Our sweet momma passed from her earthly home at 4:07 pm on August 11. She was 87 years old. What an incredible legacy this wonderful lady leaves behind. Anita is a mom to 6 children, a Grandma / Mimi to 15 grandchildren, a Great Grandma /Mimi to 20 great grandchildren and Great Great Grandma / Mimi to 3 great great grandchildren. Anita was proceeded in death by her father, Axel Matteus Johnson, her mother, Edalin Eulalia Padberg Johnson, one son, Steven Urban (Diana) and her loving husband, Dennis Dean Lambert. She is survived by her 3 sons, James Urban (Carol), Ron Urban (Gayle), Mark Lambert (Geanne) and her 2 daughters, Michele Carey (David) and Anna Olinger (Kevin).

I still speak of her at times in present tense because her spirit and everything she taught us is still here. Her body wore out but her essence, her spirit is all around all who knew her, loved her and were loved by her. Anita was born in Orofino, Idaho, on May 14, 1939. She was the 5th child born to Axel and Edalin Johnson. She spent the majority of her childhood years growing up in Spokane, Washington. She grew up with 7 siblings. She is the last surviving member of her family. She came from strong Swedish and German lineage. Her father immigrating to the United States in 1904 from Sweden. Her mother's line coming from Swedish and German ancestry. Anita shared her birthdate with her husband, Dennis Lambert for 46 years. They met in Honolulu, Hawaii. They were married in Miami, Florida on September 14, 1968. People were always amazed to find out they both shared their birthday. The same month, the same day and the same year. They tried to find out who was older, but no one seemed to recall their times of birth. I bet she knows the answer now.

Anita raised 6 children, 4 sons and 2 daughters with Dennis. Dennis was in the Coast Guard and was out to sea alot. She worked so hard taking care of her children and being a military wife, she had to move many times and got to see many different parts of our beautiful United States. She was proud to be a miltary wife! She worked as an OB Tech and Registered Nurse throughout many different hospitals around the country. She even fudged her birthdate by a year in order to work at the first hospital she started working at. Later in life, she had to correct her birthdate with Social Security and we all laughed about it. She last worked at Springdale Memorial Hospital before it became Northwest Medical. She left the hospital and worked for an OB/GYN clinic in Rogers, AR before retiring. One of her proudest achievements was going back to school when her youngest child was in high school. She went to the U of A to get her RN degree when she was 46 years old. She felt called to work Labor and Delivery and helped deliver many babies throughout her time in the medical profession.

Anita is a caregiver, 100%. Whether caring for her children, grandchildren or patients at the hospital, she loves people. Her empathy and compassion is limitless. Even now, we can feel her guiding us through this sorrowful time. Anita also cared for her own father for the last 8 years of his life and helped him make it to 99 and 11 days old. Anita's family was very important to her. She delighted in family dinners and holidays spent with her children and grandchildren. She loved playing the piano, gardening, sewing, her orchids, and decorating for Christmas and spreading holiday cheer. Our home at Christmas time is always my favorite time of year.

Anita makes everyone feel welcome in her home. The lives she has touched are too numerous to count. There are many that call her Mom or Mimi outside of her immediate circle. Anita faced hardships, too. She had many illnesses that she battled. To say she was a fighter is an understatement. One illness, when she was 57, was surviving brain surgery. She had 2 aneurisms in her brain. What a difficult time this was for her and her family to overcome. It was touch and go for a while because she suffered a midline shift and was unresponsive for a period of time. She fought so hard to come back to us and we had her here with us 30 more years!

There have been countless hospital visits, doctor visits, poking and prodding throughout her years. She had chronic heart, lung and kidney issues, as well as severe osteoporosis. The one constant through it all is that she is a fighter. She loves life, loves her family and until last week, she was still trying to overcome. This time, her lungs were no longer able to sustain her without the help of a non invasive ventilator. Heavenly Father called her to come rest in his arms and to be restored.

We miss her so much but we rejoice that she is free. We feel certain she was greeted by so many loved ones that went ahead of her. I am sure my dad, my brother, Steve, and of course my sweet son, Matthew, were among some of the first to embrace her. Her parents and siblings are all there, too. Our family will miss our beautiful Momma & Mimi and look forward to seeing her again someday...whenever she parted company, whether finishing a phone call or saying goodbye, she would often say, bye for now. It is just bye for now, Momma.