LGBT Families…it’s not over

I am responding to Mombian’s request to blog for LGBT families today!

Most of you who know me are aware that 30 years ago my mixed orientation marriage dissolved when my then-husband came out. Our children were 5 and 8. But my identity as an ally and LGBT family member continues, as long as I have children and grandchildren, and someday perhaps, great grandchildren. It has been important to support my children in their relationship with their father and his partner, and now my grandson, who has always known he has two grandpas in the Midwest.

It is cute when a three year old says, “Gwampa, I called you yesterday and you weren’t home, and so I talked with Gwampa!” But how cute or easy is it for a sixteen year old when his grandpas travel halfway across the country for a visit and attend a picnic with the LaCrosse team? We don’t know. We have tried to make it possible to have a conversation about having a gay grandfather, but all attempts are met with “no problem.”

This is basically what my children told me when they were growing up. Now they are quite a bit more open about challenges they faced that they didn’t want to share with us when they were teens. Perhaps it will be a decade or more before my grandson wants to talk about feelings he may have about his family. In any event, I will continue to let him know the door is open for a conversation.  And I’ll make sure he always knows he has an ally in his Gram.

Mike Frame 1940-2008 Peace Corps Volunteer Extraordinaire

The superior man is modest in his speech, but exceeds in his actions. — Confucius

Michael Warren Frame, age 67, of Northfield and Pokhara, Nepal, died on Friday, May 23, 2008, after a seven-year battle with Multiple Myeloma.

Mike was born on Oct. 28, 1940, in Northfield, to William Gibson Frame and Minnie Errington Frame. He graduated from Northfield High School and Carleton College and did post-graduate work in agricultural economics at the University of Minnesota. From 1962–1969 he served two terms as a Peace Corps volunteer and worked for U.S. AID in agriculture in Nepal. For the next nine years he farmed at Bubbling Springs Farm near Menomonie, Wis., and did Peace Corps training. His love for Nepal brought him back as an associate Peace Corps director for Rural Development from 1980–1985.

In 1988, Mike opened the world-famous restaurant, Mike’s Breakfast, in Kathmandu, Nepal, where it has been popular with locals and tourists for the past 20 years. In 1997 he opened Hotel Fewa and Mike’s Restaurant in Pokhara which has become a destination for trekkers and travelers. Mike received the Distinguished Achievement Award from Carleton College in 2007 for his work in Nepal. He was a cook, gardener, farmer, builder and author of ”Mike’s Breakfast: Cooking in Nepal and Then Some.” Through his generosity and outreach he has influenced and changed the lives of numerous people. We will miss his rare sense of humor.

Mike is survived by his sister, Mary Ellen Frame of Northfield; brothers, William E. (Sandy) Frame of Pine Island, Minn., and David M. (Claire) Frame of Albert Lea, Minn.; five nieces and three nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents. 

A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, May 31, 2008, at the United Church of Christ, 300 Union St. In Nepal, there will be a Bhuddist Puja all day Wednesday, May 28, and a memorial gathering on Saturday, May 31, at Mike’s Breakfast in Kathmandu.

Funeral arrangements by the Bierman Funeral Home.

Several classmates from the Class of ‘62 will be able to attend the service. 

 

mother’s day

This blog was a Mother’s Day gift from A and her sweetie, S. I have not been certain I really wanted a blog, but now I am intrigued! We’ll see! I already stay up way past my bedtime in my role as Google-geek.