07/06/2026
Grandma Lu was a patriot. She believed in the promises that “All people are created equal” and “We the People.” She believed in an American identity that welcomed, accepted and loved everyone and her influence continues to shape what we do at Grandma Lu’s Hallow. All of us at Grandma Lu’s Hallow believe in the same kind of America and we proudly expand on Grandma Lu’s embrace of ALL who love Halloween.
Why does a Halloween Haunt page want to talk about America and American identity? Well, simply put, because it's the 4th of July and our nation's 250th birthday, we want to take the opportunity to join in on the conversation regarding what it means to be an American, and what kind of America we could have.
A grandchild of immigrants, Grandma Lu lived through the Great Depression and was a mother to five children, played the organ at church on Sundays, taught Sunday School, was a classroom “mother,” and a Cub Scout leader. Grandma Lu was also instrumental in starting and running her husband's woodworking business and was an active citizen in a small mid-western town. Grandma Lu also had many shut-in friends and family members whom she visited and helped on a regular basis. Being active in her community and caring for those around her were things she knew well and built her life around.
In the late 70’s and early 80’s, Grandma Lu decided to take on a new challenge: becoming a sponsor to a Cambodian family fleeing the Khmer Rouge. During this time, a genocide gripped Cambodia that saw incredible amounts of violence and over two and a half million people were killed. Many Cambodian families chose to flee to the United States and were granted refugee status. Of those who fled, some settled in South Dakota through various churches and organizations across the state, one of those being Lutheran Social Services. Grandma Lu and her daughter, Jana took on the task of helping one of these families adjust to American life and culture.
Their job description was simple: help the Cambodian family assimilate to American culture. Lutheran Social Services and their church helped the Cambodian family find a place to live and a job; the rest was up to Grandma Lu. Some of the Cambodian family members worked at the Litton factory making microwaves, but they had no transportation. So every weekday Grandma Lu would drive the family to the factory in the morning on the way to drop Jana off at school. Jana would spend time during these car rides teaching the Cambodian family basic English skills and phrases. Jana was excited to help teach English to the Cambodians and they were just as excited to learn.
There was one member of the Cambodian family that Grandma Lu was particularly fond of, the grandma. The Cambodian Grandma and Grandma Lu were similar in size, both about 4’11, roughly the same age, and both carried a mischievous grin. When the two would meet, they’d take turns bowing to one another. With neither wanting to be the first to stop, they’d each bow lower and lower, trying to show more respect than the other. Despite the language barrier, the two of them formed a bond and spent a lot of time together.
One of the things that Grandma Lu took upon herself was to introduce Cambodian grandma to the most important part of an American women’s wardrobe, the brassiere. Grandma Lu felt accomplished walking out of JCPenny with Cambodian grandmother and her new cross-your-heart bra. However, imagine Grandma Lu and Jana’s shock when they went over to their apartment and the Grandmother answered the door proudly wearing her new bra on the OUTSIDE of her clothes!
As time passed, the Cambodian family and Grandma Lu’s family accepted each other as their own. This was never clearer than when Jana was asked to be a bridesmaid for the wedding of one of the Cambodian sisters. Jana was nervous that she would stick out like a sore thumb. However, she remembered the lesson that Grandma Lu learned while helping the Cambodians; to love and respect everyone in the way that you want to be loved and respected. Jana initially felt out of place, but eventually through their mutual love and respect, she felt accepted as part of the wedding party. Jana couldn’t speak any Cambodian, and the Cambodians didn’t really speak much English but the experience transcended beyond words. In fact, after the ceremony Jana was whisked out into the parking lot which was packed full of Trans Ams with eagles painted on the hoods. MANY pictures were taken that day, especially of Jana in her pink bridesmaid dress standing next to Trans Ams.
At the wedding reception it was the Cambodian family’s turn to expose Grandma Lu’s family to some cultural experiences. The reception was a true Cambodian meal hosted at a downtown Asian restaurant. Now, keep in mind Grandma Lu’s family was a strict meat and potatoes kind of family. In fact, tacos and spaghetti were considered “exotic.” However, Grandma Lu and Jana put on a brave face and, at the encouragement of their new friends, they tried the new foods. To their surprise, they not only lived through the experience but found the food tasty.
However, it wasn’t just immigrants and refugees that Grandma Lu cared for and spent time with; it was anyone who was ostracised, lonely, or in need. Grandma Lu was well known for spending time visiting shut-ins, the elderly, and the sick. Visits often included dropping off some food, helping with chores around the house, or just sitting and visiting for a while. Additionally, you could also expect to receive lots of greeting cards from Grandma Lu, who was famous for sending cards for any reason, to anyone. Grandma Lu’s husband for years joked that she single handedly kept Hallmark in business. She called sending cards her “ministry” and it was another way that she made the people in her life feel loved, remembered, and cared about.
Grandma Lu was also an early supporter of the LGBT+ people in her life, and worked to maintain her relationships with them even when everyone else treated them with disregard. One of her many friends, who was also her hairdresser for decades, was openly gay. Not only was Grandma Lu accepting, but she also celebrated that friendship whenever she could and held him in very high regard. When a relative of hers was shunned for being homosexual, Grandma Lu went out of her way to send them even MORE greeting cards and phone calls when she could. The more of an “outcast” or “forgotten” someone was in society, the more Grandma Lu went out of her way to show them love and respect.
One of the most common questions that we get asked about Grandma Lu’s Hallow is a simple one: “Why? Why do you guys spend all of this time and effort putting on a free Halloween event for the community?” The answer, like the question, is a simple one: we run Grandma Lu’s Hallow in memory of Grandma Lu and try to pass along her love of all things Halloween to whoever we can in ways that we think Grandma Lu would appreciate. Grandma Lu believed that everyone, regardless of skin color, immigration status, sexuality, gender, income level, or anything else, was deserving of love and respect. We want to honor that belief in the things that we do at Grandma Lu’s Hallow. When you come to Grandma Lu’s Hallow it doesn't matter who you are, where you came from, what you look like, or what you believe—we believe that everyone has a place in our haunted family.
