[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 102 (Tuesday, June 19, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E863]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                HONORING THE LIFE OF MARGUERITE FREEMAN

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. DEREK KILMER

                             of washington

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 19, 2018

  Mr. KILMER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Marguerite 
Freeman of Bainbridge Island, Washington, who passed away on Monday, 
June 18, 2018.
   Marge--as she was known to her friends--lived an eventful life. As 
she said in her memoir, ``I've tasted the pioneers' hardships'' and 
``moved into the 21st century and saw all the changes, a complex 
technological future . . .''
   Born into a family of Swedish and Danish immigrants who homesteaded 
in Birka, North Dakota, she was the seventh of Arthur and Elda 
Leidholm's nine children. She recalled the Great Depression, the hope 
of the New Deal, including her older brothers enlisting in the Civilian 
Conservation Corps, and the perseverance of farmers. As she said, ``My 
parents' courage and determination was passed on to us and we were 
taught to never be afraid of failure but work hard at what we believed 
in, to be honest and true to ourselves.''
   And while she often cited Ronald Reagan's adage that ``we were poor, 
but we didn't know it,'' from her very first vote, in 1944, to her 
last, she was a proud FDR Democrat.
   World War II was a turning point in Marge's life. She followed her 
brothers west to Seattle. There she joined the war effort, earning 67 
cents an hour as a ``Rosie the Riveter'' on the B-17 production line 
for Boeing. There, too, she met her future husband, Donald Freeman, on 
leave from the USS Indiana stationed in Bremerton. They were married on 
July 20, 1946 at Gethsemane Lutheran Church in Seattle. On that day, in 
a way, she also joined the Navy.
   They travelled the country and the world with a growing family of 
three boys. It was not until Don's retirement that they truly found a 
home, settling on Bainbridge Island. Marge became an integral part of 
our community, volunteering at her beloved Bethany Lutheran Church and 
the local Helpline House. Her deep faith and love permeated all she 
did.
   The story of Marguerite Freeman is a life of service; service to 
God; service to her country; service to her family; and service to her 
community.
   Her memory and her spirit live on in her friends and family. Today, 
our thoughts are with them: her sons Terry, Mark, and Don, her six 
grandchildren and her nine great-grandchildren.
   Mr. Speaker, today, we remember Marguerite Freeman.

                          ____________________