| Sources |
- [S25] Smith Mortuary Company, www.smithmortuary.com, 26 Dec 2010.
Ed R. Lidvall, Jr. obituary
- [S27] The Daily Times, http://www.thedailytimes.com/, (Blount County, Tennessee), 13 Jun 2011.
Ready for new chapter: Alcoa resident to sell belongings for good causes
By Melanie Tucker melt@thedailytimes.com
Call it liquidating, down-sizing or finding some great stuff a new home — Dee Lidvall just wants to ease her load as she begins a new chapter and help some of her favorite people.
The Alcoa resident is moving to Shannondale after several years of living at the corner of North Wright Road and Cherry Street. She has so many things that she doesn’t have room for in her new space. So many useful kitchen gadgets, table and bed linens, art from Mexico, books, cameras, handmade place mats, ceramics, cookbooks, shells, cake pans and more. There is Native American pottery, blankets, knickknacks, lawn implements and the list goes on.
But this longtime Alcoa resident and native of Chicago isn’t selling her things to earn money for herself. She has decided to donate the entire proceeds to two of her favorite groups — the Blount County Historical Museum and National Garden Clubs Inc. The museum operates on the funds it receives through donations and fundraisers. And Lidvall wants to have a Blue Star Marker placed in Blount County through the National Garden Clubs Inc., hopefully at her neighborhood park, Springbrook. Lidvall is a longtime member of Alcoa Garden Club.
Something to love
Last week, Lidvall was a gracious host, giving a room-by-room look at just what one collects and uses over 60 years of marriage. Lidvall, who is 84, has several items owned by her parents and even great-grandparents, like a percolator that dates back to the 1920s. Lidvall’s mom also collected Oriental art and amassed lots of interesting souvenirs from Mexico.
“There’s just stuff, stuff and more stuff,” Lidvall concluded as she gave that look around.
She has three sons and Lidvall asked them and her grandchildren to take some of the more cherished items she didn’t want to part with, like China and antique furniture. But there is still so much more that needs to go somewhere, this homeowner said.
So she will be opening her home from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday and Saturday and letting the community see if they want to take anything off her hands and help her two organizations. She has most things priced, some as low as 50 cents. Lidvall said it’s simply time to see that her things find a new home.
“What do you do with 60 years worth of things?” Lidvall said as she went from room to room. There are things like her husband’s personal awards and photos that won’t be sold, but she wonders where she can take them. This hasn’t been easy.
Beginning again
It will also be hard, Lidvall said, to leave her beautiful Alcoa neighborhood, where so many memories have been made. She had her husband, the late Ed Lidvall, shared this home for many years and before that, another home in Alcoa. It is time, she said, to start a new chapter.
The Blue Star Memorial project is one that Lidvall is especially wanting to help. The project has installed these markers at rest stops along Interstates across the country. They are now popping up in other places, like parks, Lidvall said, but each one costs $1,250.
Come on down, Lidvall is telling us. Come pick out some Christmas decor, costume jewelry, pottery, or cheese grater. There are glass figurines, a baking pot and Lidvall’s mother’s bean pot. A pile of sand dollars sits, waiting to be chosen.
If you are handy with thread and needle, there are quilting supplies, a sewing machine, tapestry pieces and other interesting items for creating artwork. Lidvall even has the hat she wore on her wedding day. It all has to go.
“I had lots of storage space in this house,” this senior said. “I don’t have that much in my new place.”
Lidvall is hopeful that new owners can be matched up with her belongings. She will be glad to reduce her load, and giving the money to her favorite causes makes it all the better.
You might want to bring a few shopping bags.
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Abt 1927 - (~ 97 years)
, d. 26 Dec 2010, Shannondale Health Center, Maryville, Blount County, Tennessee