Dorothea Heariold Ridge 

Dorothea Heariold Ridge was known by her ten daughters, thirty-one grandchildren, and all of their friends as “Mama.” She was born in 1922 and grew up in Des Moines, Iowa. 

Mama was a beautiful person, both inside and out. She never met a stranger! She always had a smile and a kind word to and about everyone. The only clue that one had if someone was not Mama’s favorite person was if that person’s name came up, Mama would respond by saying, “Bless her heart.” 

Mama was one of the most hospitable people that I have ever known. She was quick to accommodate any guest. Our home was always open to everyone. Sometimes there were people at our dinner table that none of the family knew; they were someone who Mama met at the grocery store or on the bus home from work. Mama found out by learning about their life history, in less than ten minutes, that they were new in town and did not have a family. In fact, I cannot remember many days when we did not have company. Our door was never locked so people just walked into our house at all hours of the day and called out, “Dorothea, are you home?” Mama would come out of the kitchen or from upstairs with a big smile. Her first question to that person was, “Are you hungry?” She regularly had a pot of something cooking on the stove. Even the mailman would stop daily and have a cup of coffee and a doughnut with Mama. 

Mama was a housekeeper. I always wondered if she was hired to clean houses or to keep her employers company. On the days that I went to help her, she ate breakfast and lunch with the lady of the house. Often the lady would stop Mama from cleaning and ask my mother (who was supposed to be working) if Mama had time to talk about a problem that was bothering the lady. Before I knew it, my mother and the lady would be holding hands, with their heads down, and my mother would be praying for the woman’s problem to be solved. On many occasions, Mama was not able to complete her cleaning because of “counseling” and the lady of the house would pay her anyway and thank her for just talking to her. My sister’s and my friends frequently would call Mama for advice. When we answered the phone, one of our friends would ask to speak to Mama saying they needed to talk to her. Mama would never share with my sisters or me what the conversations were about.

We had little money; however, Mama always was helping someone in need. She taught my sisters and me that if we had only two dollars and someone was in need, to give them the other dollar. She also taught us that even if we made fifty cents for babysitting that one tenth of it belonged to the Lord. Mama reminded us that everything that we had or earned was from God and that He always should receive all the praise and thanksgiving. Mama was a staunch Christian. I grew up knowing and learning from Mama that prayer, trust, hope, and faith were the foundation for leading a spiritually, emotionally, and joyful life. Her joyfulness was demonstrated by her infectious laugh!

Mama touched many lives. Mama’s mantra was, “to always be honest; to treat everyone with respect and dignity, regardless of the color of their skin or how little or how much they possessed; to be forgiving under all circumstances; and to love everyone as God loves us.”

Whenever I am pondering over whether I made the right decision or treated someone godly, the litmus test is for me to ask myself, “What would Mama have expected of me?”   

Written by Paula M. Kinney, her daughter