Remembering Grandma Wilkey

By Faith Olson

Leila Hone was born in Benjamin in June 17th in 1903. Benjamin is a little town by Spanish Fork and it was named after her grandfather, Benjamin Franklin Stewart, a pioneer who knew Brigham Young. Leila had 5 Brothers. She was the only girl. She felt she was picked on by her brothers and had to do many hard jobs.

Leila Hone had one of the first cars in Utah. It was a black “model T Ford.” The wheels looked like a pioneer wagon. The top folded down and it had a horn that would honk. It was very bumpy to ride in and it was cold in the winter and hot in the summer. It did not have any heaters or fans.

Leila Hone’s favorite color was purple and yellow. She lived on a Dairy Farm and her father made lots of money off the money. When Leila Hone was a teenager she had many friends. She went home every day and her mom would ask “Did you have a good time at school?” and she would say “I had a pleasant time at school.” And she kept a Diary and wrote whenever she could. She liked poetry and some of her talents were piano, singing, being a good friend.

Grandma went to college and became a school teacher. This is how she met her husband. He would send her flowers and chocolates. She thought he had pretty curly hair. When Leila Hone was 26 she married Carl Leon Wilkey on June 29-1929. They lived in Nephi in a house at 377 E 300 S. which her husband had built himself. They had 3 kids together, Lois, Carolee, and George. Lois Wilkey Larsen is my Great Grandma. Lois’s oldest daughter is Marie Alexander (my Grandma), and Marie’s oldest daughter is my mom Lori Olson, and I am the oldest daughter in my family. Leila taught Kindergarten in Nephi for many years. Even today there are many people there who remember her. Leila lived in her home until she was 93 years old. Then she moved to Provo to be closer to her family. She outlived her husband about 30 years.

Leila got letters very often. Here is a something she wrote in her diary : Last spring one of my granddaughters said to me, “Grandma Wilkey, tell us a story about the old days when you were a young girl.” Just a few nights ago I heard again that same request. I sat down by two granddaughters and began, “It was the day before Christmas over seventy years ago. I was waiting for my_____.” I didn’t finish. I awoke to find I was a alone. I had been dreaming. I didn’t go back to sleep but lay awake thinking about the dream and then began reminiscing about things that had happened when I was a young girl, as my great granddaughter had said,’ in the old days.”

Leila Hone loved to do genealogy and family History. Leila Hone lived almost to a hundred. She died April 9th 2003. She would love to have grandchildren come and help her with her family history even after she was mostly blind and deaf.