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Erma Lereno André Madry Hayman
Erma (10/22/1907 - 11/2/2009, age 102
Born in Nampa, Idaho, died in Boise. She was the twelfth child of Charles
& Amanda.
Spouse: Navy Madry (5/18/1896 - 1935), married 11/3/1928.
Spouse: Lawrence Hayman ( )
Excerpt from newspaper - Idaho Statesman
Saturday, December 29, 2007
The secret to a long life may not be organic vegetables. It may be a flexible
attitude, a pioneer spirit and a stainless steel spine.Erma Madry-Hayman has
all those qualities.
Tastefully dressed with her hair pinned back in a bun, Erma radiates elegance
and grace. She celebrated her 100th birthday on Oct. 18 in Boise.
Born in Nampa, Erma is the next-to-youngest of 13 children of a pioneer family.
Her parents left a French-Dutch-German settlement in Missouri and traveled
first to Montana. They moved to Nampa in 1898 because her father had heard
there was work.
"To come from Missouri, a black family in the 1890's, you gotta have a little
grit," her daughter, Jeanne Young, said. "I can see where my mother got her
strength. Her parents were very special people."
Creative and resourceful, Erma has a flair for fashion.
"She was a beautiful seamstress," Jeanne said. "My mother made us beautiful
clothes." During the Depression, Erma used those fabulous sewing skills to
support her family.
Erma had gone to secretarial school, Jeanne said, but was never able to get a
job as a secretary. So she took a catering course with one of her sisters.
They made these cute little maids uniforms, and they served parties in those houses on Warm Springs Ave.," Jeanne said. "They made about $1 an hour.
I don't think they had a problem finding jobs."
By the time she was 26, Erma was a widow with three children. Her first husband,
Navy Madry, died of leukemia. It would be many years before Erma remarried.
Excerpt from Interview of D. Madry, grandson of Erma:
Idaho Statesman
Sunday, April 14, 2013
Erma worked as a riveter during WW2. After working as a riveter at Gowen Field,
she worked for Lerner's Dept. Store until she retired as a display manager. She
loved sewing and gardening and continued to drive until she was 90. Erma
continued to give back to her community after she retired by working as a site manager for the senior meals program.
Erma and Navy had 3 children:
1. Barbara Madry (1931 - 10/10/2009)
2. Living - Female
3. Living - Male
