Time Line Autobiography for Victoria BidWell Page 1
Victoria BidWell Page 1
June 24th, 1945, 3:24 A.M. Victoria is born in Anacortes, Washington. She is named "Vickey Frances Bidwell," the 5th daughter of Marie Frances Hawkins Bidwell and Victor Bidwell. Only Grandma Ida Bidwell is a Christian in this nuclear family. Her sisters are 4, 5, 6, and 10 years older: Sandy Jean, Cora Jane, Catherine Marie, and Dana Lee, respectively. Fighting patterns are already well-established among all Family members upon Vickey's birth.
1945 - 1948 The Bidwell Family lives in Bellingham, Washington. 1948 onward The Family moves to Mt. Vernon, Washington. Victor works for Buick as a foreman; and in 1952, The Family moves into a partially remodeled, huge, old Barn; and Victor starts his own tow truck and repair shop. In 1948, Marie begins her career disemboweling chickens on an assembly line. Victor's mother Ida Bidwell stays home with the girls and helps with Family chores until her death in 1958.
From birth onward Vickey is Victor's greatly favored daughter. This causes a deep resentment towards Vickey among the other girls. This resentment developed in them and was well set before she can even remember. One of her earliest thoughts she can recall was to look up at her angry sisters and wonder: "Why are all these people so mean?" In her young years, Vickey is the only daughter, year after year, to spend long hours on the tow truck calls and 2:00 A.M. vigils in the mechanic shop. She learns to grind valves, bore out engines, sand down and paint cars. Victor was Valedictorian of his high school graduating class and a political activist in his youth. He had many stories to tell of his underground activities and bold demonstrations expressing his sentiments for the unemployed, the ill-fed and ill-housed, and for the working class. Vickey listens to these stories throughout the years and learns to take on Victor Bidwell's social conscience and heart that bleeds for people in need.
1951 A horse is brought to The Family. Only 1 sister shows an interest in riding. Vickey relates deeply to this horse and forms a healthy, lifelong, recreational bond with horses and the great outdoors. She clearly sees the horse, at age 6, as a way to escape the abusive home environment for hours and hours on end. In a home environment loveless and violent, Vickey quickly becomes attached to her horse. Throughout her life, her passion for horses and nature serves as a healthy outlet for self-expression in unhealthy situations. Her wild imagination and sense of adventure blossom!
1951 - 1963 Vickey attends the Mt. Vernon Public School System on the trail of her 4 sisters. All girls graduate with honors and are well-known for their intellectual and creative aptitudes.
Age 6 onward Vickey grows to love the great outdoors and all animals. At age 6, she begins her life of work, picking strawberries, full 8-hour days in the fields. Summers are filled with strawberry, raspberry, cucumber, broccoli, bulb harvesting. Off hours are spent with horses in the woods and swimming in lakes of Skagit Valley. A typical teenage day would be to ride a 30-mile round trip, barefoot and bareback, swimming across 3 lakes and eating from the trees and fields along the way. Vickey rides in all weather, all seasons, and seeks solace with her horse and in natural settings.
Profile of Vickey's childhood and teenage years From the time Vickey can remember until she is large enough to defend herself physically, she is battered by her older sisters and forced to be a participant of unwholesome, emotionally damaging games. She receives physical abuse in the form of daily beatings and damage that went far beyond normal sibling rivalry. Once large enough to defend herself, physical fighting and emotional abuse continue. Neither Victor nor Marie could control the girls' violent and damaging patterns. The parents are absent from the home scene most of the time, working long hours in their struggle to pay bills. In addition, Victor and Marie continually display
