'Marna's Milkweed' began innocently enough with two little boys and their love of critters and bugs, and their great grandmother Marna's love of life and all it has to offer. In 2015, Noah (4) and Ethan (2) discovered caterpillars on the milkweed in their backyard. They spent the summer collecting, raising, and finally releasing the bright orange and black butterflies back into the world. The next spring, as the milkweed grew, they spotted tiny eggs on the leaves. Now they could watch the whole transformation from tiny hatchling, to chrysalis, and eventually the beautiful monarch that emerged to spread it's wings and flutter away. By mid June, they had quite a collection of caterpillars in various sizes, and some that were transforming into butterflies.

 

On June 13th, three days before her 82nd birthday, Marna began a transformation of her own. She developed meningitis, and the brain surgery to stop the infection left her partially paralyzed. The once active, independent, giving woman was now confined to a wheelchair and had to rely on her family for all of her daily needs. She handled all of this with grace, never complaining or feeling sorry for herself. One thing she truly missed was being outside taking care of her flowers, listening to the birds sing and watching the butterflies flutter around the yard. Caterpillar cages were placed around the house, so she could still enjoy nature up close. She loved watching the process as much as the little boys!

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One day she asked if anyone had checked her milkweed. Sure enough, a little patch of milkweed was found in her flower garden, right where she said it would be. And yes, there were eggs! Thanks to Marna allowing those few stray milkweed plants to have a spot in her garden, they have continued to flourish and spread throughout the yard. In fact, they are doing so well, that we have gone from releasing dozens of monarchs, to having enough milkweed to raise and release hundreds each year. 

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In June 2021, 5 years after her life changing bout with meningitis, Marna started hospice care at home. Realizing her journey was coming to an end, she asked if we could celebrate her upcoming birthday by putting up the Christmas tree, with gifts underneath. Christmas was her favorite! She loved the fun and excitment of having all her kids, grandkids, and great grandkids and anyone that didn't have a place to go, come home for the annual Christmas Eve celebration. On June 16th, the tree was decorated with her beloved red cardinals, and a gift for everyone. Surrounded by family, and several cages crawling with caterpillars, her final birthday was celebrated by singing 'Happy Birthday' and 'We Wish You a Merry Christmas.' Somehow, during all the celebrating, a caterpillar must have escaped. Two days later, a chrysalis was spotted hanging from the ceiling above her bed. The empty shell from the emerged monarch still hangs there in memory of the first annual 'Christmas in June' which is celebrated every June 16th. If we are lucky, some monarchs have hatched that day, so we can release them while we sing 'Happy Birthday.'

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Sadly, on June 20th, with her husband Ed sitting in the chair next to her (As he had done every day for the past five years) Marna took her last breath and received her angel wings to begin her heavenly journey. 

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We have missed and thought about our wonderful mother/grandmother/great grandmother ever since. By starting Marna's Milkweed, we have been able to keep her memory alive and do something that we truly think she would be proud of.