Thoughts and Recollections About Hannah McGuire
Hannah McGuire was my aunt and my god-mother.
Even though she was over 101 years old, I am still surprised that Aunt Hannah is gone. She must have decided, or at least agreed with God, that it was time to go. I believe that she could have gone on for years if that is what she decided. In life, Hannah McGuire was a force on the world; she did not take life lying down. She was not a victim; she would not allow that. This attitude was from her family and most, if not all, of her siblings shared this trait. She was a cold, hard realist without being a cold, hard person. On the contrary, she was a very warm, caring and generous person most certainly to her family.
The fact is that Hannah McGuire was frugal and interested in value. She would drive across town to save a few cents on a roll of paper towels and would stock up when she found a good deal. When she could, she would go out early to get fresh berries during the summer; if we were staying with her, she would serve us up bowls with sour cream and a little sugar. She spent her money carefully getting the best for the least. She was frugal and maybe even cheap when it came to her own needs. One of the reasons she was cheap with herself was so that she had more to give to her family; this was important to her and was a continuous theme in our discussions.
Hannah McGuire was a man’s woman. She enjoyed playing cards (for a little bit of money). She loved going to Finger Lakes race track and attended a Kentucky Derby with Uncle Mac. They vacationed in Cuba when you could still go there. One of her very favorite drinks was rum, coke and lime, and she taught me to fix it just right. She also enjoyed good Champaign, Crown Royal, Asti Spumante, cheap cold duck and Miller High Life. While she enjoyed all kinds of food, I think her favorites were Ukrainian dishes which she could make superbly, and when she found it more difficult to cook would obtain at her church. Aunt Hannah was a great cook, though; the precision with which she moved through the kitchen was something to see.
To a great extent, Hannah McGuire was a self-made woman. As far as I know, she was not involved in Uncle Mac’s businesses before he died. He was a man of great presence and was the leader of his partnerships. When he died, his partners thought that Aunt Hannah was going to be a lamb and a timid woman. No such luck. Instead, she quickly learned the business and was a force to be contended with in her own right. All her life, she had constantly been learning starting with reading the dictionary. She had training in nursing and bookkeeping early on. Those more formal studies came to an end when she was needed by her family, but she kept studing and learning on her own. Her knowledge was very broad and her ability to reason was excellent. On a related point, I put her in the class of my Father: She was not always right, but if you went against her judgment and advice, you needed to tread carefully so as not to hurt yourself.
Hannah was also a woman with a great sense of humor. Her humor was never mean and she would laugh at herself easily. That is one of the reasons that being with her was so enjoyable. More often than not, you would find yourself laughing almost hysterically with her and whoever else was around. I’ll always remember that she liked to get clobbered fish every Friday. She much preferred that to traditional battered fish 
Aunt Hannah was not perfect. She felt hurt at times, sometimes because of things that happened and sometimes through misunderstandings. She felt like she was being used for her money at times and she was; other times she had issues with her family. Occasionally, in response, she could be less than charitable; But, this was not often and tended to be short lived. When all was said and done, when she was still herself, her primary concern was to not be thought of badly after her death. Her family was important to her. Above all else, she both wanted to take care of her family, and to be loved and remembered fondly by those same people after she was gone.
I know that she is and will be remembered fondly and with love by my sons, Alex and Max. She was a big part of their lives and they are fortunate to have many memories of her.
I know that I loved my Aunt Hannah and have a lifetime of recollections. Even during these last few years when she thought I was my father, was confused over who was living and who was dead, and no longer was the person who had taught me so much and always believed in me, it was impossible not to love and respect this remarkable woman. So, without any doubt on my part, I believe she was successful in life and successful in death.
I will never forget her.
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