Every client spotlight is special, but this edition features none other than Dave’s mom, Alice Hunt. Born in Minneapolis in 1937, Alice enjoyed the cold winters as a child. She fondly remembers ice skating with her older brother and sister on a nearby frozen pond.
Alice’s mother stayed at home while her father worked in a WWII munitions plant. They had a comfortable upbringing, and she eventually attended Lutheran Bible College in Minneapolis. Upon graduation, she left Minnesota for a job in Illinois as a church secretary and youth worker. She planned youth events for eighty kids, which kept her very busy.
At this church, she met her future husband, Bob. He was a farmer, and she was a city girl. As they say, opposites attract! Bob brought her out to the farm in Morris, Illinois, and asked her to identify the crops he was growing. She quickly recognized the corn but had never seen soybeans. Bob and Alice married in 1961, which began her time on the farm and a new way of life in the countryside.
They had four boys, which was helpful since there was always work to do on the farm. Bob made sure the boys worked well together, including raising livestock for 4H and FFA.
Dave was the second oldest of the four boys and much quieter than the rest. When picked up from football practice and asked how it went, Alice said he usually gave a one-word answer, “Fine.” At five years old, he was supposed to join his class on stage for a performance. He stayed in his seat, and when asked if he was going up, he replied, “Me no sing.” Alice jokes that he still can’t carry a tune to this day.
“Fortunately, Dave eventually outgrew it all and became so outgoing,” Alice said. “We were very thankful for that.”
Alice’s oldest son, Andy, loved farming and still manages the farm with two of his sons. Bob’s grandfather started the farm with 50 acres, a horse, and a plow. When Bob graduated from the University of Illinois with his agriculture degree and returned to the farm with his brother, it had grown to 300 acres and they had an open-air tractor with no cab. Today, they farm over 4000 acres and have modern equipment like a tractor that basically drives itself.
While on the farm and enjoying country life, Alice loved learning how to cook and bake to feed her husband, four growing boys, and the hired help. One of her family favorites is her Strawberry Pie, the recipe for which we will soon publish on our website.
Beyond the farm, Alice also volunteered at the local hospital for 37 years. She served as receptionist and met visitors before eventually running the gift shop. She has also enjoyed singing and music, including performing at many weddings and funerals.
Bob and Alice had a special family tradition, renting a big vacation house every other year for the entire family to gather. Over the course of 30 years, destinations included Minnesota, Wisconsin, Wyoming, Nags Head, Kentucky, Tennessee, Florida, and many other memorable spots.
They also traveled throughout the US and around the world. While in Australia and New Zealand they stayed in farm homes, which must have felt familiar thanks to their farming roots. Their favorite place to visit was Switzerland. After meeting a Swiss couple in Florida, they visited them and spent part of a summer exploring their beautiful country.
For the last five years, Alice has lived in beautiful Naples, Florida, where she and Bob vacationed every year in the wintertime. Sadly, Bob passed away in 2019 after a life well lived.
She described Bob as a quieter type, with a keen sense of humor. He was also a very hard worker, a requirement of farm life. The boys all respected him and his work ethic. He was very talented with numbers, computers, and business, doing all the books for the farm. Somewhat on the frugal side, Bob was careful with money. He invested wisely, and today, Alice feels thankful that she can live comfortably due to his foresight.
Alice’s 3-bedroom apartment at a senior living facility provides plenty of room for the family to visit frequently. Her third oldest son, Matt, owns a photography software company and splits time between Minnesota and Naples. Paul, her youngest son, lives in Seattle with his wife Debbie and owns a commercial moving company.
Alice dotes on her 16 grandchildren and 19 great-grandchildren, all of whom get birthday and Christmas cards with a little spending money tucked inside.
Another passion that Alice shares with Dave is Cubs baseball. She has been a fan for 60+ years and enjoyed celebrating with Dave when her beloved Cubbies finally won the World Series in 2016.
As we look back over the years and witness her beautiful contributions to her family and community, Alice has definitely hit it out of the park in the game of life.
