On July 22, 1941 in Montgomery County, Maryland, Dorothy Anderson was brought into the  world by her mother and father, Ruby and Kermit Anderson. Dorothy Anderson is now known to me as Grandmum.
 She had very interesting moments in her early years. She went to public schools like most children do and she  walked to get there and other places. Grandmum always had many pets. She had a dog and a flying squirrel that died because her dad forgot to put the  lid on the  toilet down and the  squirrel flew in to get a drink and drowned.Grandmum’s favorite Vacation was going to her grandfather’s house on his farm. Grandmum would eat fruit from the apple and cherry trees and then hunt for crawfish in his stream.
              Grandmum also had interesting moments as a teen. Grandmum still went to public schools such as Pattterson High school. She listened to music and danced with her friends on her free time . A humorous experience she can remember is that she picked on her younger brothers, and when they got older, they ganged up on her and to stop them, she said they broke her back. Grandmum dated several people just as most of her friends did too. On her spare time, she danced, listened to music, watched Elvis Presley on TV, and would skate. An embarrassing moment that happened to her was when she went to school and decided to play hooky with other friends. Grandmum went through the front door of the school and then out the  back door and the Truant officer caught her. As she says,” Don’t do anything you would be ashamed to tell your parents.” Grandmum would scrub people’s marble steps with a bucket of water and a can of Ajax. If she would do a good job cleaning them, she would get a quarter, which was a lot back then. She wore tight sweaters with scarves that she wore around her neck and big thick bobby socks. Grandmum always had the problem of taking her younger brothers everywhere she had to go. She still had dogs at that time.
         Grandmum also had interesting moments in her later years. Right now, Grandmum is thinking about retiring. She will be able to retire in 2 years and is looking forward to it. In her early twenties, Grandmum worked for the C. &. P. Telephone Company and then did a lot of factory work. Now, Grandmum is working at Bethlehem Steel Company as a crane operator and has been one for the last 28 years. She had a cyst on her spine and it would swell up and she couldn’t stand up straight. Grandmum would have to walk around bent over and that lasted for a couple years until doctors could help her out. Grandmum loved to do things with her family whenever she could. She had picnics and cookouts with her family and also went with them to the beach. On holidays they all had family gatherings. Grandmum has always lived in a city row home but now she lives in a beautiful home in Glen Burnie, Maryland. She is a Baptist and is proud of it. Grandmum married and had a son named Dennis Anderson and that is one of her great accomplishments. Grandmum also fought for women’s rights and participated in the marches in Virginia and Washington and was the poster girl for equal rights. Grandmum had many friends because she liked to learn about different people and their religions. Her dad was her personal hero because anything she wanted to know, he would tell her. Grandmum learned a lot of information from books she has read. “Anything you need to know, you can learn from a book.” She says. Grandmum enjoys building things like birdhouses and other decorative things and plays croquet when she can. She recalls many events which were important to her life. Grandmum saw the first the rockets go up and the first men to walk on the moon. She also got to see the wall in Germany torn down which made her happy. “ I was unfortunate to still be living when the Twin Towers fell.” She said. Grandmum loves to have pets and now she has a dog named Laney Rose, goldfish, and a hedgehog named Ms. Tilly.
         I remember swimming at her house over the summer. She would always cook a nice dinner and I would play with her dog while I was waiting. Dorothy Anderson, Grandmum, is a kind woman and I like her a lot and you would probably like her too.