Clara (Barstad) Anderson
Born: February 20, 1921 Died: June 19, 2015
Clara was born at home on the twentieth of February, 1921, and died Friday, June 19, 2015 of dementia-related causes. She was the sixth child of Tov Barstad and Birgit (Myregard) Barstad. Clara's birth was complicated because she was born at home, she was breach, her mother was 44, and the doctor could not be found! Finally, after her father made a second trip to town (10 miles away), he returned with the doctor who saved the day. A neighbor lady was so sure that Birgit would not live she offered to take little Clara to raise. But Birgit said, "I'm not dead yet," and that was the end of that. Birgit lived for another 50 years.
Clara was never given a middle name, and was baptized as Clara Barstad, July 21, 1921 at Highland Lutheran Church, by A. H. Sivdahl, Pastor. She was raised on the family farm in the highlands northwest of Glasgow, MT. Tov and Birgit both were immigrants from Norway who settled on free land offered by the government. They later expanded their property by purchasing a neighbor's farm that bordered their land. Tov was a carpenter who built homes in the area and helped build the Highland Lutheran Church (also making the altar, duplicating one he had previously built for his church in Telemark) on land that he and Birgit donated. He also raised team-horses, and farmed. The Church and Badger School were the social centers for the community, and within two miles of the farm. Birgit was a teacher in Norway before coming to the US, but a stay-at-home mother on the Glasgow farm. Birgit was an excellent seamstress and Clara often told the story of when Tov died unexpectedly, Birgit sewed black dresses for all five of her girls in the little time before the funeral.
Chester Earl Anderson, also of Glasgow MT, was the love of Clara's life. They were both confirmed (in different years) at Highland Lutheran Church with Pastor Harold Siqueland officiating. They met when she was still in high school and married soon after she graduated. Like so many young people from the drought stricken plains they decided to go west. WW II was raging, and there were plentiful jobs advertised in the Puget Sound area of Washington State. Clara's sister and brother-in-law, Bertha and Harold Schwenke, had already moved there. So had Chet's mother, Ellen, and sister Ruth. So Chet and Clara packed up the car with their few belongings and drove west on Highway 2 and over Stevens Pass, with poorly operating brakes on their car!
They lived with Chet's Mother in Tacoma WA, but weren't there very long, before Chet was pulled into the war in Europe. A few brothers-in-law went to the war in Europe too, while others went into the Pacific arena. During the war Clara and her sisters were often together (traveling from state to state) to help each other with their growing families. Chet and his brothers-in-law all survived the war. After the war Chet and Clara bought a house in Tacoma WA, and Chet started his own business (Rainier Realty). The business was growing when he died unexpectedly leaving Clara with three children: Earl Mathias, Charles Wayne and Sonja Marlis. At that point, in 1949, Clara sold the house and moved in with Bertha and Harold Schwenke, in the Magnolia district of Seattle, WA, where Harold was a carpenter after the war. Clara worked for Van de Camps and saved her money for her own home, which she was able to purchase two years later in 1951.
For the next 52 years Clara lived in her home on 46th Avenue SW, just three blocks from First Lutheran Church of West Seattle. She was an active member of First Lutheran Church for the rest of her life. She worked at Foodland, Value Mart, Seattle Lighting and her last job was with Pay & Save in Westwood Village where she worked for 20 + years and held a management position which was unusual for a woman in those years. In 2002 Clara sold her home, and moved in with her daughter, later moving to Alaska House, and then to Providence Mt. St. Vincent Retirement Home, where she was cared for with loving devotion. Clara enjoyed her family, friends, dancing, card games, bowling, yard work, and crocheting. She got her driver's license and bought a car when she was 42! She is survived by her three children, Matt, Chuck (Linda) and Sonja (Jose) Clemente, with many grandchildren, great grandchildren, one great-great-grandchild, a sister-in-law, Ruth Nemchik of Tacoma and numerous nieces and nephews. She will be sorely missed.
A Funeral Service will be held on Saturday, July 18, 2015 at 11 am at First Lutheran Church of West Seattle, 4105 California Avenue S.W., Seattle, WA, 98116. Memorials to First Lutheran Church of West Seattle.