Serving as honorary grandparents for the neighborhood

(ALOHA) — Marjie and Ed Ramirez are known as their neighborhood's abuela and abuelo.

The common refrain in their yellow home at the end of the cul-de-sac is that the duo is only one phone call away from their grandchildren — biological or chosen family.

Photos of familial and honorary grandkids — including the Ramirezes’ 10 grandchildren and a few of the neighborhood children — line the walls of their home's entryway.

It’s been years since the couple has been “taken in,” as they like to say, as honorary grandparents to the neighborhood. It started as an invite to a family cookout down the block, and now the Ramirezes are integral to the families around the street.

“They took us in and made us honorary grandparents,” Ed Ramirez laughed.

For the Ramirezes, that includes holidays, baptisms, birthdays and all other forms of celebration. But the role of grandparents doesn’t stop when the good times take a pause.

When extended family or neighbors need assistance during medical procedures, handling legal matters or responding to emergencies, they know who to call (In part thanks to the Ramirezes' ensuring each biological and honorary grandchild had the couple's phone number memorized).

Marjie Ramirez takes pride in jumping in the car, booking a flight or walking across the street to help wherever she is needed.

“When someone calls, I go,” she said. “It’s a matter of tradition.”

Ed Ramirez is one of seven children in his family, so it came as second nature to treat the children around him just as he saw his mom treat family friends — And that sentiment extends beyond their children and grandchildren.

“When our friends came around, she fed them or gave them clothes we weren’t wearing. She treated them like her own kids, and that was the way I grew up," Ed Ramirez said.

“We are now doing that for the neighborhood kids. It brings back our own good memories.”

Sometimes, the calls are less serious, like being beckoned to kill a big spider at the neighbor’s home while the parents are away. In another recollection, the Ramirezes remember fondly making sure another set of neighborhood kids had everything they needed for the back-to-school season.

“Our door is always open, there’s always food and drinks in the fridge, and if you’re hard-pressed, we have a bed to sleep on,” Marjie Ramirez said. “It’s how I grew up. It’s our tradition.”

The 70-year-old’s calendar looks more packed than a college kid’s, between family engagements and spending time with her grandchildren. But Marjie Ramirez, a retired longtime journeyman with IBEW Local 48, and Ed Ramirez, a retired Multnomah County corrections officer, both know how to be busy and stay calm under pressure.

Not every neighborhood has grown as tightly knit as the one the Ramirezes live in, but that’s what makes it all the more special.

“Marjie and her husband Ed have successfully ridden herd over their own grandchildren for years, but that is not enough,” said neighbor Gina Harris in nominating the Ramirezes. “She has also become the adopted Abuela to most of the children on the block and looks out for all of the neighbors. We know we can go to her, but also that she will check on us. She is caring, funny, and most likely to organize a block party.”