Myra Harwood

The year was 1939, Franklin D. Roosevelt was president, Gone With The Wind premiered in theaters, WWII had just begun in September, and on November 28 Myra Louise Faulx was born on her Mother's 27th birthday at Elizabeth Steel Magee Hospital in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania. Myra was the 2nd child born to Mildred and Arthur Faulx. Myra was brought back to their home in the tiny boro of Smithton Pennsylvania, a tiny coal-mining town situated along the Youghiogheny River. With a population of approximately 500, Smithton was the epitome of a small town, with small family owned businesses like Pitavino’s grocers and Heplers Variety Store. Nearly every resident knew each other by name and most certainly knew all of the Faulx children, who lived up the hill on Fourth Street.

In addition to Myra's older sister Judy, Myra grew up with her younger brother Art, younger sister Cathy, and her “baby” brother Greg. Times for the Faulx family were challenging due to the war and the mandated rationing of essentials such as gasoline and sugar. Myra's younger sister Cathy was stricken with Polio at age 5, and the entire family had to be temporarily quarantined until it was determined that no one else was infected with the contagious Polio virus. During this period, food and other essentials had to be delivered to their home and dropped off at the end of the driveway. Despite these challenges, the Faulx household was typically filled with humor and love.

Myra's school years in Smithton were happy ones, as she was a highly intelligent young girl who loved to read and excelled in all of her school subjects, particularly spelling and English. Myra often told the story of a classmate shooting her in the back of the leg with a B.B. gun after she soundly defeated him in a school spelling bee. Myra also shared many wonderful memories of her childhood, including the Smithton police blocking off several city intersections in the wintertime so that the town's children could sled down the big hill on Peer St. They would slide all of the way through town (four blocks) from Fourth Street down to the feed mill by the river. Myra recalled summers spent playing with friends and family and catching lightening bugs in her big back yard on warm summer nights. She recalled rides and games at the annual Smithton Community Fair that was held every July at the city's only public park. Some of Myra’s fondest memories were of the times she shared with her very special uncle Dr. Jacob Pollack (known simply as “Doc”). He had his home and medical office just down the street from their house. Myra would often visit him after school, and claimed her wonderful sense of humor came from Doc.

Myra graduated from high school in 1957 and then went on to attend Penn. State University. Perhaps inspired by her uncle Doc, Myra dreamt of becoming a doctor. After struggling with a challenging physics class at Penn State, she changed direction and eventually transferred to the University of Pittsburgh and entered their Physical Therapy program. Myra’s brother Greg recalled a humorous story involving the famous Mike Ditka of the Chicago Bears. While attending Pitt, Myra began dating Mike Ditka, who also attended and played football for the University of Pittsburgh. One day Mike and a friend drove down to Smithton to pick up Myra and a friend for a double date. When Mike arrived at Myra’s home, the sight of Myra’s father Arthur cleaning a big rifle greeted him. Myra thought her father scared Mike away, as their relationship quickly dissolved after that date.

After graduating from the University of Pittsburgh, Myra and a friend drove to Grand Rapids Michigan to interview for physical therapy positions at local hospitals. After her interviews, Myra was hired by Butterworth Hospital, and she moved to Grand Rapids during the summer of 1961. Myra spent the rest of her life in Grand Rapids and recalled stories of a thriving and bustling downtown in the 1960’s; shopping at Herpolsheimer’s and Wurzburg’s department stores and Kresge Drugs, which still had a soda fountain. Shortly after arriving in Grand Rapids, Myra met and fell in love with Roger Harwood, the brother of a co-worker at Butterworth Hospital. Myra and Roger were married in December of 1961, and in October of 1962, they welcomed their 1st son Kenneth into the world. Twelve months later they had a set of twins, Paul and Beth, followed by Angela in 1966, and Brian in 1967. Having 5 babies in 5 years, Myra had found her life’s passion, her children and family. After some trial and error (we recalled her story about her 1st fried egg sandwich with over-easy eggs!), she became a “comfort-food” master chef and an expert housekeeper. Myra somehow managed to work as a full time Physical Therapist while completely managing her household. She was a true Wonder-Woman. When Myra reflected on those very busy years, she always said they were the happiest times of her life. Myra also stated just weeks before her death, that being a mother was her life's greatest accomplishment.

In 1972 Myra left the familiarity of the hospital to start a new physical therapy program with the Grand Rapids Public School System. She was the first physical therapist to pioneer the Infant/Parent program at Ken-O-Sha pre-school, which was a ground-breaking program that focused on early detection and treatment of infants with disabilities in order to enhance and maximize their physical and cognitive functioning. She truly loved this role with Ken-O-Sha and during her tenure, made many strong connections with the children she cared for, their parents, and her co-workers. She remained at Ken-O-Sha for twenty years and continued to successfully balance motherhood and her career. Both of these roles were perfectly suited to her natural gifts as a selfless, nurturing, and giving woman. Prior to her retirement, Myra returned to school and earned a Master's degree from Western Michigan University. After her retirement from the school system, Myra continued to work as a physical therapist, providing home care for several years and because of her love of children, she worked with the Westminster Church daycare program.

Myra's years after retirement were happy and full of traveling, family picnics, cookouts, and an incredible trip down memory lane when Paul and his family took her back to Smithton to reminisce with old neighbors and family friends she hadn’t seen in decades. She frequently traveled to the west coast to be closer to her two daughters and grandchildren; she loved her trip to Cancun, Mexico and went on a fantastic cruise along the Panama Canal with her sister Cathy. Myra always said it was her idea of the perfect vacation! She spent most of the past few years enjoying her adult children, grandchildren, and in the last 2 years, her great grandchildren. She loved living in downtown Grand Rapids and took pride in her fierce independence. Despite her recent physical setbacks, Myra managed to remain living independently as she always stated she wanted to. And knowing Myra, you know when it came to her routines, she could not be diverted from her plans.

Myra suffered several significant losses in a very short time. In 2003, Myra’s oldest sister Judy lost her long battle with cancer and then in 2004 she lost her oldest daughter Beth. In 2005, Myra was also diagnosed with cancer, and had life-threatening complications after surgery. The following year (2006), Myra lost her sister Cathy and her oldest son Ken. Despite these overwhelming personal tragedies, Myra recovered; but those that knew her best noticed her quick and easy smile had a deep sadness. Myra's brilliance, her “quirkiness,” and her beautiful inner light continued to shine through until her last moments with her family at her side.

Myra died peacefully on November 25, 2011 during a very brief hospital stay. Although she experienced many challenges throughout her life, she faced them as she faced everything else in her life; with humor, grace, courage, class, and quiet strength. Myra is survived by her brother Greg Faulx (Shirmeen) of Denver, Colorado, her children Paul Harwood (Lek), her daughter Angela Strohschein (David), and her son Brian Harwood, 9 grandchildren, 3 great grandchildren, and 2 special grand-dogs who will all miss her dearly and who will all hold wonderful and special memories of her in their hearts and spirit forever. A memorial service to celebrate Myra's life will be held at 11 AM on Saturday December 10, 2011at Heritage Lifestory Funeral Homes, 2120 Lake Michigan Dr NW. Memorial contributions may be made to In The Image, 1823 Division Ave Grand Rapids, 49507 www.intheimage.org