Elvera Geier was the fourth child of Anton (Tony) and Ottilia (Tillie) Geier. Her siblings were Evelyn (Evie), Leroy (Lee), and Norbert (Nub). She was born in Jefferson Township, Wisconsin on April 27, 1927. Her father died when she was just months old, leaving her with the lasting gift of her nickname, Tootie, which he called her in the womb. She bore that name proudly throughout her life. Soon after her father's death, her mother moved to nearby Cashton with her four young children. Tootie contracted and survived polio as a child. It might have been the early challenges in her life that made her the tough-as-nails person she was to become.

Tootie graduated second in her class at Cashton High and attended La Crosse State Teachers College, now the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse, where she majored in math and minored in English. She taught high school math in Bangor, Onalaska, and Green Bay. On a weekend trip to Milwaukee to visit her sister, Evie, she met Tom Camp whom she married on August 25, 1956. They took up residence in Milwaukee and had three children, Ann, Mary, and Bill. In 1969, they moved to Port Washington.

After Tom died suddenly of a heart attack in 1972 leaving Tootie on her own with three children, she took a job as a para-professional in the library at Port Washington High School. She worked there until her retirement in 1992 by which time her children had all gotten through college and moved away: Ann and Mary to California, and Bill to Missouri. Once retired, she moved to La Crosse to be near her brother and sister. There she enjoyed her retirement. She loved to play cards, slot machines, and try her luck on the lottery. At her brother's nudging, she joined the Moose Lodge where she met many friends who shared a love of laughter, beer, and the local sports teams: the Green Bay Packers, the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks, and the Wisconsin Badgers.

By 2013 she had outlived her siblings and many of her friends. She moved to California near her daughter, Mary, and lived out the rest of her life.

Tootie Camp, born April 27, 1927, died July 24, 2021. Preceded in death by her parents, Tony and Tillie Geier; her husband, Tom Camp; her siblings: Evie, Leroy, and Nub Geier, and countless friends and relatives. Survived by her children: Ann (Nick) Beliaeff, Mary (Ernie) Lastra, Bill (Marsha) Camp; and her grandchildren: Eva Beliaeff; Olivia, Sophie, and Claudia Lastra; and Liam, Hayden, and Brendan Camp; and her nephew, Kim (Shirley) Camp.

Tootie will be cremated and buried near her mother, brother, and sister at Sacred Heart Cemetery in Cashton, Wisconsin at a date yet to be determined. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Alzheimer's Association in her name , Elvera 'Tootie' Camp. Other suggestions for honoring her include praying a rosary, lighting a candle, or having a mass said, raising a glass of your favorite beverage in celebration of her, or simply sharing a memory of her that makes you smile.

A TRIBUTE FROM HER DAUGHTER

Saturday, July 24, 2021

Tootie Camp died today at about 11:30 am. I was fortunate enough to be with her when she passed. God heard and answered her call as the end came quietly and peacefully. As I write this, I can still see her breathing and feel her skin. As anyone who has lost a loved one knows, I am filled with the sadness of no longer being able to hear her voice or share a smile with her. But this is not a story of sadness. This is a story of one tough-as-nails woman that I was fortunate enough to call Mom.

Tootie was the fourth child of Anton (Tony) and Ottilia (Tillie) Geier. She was born in Jefferson Township, Wisconsin on April 27, 1927. "4-27-27" she would say was the easiest birthday to remember, and for her it was because she remembered it to the end. Tony, the only male in a family of ten children had inherited the family farm. Just months after she was born, Tony died. The lasting gift he gave her was her nickname… he called her Tootie in the womb, and she bore that name proudly throughout her life. Having lost the patriarch, the farm returned to the Geier family, and Tillie moved to nearby Cashton to support and raise her four young children.

Tootie contracted and survived polio as a child, leaving her crippled with one leg paralyzed and shorter than the other. Her nearest sibling, Nub, two years older than her, was tasked with getting her around which I seem to think was by pulling her in a wagon. At seven she had surgery to allow her some control over her drop foot, enabling her to walk on her own. I believe she was always conscious of her handicap, and I know she was teased and bullied about it growing up, but she never let it stop her or even slow her down. Never.

I think it was the early challenges in her life that made her the strong-willed, feisty, determined, independent person that anyone that knew her would recognize. But that wasn't all she was. She was smart as a whip and quick to laugh. She loved to dance and sing and play games.

Tootie was the salutatorian of her graduating class at Cashton High School. The principal thought "she had too good of a brain to waste" and told her so. He was also aware of the financial hardship of the family. He arranged for her to receive a full scholarship to the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse which was then known as the La Crosse State Teachers College. There she majored in math and minored in English. Extra-curricularly, she drank Peerless beer, was rumored to have danced on the bar at the State Room, and was affectionately known as "Toots the Terror."

Her first job was teaching algebra at Bangor High School. Not much older than her students, she knew she needed to take the upper hand quickly and as legend has it, she was quite strict. One late afternoon during that first year, there was a ruckus in the hall outside her classroom. She went into the hall to check it out and found some boys cleaning basketballs in the hall bubbler. She yelled at them, "You boys go wash your balls someplace else!" High-schoolers are an easily amused lot, so she walked back into a classroom out of control. She dismissed them for the day. Small school, small town… word got out quickly and she was called to the principal's office and asked to explain. As she told the story, the principal blushed more than she did. In the end she asked him what he would have done. He sheepishly replied, "I guess I would have dismissed them too."

She later took a job teaching in Green Bay. A few hours' drive north of Milwaukee, she would often visit her sister, Evie, on the weekends. It was there that she met Tom Camp, a Milwaukee native, whom she married on August 25, 1956. They took up residence in the basement apartment of the house owned by Tom's mother, Bess, who lived in the attic. They brought their first daughter, Ann, home there. Soon after, they moved to a 2-bedroom flat closer to Tom's work. While living there, they had two more children, Mary (me) and William (Bill). Once again needing more space they bought a 3-bedroom house not too far away. Eventually, they moved 30 miles north of Milwaukee to Port Washington.

Sadly, after only 16 years of marriage, Tom died suddenly of a heart attack leaving Tootie on her own with three children. She needed a job but didn't want to have the demands teaching required while raising kids on her own, so she took a job in the library at Port Washington High School. Being at home in a high school environment from her teaching days, she got along well with everyone which allowed her to keep her finger on the pulse of what her children were up to. Whether or not she planned it that way, I have no idea. As it turned out, it was actually quite shrewd. At least for me, it kept me on the somewhat straight and narrow.

She successfully saw that all three of her children got a college education and encouraged us to spread our wings. I don't think she really planned for us to move as far away as we did; Ann and I ended up in California while Bill settled in Missouri. After she retired from the library, with her children gone and no family in the area, she moved to La Crosse to be near her brother, Nub, and sister, Evie. She settled in and I believe enjoyed her retirement. She volunteered at the nursing home where her mother, suffering from Alzheimer's, had spent her final few months. She met some friends who formed a bridge club. Tootie was also an avid sports fan well-versed on Wisconsin teams, in particular the Packers, the Brewers, and the Badgers. I'm sure she would be happy to know that the Bucks had again won the championship just days ago. With a nudge from Nub, she joined the Moose Lodge where she really found a kindred group. There she played bingo, pinochle, euchre, and slot machines. She liked Friday fish fries and just hanging out with people that laughed and joked and enjoyed each others' company. When her kids visited, she loved to take them and her grandkids there to show them off.

As is often the case in life, the good times don't last forever. She saw her brother die of cancer and her sister die of Alzheimer's. Many of her friends were also passing. It left her lonely as dementia began to creep in on her too. She spent her final years in California near me, the first four in assisted living until that level of care no longer met her needs. Four years ago, I was able to place her in a small, family-owned skilled nursing facility and was so lucky to have found it. She was quite happy there. The staff treated her with kindness, compassion, dignity, and love. It became her home, and they became her family. Alzheimer's robbed her of a lot, but it couldn't get to her essence. She remained feisty and stubborn, quick to smile and laugh and tease.

It wasn't until she contracted covid-19 in late December of 2020 that she really declined. It whipped through the facility like a firestorm. She survived, but never fully recovered. It took her ability to walk and much of her remaining ability to do things for herself. It allowed an opening for the Alzheimer's to truly take control. She no longer recognized me. She barely talked. But she would still smile and let you know she was in there. She slowly stopped eating and seemed to be physically disappearing along with the cognitive decline. The road had been long, but the end arrived rather quickly and quietly and peacefully, just the way she ordered it.

I imagine her journey now taking her to a gathering of all those that went before her, waiting for her, wondering what took her so long. I was blessed to have her here. I know wherever she is, she is happy to be free of a brain and body that could no longer sustain her spirit.

Godspeed, Mom. I love you.