Thursday, March 28, 2024

Obituary of Lenore Mulford

Name of Deceased Lenore Mulford
Age
Date of Death 02/28/2016
Date of Birth 08/05/1918
Funeral Home Dean K. Wetzler Funeral Home, Milesburg

Finally at rest after a long life rich with extended family, many friends, vivacious laughter, and gifted hands and heart is Nora Mulford, beloved mother, grandmother, and great grandmother.

Nora, known as Nawn in her childhood, was born in Blue Anchor, New Jersey, August 5, 1918, to Anna Laccavarra DiGirolamo (1888-1955) and her husband, Carmen (sometimes spelled Carmine, 1884-1957). Nora loved the family farm that she had to leave behind when her father moved the family to the city of Philadelphia. There, Nora’s intellect blossomed among the books in the library she happily visited every Saturday. By the time she was in her late teens, her charming ways – she was both vivacious and shy at the same time – caught the eye of many a would-be beau. After a courtship contested by two admirers, Nora married Richard Lott Mulford (1910-1993) in 1939 and settled with him in the Drexel Hill area of the city.

The young couple moved a few times as they created a family, and the changes must have been a challenge for Nora, whose native intelligence was insufficiently tasked by learning how to cook, clean house, and become a wife and mother – all things she eventually embraced after a rough start during the war years that informed their adult lives as members of the greatest generation. As the wife of a Navy man, Nora had to move to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where Richard entered into officer training at Harvard University, leaving behind everything and everyone she knew. She was happy to return to Philadelphia eventually, where Richard served the Philadelphia Navy Yard. They remained in Philadelphia after the war, but they eventually settled in northeastern Pennsylvania, where they raised their four daughters, played many a hand of bridge, sailed local lakes, and developed many lasting friendships. Nora retained her love of reading throughout her life. Small but cheerful, spirited (indeed, tenacious) in her views but generous in her sentiments, Nora possessed culinary skills in sweet yeast breads that were unsurpassed, as were her abilities in the arts of sewing, tailoring, game-playing, card-playing, and laughing.

Her infectious laugh, her quick wit and high intelligence, her willingness to lend a hand – these are the things most memorable about Nora. She was a devoted friend and made lasting relationships wherever she went. Whether she was playing bridge or London Rummy, puzzling through the crossword or the daily jumble, stitching yet another hem on a dress or knitting a sweater, making sour cream twists, apple pie, or cheesecake, Nora put all of her vast array of skills to work, every time, tirelessly and without complaint. She sewed hats, skirts, shirts, neckties, coats, pants, and wedding gowns. She read every book she could get her hands on, and more, supporting leaders in her favorite political party. She loved Joe Paterno and Penn State football. She loved welcoming each new grandchild to the family fold, and by the time her grandchildren Jenny and Andy were born, she was finally free of raising her own daughters and could enjoy caring for her grandchildren on occasion. She likewise had great fun attending many a great-grandchild’s event in her later years in Waverly, Pennsylvania, where she watched her great-grandchildren Gino, Dominica, and Chessa grow up. Nora loved her family and friends, and she loved life.

Nora leaves behind four daughters and their extended families, including many grandchildren and great-grandchildren: Irene Lehmann, Nora’s first daughter, enjoys with her husband Ted Lehmann many different activities, especially bluegrass music and the bands that perform it. Irene and Ted are parents of two sons: Richard Lehmann, whose children are Alexander and Peter; and Alexander Lehmann, married to Sandra Rog Lehmann, whose children are Anna and Luke. Nora’s second daughter, Ellen Clendenning, took her mother’s skills in sewing to a new level, creating in northeastern Pennsylvania her own successful draper’s business, which she still owns. Her longtime partner is Jerry Fallas. Ellen’s children are William Clendenning, who is married to Daryl Merenich Clendenning, and father of Douglas and Cole; Heather Clendenning, mother of Gino, Dominica, and Franchessa Bianconi; and Sharon Clendenning Bove, married to John Bove, whose children are Nicholas, Roman, and Stella. Nora’s third daughter, Marjorie Gardner, an accomplished gardener and once a high school guidance counselor, has fully embraced the métier of her husband, John Gardner, a master photographer, in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. Their children are Jennifer Batchelor, who is married to John Hosey; Andrew Batchelor, husband of Stephanie Carter Batchelor, father of Noah and Leah; Benjamin Gardner; and Maggie Gardner. Nora has resided for the last nine years in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, with her last daughter, Carla Mulford Conklin, and her son-in-law, Ted, who in 2008 invited Nora into the old house, the Wren’s Nest, which he has restored as his life’s contribution to the history of the town. As Carla Mulford, her last daughter is a literary historian and Penn State professor. Carla was the daughter who embraced Nora’s perpetual inquisitiveness and bookishness.

During her time in Bellefonte, Nora made some wonderful new friends, all of whom helped her comfortably navigate her last passage through life, including Penny Zimmerman, Kim Albright, Patty Gaughan, Rosemary Shaner, Elaine Sterrett, Ruth Carr, and Lori Miller.

Nora used to say she didn’t like change, but she managed to live a life showing significant adaptability, curiosity, joy (especially in labor, whatever the task), and goodwill, even in the more recent years, when she faced the increasing onset of Alzheimer’s disease. In her last half-year, she awoke each day to the new recognition that she could not use her right arm and leg and could no longer stand up. Even so, abundantly so, she met each day with a smile, in cheerful gratitude and love for all who helped make her life better. Would that each one of us might reach an end so gracefully.

Nora’s life will be celebrated in Clarks Green, Pennsylvania, sometime in the spring, and her interment will be at the convenience of the family. The family requests that if you would like to do something to honor Nora's memory, please hug your family and your pets, and feed the birds near you. If you’d like to do something more, perhaps you’d consider joining your local Alzheimer’s Association for a Walk to End Alzheimer’s, or donate to their organization in some other way. If you would prefer to honor Nora’s love for wildlife and birds, please watch the live feeder cams available online via the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, as she did in her last days, or participate in the FeederWatch project organized by the Cornell Lab.

Arrangements are under the direction of the Dean K. Wetzler Funeral Home, Milesburg, Pa. where an online condolence may be made at www.deankwetzlerfuneralhome.com.