Lila Clawson, journalist and active volunteer

Back in 1980, Lila Lavonne Clawson tried to enlist in the U.S. Army. She was 57. She was also the mother of five and the grandmother of five.

The idea, she told Minneapolis Star columnist Jim Klobuchar, was that she had "spent years raising a family," had completed those obligations and "wanted to go into new worlds, but ... in a way that might help the country." She said she figured she'd head on down to the Army recruiting office to see whether she might have any skills that fit that particular job description. She also promised not to get pregnant while serving.

The recruiting officer turned her down.

Clawson, who worked as a community newspaper reporter, magazine writer and editor, and was a delegate to the 1980 National Democratic Convention in New York City, died Friday at Fairview Ridges Care Center in Burnsville. She was 88.

Born and raised in southwestern Minnesota, Clawson moved to Bloomington in 1956. She soon went to work writing for the Bloomington Sun. She then moved on to writing and editing for such publications as Modern Medicine, Nursing Homes and the Lutheran Standard.

"She did significant writing and editing without a college education and without any training in journalism at all," said her son John Clawson.

Clawson did much of that work as a single mom, having gotten divorced in 1970. Her writing continued into her stay at a nursing home. Right before her death, she was working on her memoirs.

Clawson was also active in her church -- St. Luke's Lutheran in Bloomington -- and volunteered to help settle Hmong families in the suburbs, as well as being active in the Loaves & Fishes food program for the hungry and VEAP (Volunteers Enlisted to Assist People). She was so enthusiastic about attending the 1980 Democratic convention that she sold some of the family belongings to pay for the trip.

"She was having garage sales, selling stuff right and left so she could afford the trip," said John Clawson.

As for the attempt to enlist in 1980, John Clawson said it was tongue-in-cheek. But it still had a point.

"I think she wanted to make the point that if the boys could go, she could go," he said. "Because she could do whatever they could."

In addition to her sons David, of Savage, and John, of Minneapolis, Clawson is survived by three other sons, Phillip Clawson, of Hastings; Richard Clawson, of Frisco, Texas; and Steven Clawson, of Colorado Springs; 11 grandchildren, and two great- grandchildren.