she said "When it feels like this..".

We all asked when it feels like WHAT? She answered like THIS. We all felt it, not a clue what she meant. Meg and I both make pies, but neither of us perfected Mom's crust and I don't know that Joyce even tried. We still wonder what "THIS" feels like.

WE three kids had a WONDERFUL LIFE! Mom had always worked, taking in sewing, laundry, ironing and then once Dan was in school she returned to the garment industry. When our parents wanted us to have piano lessons, she took on more sewing. When I needed braces, she took on more sewing.

In 1969 a drunk liquor salesman ran a red light and broadsided the truck my Dad was driving. He was killed instantly. Our lives changed dramatically. It was hard the first few years, but Mom met the challenge in the only way she knew how she worked harder.

Alice (Mom) was generous. She was a professional seamstress. She had worked in the garment industry since she was young.

Sewing was a big part of her life. She made all our clothes. Her last job was working for Youthcraft Suits and Coats. Mom had worked piece work for many years and when my Dad died the owner asked her to become the supervisor because this would be a better paying job. She had 40 plus girls under her. Most were black, Mexican, Italian, Japanese to name a few as well as other European immigrants. Alice (Mom) remained friends with these women long after Youthcraft closed. We 3 kids grew up in a home where acceptance of all people, all races was just the way it was.

At Youthcraft you had a designer, a pattern making and then

with the pattern maker and designer what changes need to be made. You can find a chapter on Alice (Mom) in a book called "Hanging by a Thread" about the garment industry in KCMO.

Alice (Mom) made soo many friends over the years. Most she has outlived, she always has said it was a good thing she also had friends younger than her, because most her age are gone. She was one of 15 kids and had 42 nieces and nephews just counting the ones on her side of the family. She babysat them when a younger sibling was born and their Mom was in the hospital or anytime the parents needed a sister. She made special things for many of them that they kept and cherished the item and or the memory. She certainly loved her 14 nieces and nephew on my Dad's side of the family, too. Alice was one

who attended church every Sunday until she was unable. Her faith was strong, when I told her I would be happy to drive her to church at Immanuel Lutheran church in KCMO she told me, I don't think so. I talk to God every day he knows where I am.

Her life was hard. She persevered. Her life was one of sacrifice and she was generous. She loved her family, her friends and adored her grandchildren and great grandchildren. My mother was strict but always loving. She many times told me she loved me but didn't like me at that given moment. I knew every minute of my life I was loved unconditionally.

She is survived by 3 biological children Joyce Vogt, Gloria Roach and Dan Vogt. By her daughter in law Meg Vogt and son in law

Jerry Roach who she refused to call in laws, they were also her children. Her daughter Esther Porres (who was an AFS student in our home,) which she loved, which she also considered her daughter, (who returns to home in KC every five years to visit "Mom".) Four grandchildren: Amie (Ryan), Matt (Jenna), Grace (Dustin), Sara (Wyeth) One step granddaughter Ansley, 6 great grandchildren: Nakos, Evan, Ethan, Ben, Shepherd Oswald and Zoey Margaret. She is survived by 2 brothers Bruce Gray (Rosemary) and Braxton Gray (Karen). Three sisters Lavona (Mike), Barbara and Beverly (Ben). Many nieces, nephews, great nieces and nephews, and great, great nieces and nephews. Two sisters-in-laws Damarus and Shirley; and one brother-in-law Bill McClure.

She was preceded in death by her husband Oswald (Ossie) Vogt, her parents Clarence and Grace Gray. 9 brothers and sisters: Arnold (Ruth Pauline), Bill (Reitha), Ray (Rosemary), Max (Marilyn), Shirley (Lloyd Enke), Laverne, Donna, Jim and Marlin.

Visitation will be at one o'clock on Saturday at Floral Hills Cemetery at 7000 Blue Ridge Blvd KCMo 64133, Funeral will follow at 2pm and graveside service will follow.

Her life was an amazing story. I could have written a book, and maybe one day I will. But I hope these few stories will remind you of who she was and how she lived her life. I have no doubt she's in heaven- probably making pie.