Nola Mary Ball Tolman
10 Sept 1925
Daughter of Heber Rudger & Lucy Lovenia Morgan Ball
I was born 10 Sept 1925 in a wooden apartment house which was located on the corner of N. Fiske Ave. and Harvard St. in Portland Oregon. This building burned down a few years later. At the time we were living in a house on N. Olin St. near Lombard. I must have been only three or four years old. Our of my memories is of standing on the front porch at night, serving a glow in the sky, and someone telling me that the house we used to live in was burning.
My father is Heber Rodger Ball. He was born 11 Jan 1888 in Sandy, Salt Lake County, Utah. His parents were Heber Orson Ball and Carrie Emmaline Westfall of Rigby, Idaho, where most of Dad’s adult life, before coming to Portland, was spent.
My mother is Lucy Lovenia Morgan Ball. She was born in LaBelle, Idaho, on 12 Oct 1891. Her father and mother were Joshua Brigham Morgan and Lucy Jane Taylor, who pioneered in LaBelle, where he served as a Bishop in the church for sometimes.
My Brothers and Sisters are as follows:
Verna LaVay Ballborn 12 Aug 1911
Muriel Clarice Ballborn 14 Jun 1913
Alice Lovenia Ballborn 2 May 1915
Heber Morgan Ballborn 25 Mar 1917
Everett Rudger Ballborn 21 Feb 1921
Jennie Madge Ballborn 8 May 1923
Nola Mary Ballborn 10 Sep 1925
Donna Jean Ballborn 25 Dec 1931
It seems that money was always scarce in a family with eight children. The older children have spoken of times during the “Depression” when food was scarce, but I guess I was too young to remember them. Mom took in dressmaking jobs, baked her special raisin filled cookies, did ironing, made quilts all to try to help bring in a little more money for the family. During part of this time, Dad did carpenter work for a prominent Portland family, the Henrymans, on their farm near Scappoosh, Oregon. He was paid $18.00 a week and room and board.
I attended Portsmouth Grade School. I remember my first grade teacher, Miss Denny, our day came into the room and found me dancing for everyone. She didn’t scold me, but just asked me if I would dance some more so that she could watch too. I was so embarrassed I cried and cried.
When I about six years old, the janitor of the school, Mr. Ervin Rayley, took a liking to me. He knew of the financial struggle my folks were having, and tried to get them to let him and his wife keep me. Mom refused, but Dad wondered if it might not be the best thing for me. He thought of the material things that the Rayleys could me that they couldn’t give me. So I stayed with the Rayleys and their two teen-age sons, Vernon and Bus, for a few months, but when they became too attached to me and wanted to adopt me. Mom and Dad brought me home.
We lived in several houses before Mom and Dad were able to buy a house. My happiest memories are of when we lived on N. Yale St. at the corner of Hodge Ave.
Madge and I were quite the Tomboys and used to go on all day long hikes into the Linton Hills which were across the Willamette River from our home. One time we went too far and got lost. It was beginning to get dark when we finally found our bearings and well past dark when we got home. I’m sure this put a few grey hairs in Mom’s head.
My tomboy stage was continued on into high school, until I decided it was more fun to watch football games rather than play it myself. All my life, though, I’ve been very interested in sports and the out-of-doors.
I graduated from Roosevelt High School in Portland.
Paul and met before a M.I.A. Skating Party. He was to pick up Letticia Ralls, now Bradley, and I to take us to the skating rink. I didn’t like him at all. A few weeks after that Paul walked me home from mutual. When we got home we talked out in front for a few minutes. Hen Paul said goodnight, and gave me a real fast peck of a kiss, and practically ran off up the street. We became engaged in January of 1943. I graduated from High School in June. In that summer Paul joined the Merchant Marines. He was a cook and baker’s helper on oil tankers which went up and down the West Coast. We married in August 1943 and he took a few more coast trips and then because of illness, he quit around Thanksgiving time and stayed home to work in the Oregon Shipyards as a welder.
Our first child, Jimmy Paul Tolman was born one month before Paul had to go into the army. He was stationed at Fort Lewis, Washington. Battle Creek, Michigan; Little Rock Arkansas; Fort Ord, California; and then was sent to Honolulu, Hawaii for a total of twenty months duty. He got home just before Jimmy’s second birthday.
He got a job at the Portland and Gas & Coke Company, and we bought the house we still live in at the corner of N. Allegaheny & Fessenden Sts. in Portland.
Our Children are:
Jimmy Paul Tolmanborn 27 March 1944
John Allen Tolmanborn 5 May 1947
Nola Paulette Tolmanborn 30 March 1949
Ross Dean Tolmanborn 16 May 1952
Kerry Deeann Tolmanborn 9 Sep 1954
Robin Diane Tolmanborn 8 Apr 1957
Ezra Joel Tolmanborn 25 Aug 1958
I have taught in Sunday School and Primary been secretary of Sunday School and Primary, been a counselor in Relief Society and Primary, been a genealogy home teacher, and a den mother in cub scouts. My favorite work of all so far in Church is primary. I love working with the children. It makes me feel so good o see some of the boys whom I taught as Trekkers at 10 years of age still active and outstanding boys at 18 years of age. Nothing quite as humbling as working with children. We have had some wonderful experiences as Primary officers and teachers working together and praying together.
I feel very fortunate to have married into such a fine family as the Tolman family. We are very close. We try to get together often for family dinners or parties. The highlight of our whole year is the Christmas Eve Party. The children put on a program, we exchange presents, sing carols, and Father Tolman gives us an inspirational talk. There is a wonderful spirit present.
I have a testimony of this Gospel. For many years, I believed it was true with all my heart, and worked actively in the church, but I couldn’t bring myself to say that “I know this Church is true.”
Then one day while bearing my testimony it came tome just as easily as could be that I did know that this is the true Church, and I said it in my testimony. I haven’t had any manifestations or revelations to tell me, but I know that through faith and prayer and actively working in the Church, I have come to this knowledge.
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