Angela Geraghty
Jan 10, 1919 -
Jul 29, 2020
Angela Geraghty of Fairbanks, Alaska, passed away peacefully at the Fairbanks Pioneer Home on July 29, 2020. She was 101 years old.
Angela was the matriarch of a large and extended family. She was predeceased by her two husbands, Nick Borovich and Clyde Geraghty; by her three daughters, Vera Matherly, Olga Carson and Nickey Elliott; and by two grandsons, Scott Carson and Colin Geraghty.
She was born on Jan. 10, 1919, in the small village of Vinicka in her beloved Montenegro.
It seems astonishing today, but when she was 19 her father arranged her marriage to a Serbian goldminer, Nick Borovich, who was a stranger to her and over 30 years her senior! She often told the story to her family, and it was difficult not to appreciate the anguish and heartbreak she felt at the time. However, the year was 1938, and war was on the horizon in Europe. Her father took her aside and explained that she was going to the greatest country in the world, and she should mix with Americans and find out what makes them so great.
So she married Nick in Vinicka, left her four brothers and five sisters on their mountainous farm, and several months later sailed on the Queen Mary to her new country. She was already pregnant, and she remembered the kindness of passengers who saved chairs for her on deck where she was able to get some fresh air to alleviate the constant morning sickness.
When she arrived in New York, they caught the train for Seattle. She did not speak a word of English. They rode the mail boat to Alaska, and she mingled with other Alaskans and started to learn her new language. When they arrived in Fairbanks, she found a reality that was quite different from what she imagined. Nick's mining claims were at Ester Creek, and life was hard without electricity or running water. "I cried the whole first year," she recalled.
A few months after Vera was born, she started feeling sick again. Her dear friend Vuka Stepovich took her to the doctor who promptly informed her she was pregnant again. "It can't be," she protested, "my mother had a baby every three years!" While she was able to relate these stories to her family with good humor decades later, it is easy to overlook the challenge and struggles encountered by someone so young, living in a strange country without any family and without the amenities that we take for granted. As the country was entering World War II in 1941, she was raising three young daughters at the ripe age of 22.
In 1943, she became an American citizen, and she borrowed $1,000 from her Finnish girlfriend to buy a log cabin on 2nd Avenue with no running water or toilet. She enrolled her girls in Sunday School at St. Matthew's Episcopal Church, where she became a lifelong member. Her husband became sick with tuberculosis and was bedfast for over 3 years. Soon a young widow, Angie began taking care of children for 50 cents an hour to support her young family.
In 1950, she married a home-grown Fairbanks product, Clyde Geraghty. In 1952, her son Mike was born and Steve followed in 1956. Clyde was a successful businessman and contractor, and she spent the best years of her life raising a family, supporting his endeavors and enjoying the community of Fairbanks.
She never forgot her roots in Montenegro. Many Serbians visited Fairbanks over the years, and a visit to Angie's house was on everyone's "to do" list. It was an opportunity for her "old country" sensibility to shine, and she was ever gracious in her hospitality - and food! Everyone who visited the Geraghty home basked in her charm and, if they were lucky, they got to take home some of her fudge!
In the late 1950s, Clyde acquired a lot on the east side of Harding Lake via the lottery. Transporting all the building materials by river boat across the lake, a log cabin was slowly built that became a second home for the family during the summer. And she worked hard to make it a home. She would host small get-togethers at the lake to play bridge, or for her sewing club and, on special occasions, her and Clyde would roast a lamb over a spit and invite their many friends, Serbian or not, for an "old country" feast at the lake. Her kids loved the lake and the family cabin is still in active use as a new generation enjoys the legacy created by Clyde and Angie.
When and how she learned the skills has been lost to time, but Angie loved to knit and crochet. For many years she had a loom in the basement that she used to weave rugs for the church bazaar. Her output was prodigious. She made doilies, dresses, vests, table coverings, coasters – and that's just what her family can remember. Though it may be a lost art today, many, many people she met or knew in Fairbanks and Palm Desert were gifted one of these charming handmade treasures over the years and it is another of her rich legacies.
After purchasing a home in Palm Desert, Calif., in the 1970s, Angie and Clyde began spending their winters there full time, particularly after Clyde was injured in a serious auto accident in Australia in 1987. At the age of 97, Angie entered the final chapter of her life when she moved into the Fairbanks Pioneer Home. Her 100th year of life was celebrated in July 2018 with a party at the PH attended by many longtime Fairbanksans and family who had traveled from Arizona and Canada. Though time had robbed her of some memories, she was delighted to see so many cherished friends.
She is survived by her sisters, Sonja Zecevic' of Belgrade, Serbia and Mika Bakic' of Vinicka, Montenegro; her sons, Mike (Mishel) and Steve (Lisa); and grandchildren, Caprice Springer (Brad), Jim Matherly, Jeff Matherly, Pamela Wendt (Bradley), Steve Elliott, Stacey Monaghan (Sean), Michael Geraghty, M.D., Devin Geraghty, Keifer Geraghty, Jack Geraghty, Jessi Pfiester and Matt Pfiester. In addition, she leaves behind 18 great-grandchildren and four great-great-grandchildren.
The family plans a private service and burial but there will be a commemoration and celebration of her life for her many dear friends in Fairbanks when conditions permit and it is safe.
