By Rachael Rifkin
Memoirist
Mabel Jongewaard was always eager to lend a hand or an ear to anyone that needed it. Her strong work ethic and gentle nature often came in handy as one of the original owners of the family-run Bake ‘N Broil. A devoted grandmother, mother and wife, she passed away July 25, 2008, at the age of 100, leaving behind her two baseball scout sons Dean and Roger, 11 grandchildren and 22 great-grandchildren.
“She lived for her family. She was a simple, old-fashioned lady who worked hard and made good meals. She was soft spoken, never negative and put family first,” said her granddaughter, Janice Jongewaard.
Born on Dec. 7, 1907, Mabel grew up on a farm in Iowa.
“When she was on the farm, she would literally chase the chickens and cut their heads off. She’d tell all her grandkids about that. We couldn’t believe our sweet, quiet Grandma did that,” said her granddaughter, Dyan.
She was also athletic and, in high school, was captain of the girls’ basketball team. Her family eventually migrated to South Dakota, where she met and married Lester in June of 1927 and eventually had two boys. During the Great Depression, they moved out to Long Beach in search of better opportunities.
In Long Beach, Mabel and Lester became grocers. They opened grocery stores at 20th and California and 17th and Pine. Their stores were robbed several times throughout the years.
“She’d been robbed three times in total. Once, when no one else was in the store but her, a little guy came in, held a gun to her head and said, ‘Don’t scream or I’ll shoot.’ She screamed. Luckily, he ran out. She ran out screaming. My dad was so mad at her for screaming,” said Dyan.
They sold the grocery stores when Lester fell ill with a heart condition. Mabel and Lester started the Bake ‘N Broil in 1965 in conjunction with their son Roger and daughter-in-law Carol. Mabel took care of the behind-the-scenes work, such as banking and babysitting.
“They would do the banking for us and keep bailing us out. Roger and I were married when we were 20 and it took us a long time to get going,” said Carol. “Mabel was wonderful. She was the best mother-in-law anybody could have. She always listened to you, and she made each person feel like they were special. She was an extremely hard worker.”
From an early age, Mabel’s grandchildren would also help out at the store.
“I remember being in the back of the store. I was probably three or four years old. My grandma used this long stick with a handle on it to get the cans down because everything had to be stocked up high,” said Dyan. “I also used to peel peaches with her. I remember I wanted to go to the beach but we couldn’t go until the peaches were done. I hated peeling peaches. But you never heard her complain.”
After Lester died in 1976, Mabel traveled with her sister and some friends. She spent lots of time with her great-grandchildren and enjoyed watching her sons on TV.
“Since my dad worked for the Seattle Mariners, every time they had a game on TV, he would call up my grandma at home. He’d make sure he was standing where he could be seen by the camera and say, ‘Mom, I’m waving at you. Can you see me?’ And she would wave back at the TV,” said Dyan.
Dyan looks back on the time she spent with her grandmother when she was a child fondly.
“She taught me how to crochet and quilt. Even at the age of 100, she made all of us quilts. And when we were young, my siblings and I used to take turns spending the night at her house. So when it got to be your turn, you were so excited. You just couldn’t wait because you already had to wait five weeks for that,” said Dyan. “You got to be the only child for the day. She’d make you whatever you wanted for breakfast and usually we’d go to the Pike or to a movie. You’d go over there and she’d just listen to you. She never judged anybody. She was great that way, even until the day she died.”
Rachael Rifkin is a memoirist with a background in journalism. She can be reached at lifestories2day@aol.com or (310) 612-4183.
