S . D . Brock with some of her kids , grandkids and their spouses at a Christmas gathering at her grandson Jason and his wife , Jenna Brocks house . Not all of her children and grandchildren are pictured .
Kimberly Overton , the new manager at Crane Hill , described S . D . as a someone who comes in with a smile every morning and always dressed so neatly .
“ I hope if I live to be her age , I can be just like her ,” said Overton . “ She is always helping others and makes everyone feel welcome . One day when I did a nacho and cheese bar for them , S . D . came to get her plate , she stopped and looked at it and said ‘ just give me a little bit , I don ’ t know if I like it . You are introducing me to things I ’ ve never had before .’”
S . D . then grinned at Overton and said , “ That ’ s ok though .”
S . D . attended Logan Jr High School and graduated from Cullman High School before starting nursing training at Bryce Hospital in Tuscaloosa the fall after graduation .
However , the United States entered World War II and S . D . came back home to Cullman to marry Lawrence Winfield ( Foots ) Stricklin , whom she was dating at the time , and perhaps keep him from being drafted into the war .
But Brock said it didn ’ t matter because he was drafted anyways .
She became pregnant and had her first child ,
Cleason Emory Stricklin , while her husband was in officer ’ s training . The baby was born with a cleft palate .
Still just a teenager , she went to live with a family in Birmingham while the baby had several operation to correct the cleft palate .
The war was almost over when her husband was killed in Germany on April 18 , 1945 .
“ None of it was easy , but I had great parents , who helped me out whenever they could ,” said Brock .
After the war , she married her childhood crush and friend Arthur Charles Brock and had two sons , Darrell and Durwin Brock .
Arthur was in the Air Force and they moved around a lot , including stints in Louisiana , Mississippi , Florida and Georgia as well as different times on the family farm at Logan . She had to learn to live the military wife ’ s life and pack-up and move every few years and begin all over again in a new town .
After the death of her second husband she took in her parents and took care of them for eight years .
“ They took care of me when I was a young ‘ war widow ’ with a baby who had a serious condition . I knew I needed to take care of them when they weren ’ t able to take care of themselves ,” she said .
20 | SPRING 2022 CULLMAN COUNTY SENIOR MAGAZINE