I arrived in Stevensville in the gorgeous Bitteroot Valley on Thursday to visit my stepmother Sue…I carried lots of emotion since my dad wouldn’t be there. My father Duane lived in Montana for his last 20 years and he just loved it here. Having grown up in Minnesota enjoying the great outdoors, the Montana beauty/lifestyle was a welcome change from NJ/NYC. Chris’ and my college soccer teammates referred to him as “Big Thor”. It suited him well because of his 6’3” stature and former football player frame. We owe my father a tremendous amount of credit for instilling his professional commitment and work ethic. He was also still hitting the local gym for workouts and socializing! We are grateful for our wonderful family celebration in Montana for his 90th birthday over Labor Day weekend. At the end of October, Chris “sent” me a message to not wait to visit in the spring. I was in Montana four days later. My dad and I took great pleasure researching names of family ancestors for the first, pending great grandchild, including “Mons” for a boy and “Almina Henrietta Garadina Hermine” (real relative) for a girl. My niece Chelsea and her husband Ben chose “Clara”…smart move! We lost my dad less three weeks later after my timely visit. He led a full, rewarding life and Big Thor is now in just a different version of “Big Sky Country”. Anecdotally, our Norwegian name Thorsheim translates to “house of Thor, the Norse god of thunder, lightning, war…” etc. Chris and I both carried the “Thor” nickname, but when I arrived at Susquehanna I was “Little Thor”. Thankfully, I shook the “little” portion sophomore year after Chris graduated. The “Little Thor Tour” would NOT have been cool!
