"Ephraim elects woman 1974 Fyr Bal Chieftain" from the June 25, 1974 Door County Advocate
By JANE SHEA
MRS. HILDA 'ANNA' PASCHKE —Hagedorn
Ephraim elects woman 1974 Fyr Bal Chieftain
By JANE SHEA
"I really don't know why they elected me," commented this year's Ephraim Fyr Bal fest chieftain. And she really didn't.
She sat for this interview in a straight chair, hands folded placidly, feet firmly on the floor. Though there was this puzzled expression in her eyes, she reflected warmth and dignity, friendly, self possessed and completely serene.
The picture she unconsciously presented, seemed to answer the question pretty well.
Whether one addresses her as Mrs. Paschke, Hilda, or the more intimate "Anna," she is loved and respected by many people. And for them she reflects the sound values of living–not high living, or low living, but the common ordinary type.
If she'll pardon the comparison, she's sort of like one of her own loaves of home baked bread—warm, basic and comforting, with just enough yeast to provide some extra bounce.
Up to this year, Ephraim voters have chosen a man as chieftain. But if the more intense women's libbers think they've found a new champion, they'd better forget it.
"Everyone ought to work as hard as they can," Hilda said, dismissing the subject with just the slightest hint of disdain.
She has done just that, and played too (she tried bowling last year). It would be a safe guess that Hilda Paschke has always known just who she was and has really been too busy to fuss much about the modem introspective search for self identity.
Born in Ephraim in 1891, her parents were Mr. and Mrs. George Larson. He came froin Tvestrand, Norway at 19 and was a carpenter. Her mother emigrated from Lhemmer, Norway at the age of 12.
Hilda, christened Olive Gunhild, lived on the Larson farm until the age of three. The family moved to Green Bay for five years, then returned to Ephraim.
At age 15, Hilda went to Chicago, working as waitress, telephone operator and governess. In the latter capacity she went to England to care for the children of Mrs. J. W. Morrison, one of America's first woman suffragettes, and a close friend of Carrie Chapman Catt. She marched in a Chicago suffragette parade. But that was in the past and she is much more interested in today.
She willingly recalls however that she returned to Ephraim in 1920, and influenced perhaps by memories of pleasant English afternoons, she opened her now famous Brookside Tea garden, in partnership with Maude Beard, who later became her sister-in-law, Mrs. Reuben Larson. Guests sat at tables by the brook enjoying tea and scones or cookies. It was not long before full meals were served by popular demand.
"I always said if I got married, I'd want to be in Ephraim, where there is pure air and good surroundings," Hilda said. She had her wish. In 1921, she was married to A. E. Paschke, the ceremony taking place in the dining room that had been built onto the main structure of Brookside by her father.
It was here, too, that her daughters later chose to be married. They are Mrs. Carl Becker, Baileys Harbor, and Mrs. Bill Wedepohl, Ephraim. The latter now operates Brookside, with her mother, carrying on the same traditions. A son, Wayne, took over his father's construction business in 1956, parlaying it into a major inter-state concern.
Psychiatrists, probing the depths of human psyche, often resort to the term "Momism." Here, to counter-balance, is a normal Mom, proud of her kids and five grandchildren. And here are three kids and their offspring who return that love openly, proudly, unaffectedly.
Hilda is not only head of a loving family. Village president Lloyd Olson, who on certain occasions comes up with gracious phrasing, described the 1974 chieftain Saturday as "the mother of Ephraim." The term was remarkably apt.
This village, since its beginnings, has been built with the help of women such as Hilda. They have been women who have not had time, desire or inclination to think in terms of equality or superiority or rights. Their actions are reflected in words like reciprocity, love, and immediate need.
Their philosophy and hers is a simple, yet profound one. If their children need them, they are there. If their husbands need help running a business, they are there. If their community or an immediate neighbor needs them, they are there. In return, they receive the love and assistance of family, neighbors and community.
Perhaps the village was saying several things at the ballot box.
It was obviously a tribute from many who know Hilda, not for official acts, but small ones. There are those in this community she has quietly fed and housed. There have been youngsters who have encountered her kindness, and their childish problems eased with a smile and a practical invitation to "have another roll."
It might well have been in part an affectionate tribute to the late Al Paschke, fire chief until his death, highly regarded here. This would not occur to newcomers, but it perhaps crossed Hilda's mind that double honor was being paid.
She was certainly elected for her sincerity and for her honesty. She meets many well known people and others not so well known. If they are sincere, she likes them. If they aren't she can spot it in a minute.
She doesn't bother to analyze. She does things. She knits, sews, bakes, reads. This for her is a perfectly simple approach, as constant as the sun rises and the sun sets.
Ephraim honored a remarkable woman with some good basic values who affects everyone she meets in a very special way.
Courtesy of the Door County Library Newspaper Archive
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