Under the Sea - more photos

Yesterday I posted photos of our wonderful under the sea bathroom done by our artist friend John. The photos that I posted yesterday were more close up; these attempt to give a broader view of the same. This is the main wall between the door and the bathtub/shower. This is looking above the toilet with the towel rack. We got the original purple jellyfish at Pacific Beach resort. When we wanted more and Pacific Beach no longer stocked them, we were able to find them at the Seattle Acquarium.

Under The Sea

We love our bathroom now that our artist & fireman friend John did all the work. Originally it began as an idea of a sea colored room with a few ceramic fish and the glass jellyfish. But just like that verse in the Bible that says, "Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man what God had prepared for those who love Him" -- well, our idea was so nothing compared to the end result. See for yourself!
What a magnificent job he did. We will try to post a few more broader view photos soon!

Old Wisconsin Winter

I wish I knew who these people are -- relatives or friends of relatives, no doubt. Interesting people, but I love the horses and the buggy.

Poem for Nathaniel Healy (1785-1841)

My great-great-great grandmother, Rosina Healy Richardson, wrote this poem upon the loss of her father, Nathaniel Healy, son of John and Mary (Wight) Healy. Nathaniel was born in Washington, New Hampshire on July 10, 1785 and died in Topsham, Vermont on February 11th or 19th, 1841. Nathaniel was a teacher and had taught in Haverhill, New Hampshire, South Hero, Vermont and ended his days teaching in Topsham, Vermont. He only lived to 55 years of age and his daughter, the eldest of ten children, was 33 years old when he passed away. I thought it only fitting on this memorial day to read again her words of loss and love.

While I have found the graves of MANY relatives, the burial site of Nathaniel (1841) and his wife, Jane Tabor (who died in 1870), both of whom died in Topsham, VT, remain elusive.


My Father’s Gone

Thou art dear, little spot, Oh to me thou art dear
For the ashes your bosom contains
Though no willow is placed to shed the soft tear
On the sod o’er my Father’s remains.

Though no Parian marble encircles the spot
Though no ivy entwines o’er the tomb
Still the grave of My father shall never be forgot
While the wild flowers remember to bloom

The leaf that I plucked from the grave where it grew
Is now withered, forever decayed;
So my Father has gone! But affection most true
Shall remember the spot where he’s laid

And Oh may I walk in the steps that he trod
While o’er life’s troubled ocean I roam:
With religion to cheer me I’ll look to my God
And to Heavenward I’ll look for a home.

When this last scene of life shall be acted and o’er
When the cares of existence are riven
When I leave this rough region to wander no more
May I meet my dear Father in Heaven.

R ---

Echternach, Luxembourg in WWI

My great-Uncle George Sherwood sent the postcard above to his Aunt Nellie (Eva Irene Richardson) Thompson while he was in France. On the back of this photo he wrote:

Dear Auntie,

Just a line to let you know I am well. Just read your letter written the early part of Dec for my Xmas. Thank you for the kind greetings. The picture on the other side of this card is taken from the German side of the Sauer River and shows the little city we now occupy. Write to me as often as you can. I hope this will find you well. With loving greetings.

Corporal George Sherwood

108th US Engineers, American Exp Forces

Censored - Captain

WEATHER CHANGES THREATEN DISASTER

Oh, wait, that was 1955 - the world should have ended in 1975. I had to laugh when I found this in my parents "stuff" to go through. I hear echos of Chicken Little in the background. And we have four years, eleven months and two days for Al Gore's prediction of saving the earth from scorching -- and there is tons of snow all over the Puget Sound. No matter how things change, they do seem to stay the same.

Woodrow Wilson Writes to the Nation

I found this printed letter that must have been mailed throughout the country. As there is no date on it, I did a little internet search and found a printed version in a United Mine Workers publication dated October 1, 1918. During this time period George Sherwood would have been "somewhere in France" and I am sure that is the reason his family kept this letter.

A Poem for Mother

A Poem for Mother

God saw you getting tired
And a cure was not to be
So He put his arms around you
And whispered "Come to Me."
With tearful eyes I watched you
And saw you pass away;
Although I loved you dearly
I couldn't make you stay.
A golden heart stopped beating,
Hard working hands at rest.
God broke my heart to prove to me
He only takes the best.

With love from your daughter, Venca

The above poem was written by my sister after our mother passed away. I think it is a beautiful tribute to her. The photo above is of Venca and Mom at my daughter's high school play, Prince Caspian.

In Memory of Myrtilla Delaney Gilmore Thompson

Dear Auntie,
I wish I was well enough so mama could come and see you this summer, but as it is now I don’t know what we should do if she was not here. I can fritter around and do a little work part of the time and then some of the time I can’t, while if mama was gone, I would have all of the regular housework to do, and you know July and August are our very busiest months with the fruit and melons. Papa has in about 2 ½ A (acres) of melons this year and they are doing finely. Our strawberries will be ripe in at least two weeks now and probably some before then. We will have new potatoes in two weeks and are going to have beet greens this week someday. Have turnips 1 ½ and 2 inches through and our spinach is nearly ready to use. Have had radishes for a month or six weeks.

I have a snow-ball bush that has 47 great big snow-balls out in full bloom and just beside it is a peony all in bloom. It is a deep scarlet.

The Christian Church is just a short distance from our place and they are holding protracted meetings there so on the evening of my birthday, as it was very warm and pleasant, papa took me to church. It was the first time I had been in nearly 6 months.

I must close with love,
Mertie
____________________________________________________________

This photo of Mertie, Myrtilla, is the only one that I have which can definitely be attached to her. Myrtilla only lived until August of 1902 so this letter was likely written late spring or early summer beforethat when she was already ill. Myrtilla apparently taught school in the Palouse. She became ill and died when she was only 20.

I thought it was only fitting to take this opportunity to remember the life of Myrtilla Delalney Gilmore Thompson who was a joy to her adoptive mother and father, George and Nellie Thompson who missed her dearly after her death. She was young, but she faced death as a Christian with no fear, stating to those with her that she was "ready to go" to see the Lord when the time came.

I've heard it said that in Jewish tradition that worse than death is to have one's name forgotten forever. Myrtilla may not have had the opportunity to be married, raise and family and have her own generations rise up to call her blessed, but here and now we remember a young woman who "fought the good fight and kept the faith" over a hundred years ago.

Myrtilla you are not forgotten!

Miles City Utah Train Station in Winter

Along with yesterday's photo of a train snowbound in the Cascades, I also came across another photo labled Miles City, Montana. I was able to confirm the location by other photos on the internet. I am not sure of the exact date of this photo, but believe it was probably in the 19 teens or 20's. The central woman in both of these train photos looks like the same person to me. Now if I can just figure out which relative it is!

A link to another photo showing the same station is http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://freepages.military.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cacunithistories/Site%2520Graphics/Salmon_4.jpg&imgrefurl=http://freepages.military.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cacunithistories/63d_arty_cac.htm&usg=__dzmReiX6EFY3AmELfv4iGeViW5A=&h=300&w=560&sz=32&hl=en&start=0&zoom=1&tbnid=nIHgkhFaQ8cvjM:&tbnh=111&tbnw=208&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dmiles%2Bcity%2Bmontana%2Btrain%2Bstation%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26gl%3Dus%26biw%3D851%26bih%3D473%26tbs%3Disch:1&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=337&vpy=214&dur=31&hovh=164&hovw=307&tx=153&ty=139&ei=Ge0XTauUKYiTnQettuDRDQ&oei=Ge0XTauUKYiTnQettuDRDQ&esq=1&page=1&ndsp=6&ved=1t:429,r:4,s:0

Snowbound in the Cascades

I am not sure who the couple is in the front of this photo. I can think of several relatives that it might be, but nothing to attach this to yet. However, the Olympian, the train that is snowbound, began service in 1911 and in the late 1940's the train was renamed the Olympian Hiawatha so it must be some time in between those. I think most likely between 1911 and the 1920s since the photos it was with were during the same time period. I don't know how long they were snowbound. If anyone knows, I'd love more information!

1924 Delvan, Wisconsin

Came across a post-card from Myra Gulvin which she sent to let her relatives know where she had ended up after two pleasant months in Milwaukee. I'm not sure when the photo was taken, but the postmark is November of 1924.

Heading for the Salt Mines & First Date

In March of 1967 our family moved to Wiesbaden, Germany for two and a half years. I left in August of 1969 to head to college and my family got to return to the US in October of 1969 aboard the SS United States. That was a trip I wished I could have made too, but I get ahead of myself. Right after we arrived in January of 1967 Dad took us all to Garmish. He had moved there a few months earlier until we could get housing and so he had scoped out things to do. He also clearly stated that "WE are not going to be like those stupid Americans who come here and never leave the base unless they have to. We are going to see Europe". And we did. Boy did we. In fact by the time I left in 1969 I thought that if I NEVER saw another cathedral, castle or museum it would be too soon. Every spare moment we were visiting new places, people and events. It was a great high school experience and I loved it.

But again, I digress. Back to when we first arrived. So in January of 1967 we visited Garmish. A lovely little town up in the Alps. On Sunday morning before we returned to Wiesbaden, after I was all packed and ready to leave, I walked out on the balcony of our hotel and heard the church chimes rining across the hills and valleys and watched the slow giant snowflakes lazily drop to join the drifts scattered everywhere. Moving. Spectacular. Fabulous. I thought, "I am going to like it here." And I did.

In March we took another trip south and visited and stayed for a weekend at Berchtesgaden. We went off to Obersalzburg and visited the salt mines. We got to dress up as miners, ride little trains and slide down three slides - as I recall they were 80, 60 and 120 feet, but I could be wrong about that. A good time was had by all except my little brother (he's the little guy in front in the first photo above). Well, he had a good time too until he had his hand touching the wood as we slid and gave himself a friction burn. Ouch!

While riding the train I met Eric Brenner, maybe Brennan and that evening he took me out to dinner where I was treated to my first chateubriand. What an adventure and a fun memory.

In the photos above, my parents and brother are in the front of the train on the first photo. I haven't found my sister yet although she's got to be in there somewhere and she probably knows where she was sitting. I think I'm the last person on the back of the second photo. Love these trips down memory lane.

Hunting for Winter Quarters, Utah

My husband and I flew to Salt Lake City to visit relatives and planned to visit the "ghost towns" where my great uncle and great aunt and family lived between 1913 and 1924 or so. These have such charming names as Tucker, Gilluly, Soldier Summit, Castle Gate, Helper, Rains and Winter Quarters. I have a drawing of part of Tucker done by my great-grandmother and she waited for the birth of her first grand-daughter Margaret. The drawing shows the house, cellar, nearby church, hills, railroad and creek and I had had such hopes of being able to find a foundation or two and perhaps match up the drawing with the terrain. Alas, what is left of Tucker is now buried under a vastly improved road. We didn't have time to find the little cemetery that is supposed to be on the hill on the other side of the highway, but sometime hope to see if there is a little headstone for a cousin Ruby who was either stillborn or only lived a short while. So, Tucker was buried, Gilluly was only a sign along the highway with not so much as a hole in the ground to give perspective. Soldier Summit still survives with a gas station and a few houses, no longer the bustling train center it once was. We chatted with a local man who remembered Tucker and who said that the drawing looked very much like what he remembered. He told us about the museum at Helper and there we learned about the fact that all the houses at Castle Gate had been moved to land on the outskirts of Helper. So perhaps the homes of my relatives are now there, but there is no way to know which house might have been which. Castle Gate is now the coal source it was then, but fires an electric plant to keep us all warm, fed and on line with all our gadgets. I don't imagine Dora and George would recognize it now. Our last attempt, late in the day, was to find our way to Winter Quarters. Rains is now on private property and for all intents and purposes is not easily found. But we had hopes for Winter Quarters. We drove to Scofield, but then couldn't seem to find the road that was supposed to lead to Winter Quarters. As we were leaving later we saw a gas station, but by then it was too late. While there we didn't see anyone outside, driving around or otherwise available to ask for directions. So we gave up and headed back to Salt Lake. Over all it was a fun day, somewhat disappointing, but the autumn colors were spectacular and well worth the trip in and of themselves. Later, at my second cousins house, we discovered a few photos of Winter Quarters. So while we didn't make it there this time, we have these old photos to share. This photo says that it is George Sherwood, Homer Lidell and Neil Carswell, Trackman. This was taken in December of 1920. The middle man looks like George, I'm guessing that Homer is on the left and Neil on the right. But am open to being corrected about that. The photo of the saloon at the top of this entry has instructions on the back. We are NOT to hyphenate Frank's last name because if you do it "sounds like something naughty."

New Immigrants Fought for the Union

One of the surprises that I have had in learning about my family's past is that my father had two grandfathers who had immigrated to Wisconsin in the mid-1800's who fought for the Union in the Civil War. They must have had some pretty strong motivation in the middle of making their way in a new country to put down their plowshares to pick up swords. Both men were farmers near what is now the Kendall and Elroy part of Wisconsin.

Richard William Sherwood, my grandmother's grandfather, Enlisted in Co. E, 1st Wisconsin Heavy Artillery on August 19, 1864. He mustered out on June 5, 1865. Philip Weber, my grandfather's father, enlisted in Co. B, 17th Wiconsin Infantry. He was in from November of 1864 to July 29,1865.

Richard Sherwood had come to American from Kent County,England in 1851 when he was 21 years old. He was first married in England to Mary Ann Gulvin with whom he had seven children, and later in Wisconsin to her sister, Grace Gulvin, with whom he had three more. Philip Weber had come to America from Germany in 1853 when he was 22 years of age. He also had consecutive wives, Alberdian Doerning and Louise Retzloff and had four children with his first and seven with his second. Apparently there was slightly less risk to survival if you went off to war than if you were staying at home raising children (she says tongue-in-cheek).

These families converged when my grandmother Susan Sherwood, granddaugther of Richard, married Herman Weber, son of Philip Weber. They had a much smaller flock of only four children.

In both cases the pioneering families had come to American and had rented or bought farms in which they had invested much of their resources in the decade before they were called to serve their new country.

They must have seen something worth preserving when they looked at the civil war tearing at the fabric of their adopted homeland. Each of them answered the call. Fortunately both lived to turn their swords back into plowshares and lived long lives, surrounded by family in the green, rolling hills of Monroe and Juneau counties in wonderful Wisconsin.

Welcome Home, Soldier. Well done!

Uncle George Stevens Sherwood came home from France and WWI in May of 1919. He arrived at home the first few days of June, and just missed the birth of his first nephew by a few days (to his sister's intense disappointment). Among the family letters I found this welcome home packet including the carnation (I think). But the real treasure in it are his dogtags and his list of the campaigns in which he played a part. The troops landed in New York, but then returned to their own headquarters area of which his was Chicago.

A Successful Mom

I have found that parenting, more than anything else, has challenged my self-esteem and feelings of competence. I do not believe that my parents second guessed themselves as much as I have. Being blessed with strong willed, opinionated children, I have struggled to balance discipline and independence. But now that they are getting to be young adults, I've realized that while they certainly do not do everything that I would like them to do or strive to do, I really do like the people that they are turning out to be. They both love the Lord and are generally thoughtful to others and can be hard workers when they put their minds to it. However, I was rewarded (along with my husband - she said that it was about both of us) with a passing grade by one of our daughters as a result of a college summer english class. They were reading a book of essays and were required to write papers in response to what they read. Apparently one of the the original authors had a fairly dark view of what she learned in her home, but my daughter wrote the following in response to the question of what her parents had "said" to her over the years.

She wrote ---

"Mom would say that the Lord loves you and you are loved by your Dad and I very much. Do your chores and then you can play with your friends. You must go to church every week unless you're sick or you're not feeling good. If you need help don't be afraid to ask quesions. Don't worry all the time, at the end it is going to be OK. Do not smoke and take drugs because it will harm you and can kill you. Do not lie. I'ts better to tell the truth than having the guilt hover over you. It hurts you and the peole around ou. Do not sleep & have sex with a man before you are married. It's a gift that you only give to your husband. You will just hurt yourself if you do. It's a bonding and uniting between you and that person. Just ignore those people that are teasing you then they will stop. Do good in school and learn. Remember you are loved more than you know. We are right behind you."

What do you know? All those times that I thought no one was listening and that I was only talking to myself, well, some of it was seeping in ~

Her teacher wrote -- "Beautiful! Wonderful ladvice from very loving and wise parents :-)"

What do you know, I actually am a successful parent!

What God Says to His Soldiers

This showed up in my parents things. Dad had apparently received it in 1973 and this was part of an open letter to service personnel from the Wesleyan church written by David L. Keith, Director of Servicemen's Ministries. I don't know if he wrote this or not, but the scan is what was written. I thought this was well done. It speaks to me at this time, knowing that both parents have joined the Last Post and are waiting for the Grand Review.

Obituary for Bernadine Tangen Weber

Bernadine Adell Tangen Weber passed away a month ago on June 11, 2010 at her home in Happy Valley, Oregon. She was the eldest of six children born to Ole O and Kathryn M (Vandervort) Tangen. Ole had a farming homestead in North Dakota and Kathryn was the local school marm. They married and began their life in the Dakotas, but returned to Hanlontown, Iowa to help the paternal grandparents on their farm where Bernadine was born on January 18, 1923. Her parents worked on the family farm and after Ole’s father passed away later rented farms in several communities in Wisconsin. Ole’s mother lived with them for many years and Bernadine loved her very much.

Bernadine met her husband, Robert “Bob” Sherwood Weber, at church in the little town of Kendall, Wisconsin and they became interested in each other after Kathryn Tangen, asked her daughter to give that “nice Weber boy” a piece of cake that she had brought down for the kids at camp. While Bernadine and Bob were both born the same year, Bernadine had started school at four years of age while Bob started school at six. They were two years apart in school and when she graduated from high school and although he still had two years to go, they became secretly engaged. They were formally engaged when he graduated from high school two years later in May of 1942 and then World War II interfered with their marriage plans. Bob joined the Army Air Corps training to be a pilot. Cadets at that time could not be married but two years later, however, when married men were being allowed to join, single men were allowed to get married and Bernadine took a train from Portland, Oregon to Monroe, Louisiana where there were married on June 17, 1944. A couple of months later, and when Bob was to deploy to England, he became very ill with sleeping sickness. By the time he was well enough to head overseas, the war was coming to an end. They left the military and moved to a small town outside Portland, Oregon. They remained there until Jan 1953 when during the Korean Conflict, Bob again joined the Air Force. The family moved frequently and lived in California, South Dakota, Texas, Mississippi, Washington, & Oregon. They were stationed in Wiesbaden, Germany for three years. Through all the transfers and upheaval, Bernadine maintained a secure and loving home for the family. She loved to spend time drinking coffee and chatting with friends and was known for her great hospitality and ability to bake and decorate cakes. She gladly and always welcomed her children’s friends into her home whether high school, college or as adults.

When Bob retired from the military and after he built their home in Portland, Oregon, he began working as a State Farm Insurance Agent and Bernadine again carried her share of the load by being the bookkeeper/accountant for the business. Bernadine had an avid interest in family history and took great pains to compile a significant family tree for her Tangen relatives and was very active in the family Tangen reunions held every three years.

Mom was a terrific mom, always loving and caring. We miss you very much and no one can ever take your place. We look forward to seeing you again when our turn comes to cross the river Jordan. Thanks for being such a great person and thanks for living your faith in God so that we could see first hand how loving the Creator of all is and why we are so blessed that God the Son came and died for our sins. We can never repay you for the love and care we experience and for your faithfulness to God and to our family.

HAPPY VETERAN'S DAY, DADDY

I MISS YOU DADDY!
ROBERT SHERWOOD WEBER
1923-2000

Wonewoc, Wisconsin

It is so fun to come across postcards of familiar places though not from a familiar time. This post card was written from George Sherwood to his parents in 1916. This was before he enlisted in the army during WWI and I believe at this time he was attending college in Appleton, Wisconsin but this card was written in mid-August so he must have been making money to continue in school. It sounds like he was working at a camp and had someting to do with boats. He was apparently having a good time. I'm not sure why he sent the card that had a photo of Wonewoc, but this was his choice!

I love the buggy and the pedestrians frozen in time -- almost 94 years ago.

Wonewoc today for comparison - if this link works :-)

http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ie=UTF8&q=wonewoc+wi&fb=1&gl=us&ei=41vzS9bBMo6mswOPouGlDA&ved=0CBUQ8gEwAA&view=map&geocode=FZAWmgIdm0yf-g&split=0&sll=43.653539,-90.223619&sspn=0.023681,0.015800&iwloc=A

Baraboo, WI Street Scene

I know I read on line that Baraboo has a circus museum, but seriously, was this really a street scene in Baraboo, Wisconsin in 1915??????? That is when it is postmarked - April 16, '15

"Spring Fever" poem by Dora Lindsay

Perfect description of how I feel today. Good dose of Spring Fever! Oh, to just sit in the sun and relax all day or read a book. Took my hour of fun (finding and scanning this poem) and now it's back to work. Enjoy ~ Dora wrote this in May of 1924 while living in Price, Utah.

Lines by Nathaniel Healy

I found this poem apparently copied by my great-great Aunt, Evalina (Nellie) Richardson Thompson. In her early years she had very tiny and distinctive handwriting. The poem is entitled Lines by Nathaniel Healy and is either written by her grandfather Nathaniel Healy or her uncle, Nathaniel Church Healy. If the former, it was written before he passed away in 1841; if the latter, before 1874 when he passed away while in London, England. Both Nathaniel Sr. & Jr. were Universalist in their Christian beliefs while other family members were strong Congregationalists including their son and brother Joseph Warren Healy who was a Congregational Minister as well as a physician and an educator. They must have had some very interesting dinner conversations!

Lines by Nathaniel Healy


When people to their end are brought
And hope of life forsakes them
If reason hold they’ll stretch a thought
Where death will likely take them..
As hope or fear preponderate
So they drew their conclusion
And hence from reason form their faith
Or else from strong delusion.

The curious world do eager wait
To catch their last expression
And argue thence their final state
On their death bed profession.
But if this dogma prove correct
Which common sense would distance
Infallible ‘Twould prove each set
That ever had existence.

For any age where was the sect
But died with [faith] unshaken
And were their systems all correct
Or else were all mistaken.
They each have persecution caught
Or of it have partaken
From worshipper of Juggernaut
Down to the humble Quaker.

They have been tortured, burned or maimed
And hanged and whipped and banished
Yet of their faith were not ashamed
And every fear had vanished
With facts like these before my eyes
I’ve come to this decision
That all we know beyond this state
We’ve learned from tradition


If any should my faith inquire
When I in death shall falter
I think if reason doth remain
My faith will never alter.
I have a hope of future life
And think all will enjoy it
But know not when or how or where
Or how we shall employ it.

I think that Pain, Disease and Death
By which we are amazed
Were all created here in time
Of course must be destroyed.
When we immortal shall be raised
And changed to incorruption
Our happiness will be complete
And know no interruption.

Poem for Golden Anniversary of David and Rosina Jane Stevens

Fifty years have come and vanished
Gliding down life’s turbid stream
With their changeful lights and shadows
Seeming almost like a dream.

Fifty years when looking forward
At the time how long it seems
Fifty years when looking backwards
Vanished like a dream of dreams.

Very beautiful the mornings
When the suns first ray of light
Wakens all the earth to gladness
With a radiance pure and bright.

But the time that speaketh ever
To our hearts with matchless power
Is when gazing on the splendor
Of the golden sunset hour.

Spring with tender leaves and blossoms
Is an ever welcome guest
And we sometimes almost fancy
That we love her coming best

But we know the year’s best treasures
Come to us in after days
When we garner up the harvest
In the Autumn’s golden days

And we thank our Heavenly Father
With a grateful heart today
That so much of joy and blessing
Has been yours along the way.

Fifty years of life together
In the sunshine and the rain
May the chain so long unbroken
Many added links obtain.

Mrs. Julia (Whitcher)Richardson

(Sister-in-law of Rosina Jane Stevens & wife of her brother Nathaniel Healy Richardson)

Interestingly, on the back of this two page poem with faded velvet ribbon, is another little section which says "last verse". Apparently the idea was not to add any sense of the inevitable end to this marriage and so cast a pall on the festivities of the day. The final section reads and is in a different handwriting ~

And the faithful strong affection
That hath made your life so bright.
Shall go with you to that country
Where there iso pain nor night.

Letter from Grandma and Grandpa

What a treat to find this draft of a letter sent to me so many decades ago. The original seems to be long gone, but my grandmother's rough draft was found among other letters. Grandmother was always a bit eccentric, but I find that as I get older I am getting more that way myself. Can't you just imagine this old man finding clovers in the pasture and telling his wife about them? And then they both wander down to the old pasture and dig it up and discuss where best to plant it. Such insight into the lives of my old people when I was but an infant and they were 71 and 57. They wrote

__________________________________________________

"And He took them up in His arms, put His hands upn them and blessed them." Mark 10:16

Dear Precious little Grand-daughter,

Grandfather found this lovely five -leaf clover and two others in the pasture north of the cow barn on the old Wisconsin Farm on your Great Grandfather Sherwood's ninety-third birthday anniversary (Aug 28th) and then we both went down in the pasture and dug up the plant and found that it had another five lobed leaf and four four-lobed leaves. I planned to plant it the next day on your little brother's birthday anniversary (Aug 29th) but was not quite sure just where would be the best place and also did not have time. Thought surely I would get it planted on your birthday anniversary but unexpected things came up to delay even getting this written, though my thoughts and prayers were with you all the day and I kept singing and humming "That Little Girl (Boy) of Mine."

All the dear, cute interesting things which Ronald does make me ache realizing how much we are missing of the dear, cute, interesting things which you are doing at your age, and how much we are missing of you as an individual, our own precious little Grand-daughter.

We so long to see you and hold you in our arms and be with you and have you here on the Old Wisconsin Farm and we hope and pray that it shall be possible next summer for all of you out there to come and see us all here and you and Ronald play together and all of you get acquainted with Ronald's little sister or brother.

And perhaps sometime we can visit you in your own home.

God bless and keep you always.
Lovingly and prayerfully, Special Birthday Hugs and Kisses

Grandpa and Grandma

_______________________________________________

Front page) Pink Stationary

Large five-lobed clover fastened with stem through slits

To Our Precious Little Grand-Daughter

On Her First Birthday Anniversary

The Best of Lovingly, Prayerful Wishes

For All the Years To Come

From Her Loving

Grandfather and Grandmother

The Rains Came Down and the Floods Came Up

On January 17th we headed south to visit and help out (donate our time) at a mission in Vicente Guerrero, Baja, Mexico. We got ourselves on the plane first thing in the morning, had a routine flight and bingo, were shortly on our way south of the border. We reached the border in about 20 minutes, and then spent the next nearly three hours figuring out how to get our visa's since we were going south of Encinada and staying longer than two days. It was one of those "so close and yet so far" experiences (finding parking and looking for the office) but at last we had the highly sought after little pieces of paper (that actually said we could stay for 180 days!) and off we went. No side trips now as the afternoon was waning and it was nearly dark when we reached out destination five hours south of the border. This was my husband's third trip and my second and it was fun to be back there again.

The week started off just as usual. Last year one of our daughters had stayed down there for nearly six months and had spent a great deal of time helping out in the prayer garden. I took some photos for her so she could see how nice it was looking. When I had free time I looked for unusual birds in the garden as well.

The area had had a drought for several years and while the mission has it's own wells and treated water supply, everyone was hoping and praying for rain. On Tuesday our second day there we had a nice rain and everyone was greatful. Wednesday was another beautiful day and we heard that we were to have more rain on Thursday. Thursday dawn overcast and chilly and a small group of us headed off to the kitchen to do breakfast set up duty. We were fortunate, because after set up began and before breakfast started, the rain started coming down. Really coming down. Sort of like standing in a shower kind of coming down! Wow! I'm used to rain, being a northwesterner, but this was RAIN. Fortunately it didn't last too long at that rate, but tapered off to a normal shower. All those people who got to sleep in an extra 30 minutes got wet (but not we who were so diligent! -- well at least not yet).

After breakfast and Sala we headed off to our respective activities of the morning. At break-time we noticed that there was a lot more water than usual running down the road, but didn't think too much about it. But as we arrived at break the news was spreading "Go, Pack!" "We are evacuating." We were throwing stuff into suitcases, rolling up sleeping bags and grabbing pillows and toiletries and then even bigger news came. "Never mind, we can't leave, the bridge is out." This was an interesting idea since there is only one bridge. How badly was it out? What did that mean exactly??? But then we realized that there was even more excitement coming and there was no time now to worry about the bridge. Our worrying was closer at hand! Not only had it rained hard where we were, it had rained hard in the hills. (We found out later there were three feet of snow in the moutains to the east.) And now we were dealing with flash flooding. All of a sudden we were getting organized to put some real effort out to keep the Casa's (orphanage homes) from getting flooded. The office was already flooded a bit and part of the elementary school. So we all started trying to help out. At first it was a bit comical as there was not a central leader stating what everyone should be doing, but slowly those who could lead did and got us fairly organized. For the next few hours we were racing the water. The mission staff took their responsibilities seriously and important things like making sure fresh water was sealed off from the run off was taken care of. They also found us supplies or sent us off to locate them in the warehouse.

There is an old SundaySchool song where "The rains came down and the floods came up" and that was what we were experiencing first hand. We got to fill and haul sandbags (I moved two and then realized a third would likely leave me never moving again!) and helped out in a variety of ways moving perishables up out of the way of the incoming water, etc.

By evening the water had started to recede and the worst news was that we could not take showers. In the grande scheme of things that's not really the worst thing that could happen, but since I had been planning an afternoon shower on Thursday, which would have been my second one since Sunday morning, that was a bit of a blow. And we were a mess, all of us. We had been walking around in nearly knee high water with who knows what all floating around in it for hours. When I pealed those socks off, they went straight into the trash. There was not even any point in attempting to get them clean.

That night a lot of the guys and a few hardy woman walked around the grounds to check out barriers and to be ready to notify everyone if the rain started up again. Fortunately, while it continued to rain the next few days, it was in moderation.

But the damage was long done. The bridge was out and the question was now long it would be before "someone" organized a repair or a replacement. We walked down to see what was going on and got to look across to where we wanted to go! Jeremy from our group had welded a "basket" and John from our group (a fireman by trade) and Jeremy helped the local officials to get two pregnant women with complicated deliveries across the river to the hospital. The next day it was used to bring blankets and supplies back and forth wherever the need was. Personally, I would really NEED to get to a hospital before I could be convinced to travel across in a basket like that (not that I don't trust Jeremy's welding). But this was being done with an aluminum cable rather than steel, so a little more risky (or exciting I suppose).

The local government (or maybe higher up, who knows) decided to "fix" the problem by diverting the river all to the side where the bridge remained up and to pile dirt and rocks up until the could drive off the end of the bridge onto the dirt and down to the river bed and across. It was an interesting idea and I'm not exactly sure how they plan to really replace the bridge if they have a temporary "fix" at the end when it would connect. But I guess I don't have to worry about it -- and next year we'll see if they've made any progress :-)!

Fortunately for us as well Discoll Strawberries was on the same side of the downed bridge as we were and they were EAGER to get their produce north (Yeah, you see them at Costco!). Saturday, our day to leave, came and went and we were still there. And Monday and Tuesday. But fortunately we we able to have a (one, only one) shower over the weekend so I got mine on Sunday afternoon.

Tuesday we went on an outreach to a worker camp playing with the kids and providing them with a few essentials. On the way back we could see semi trucks lined up two deep on both sides of the main road in town. This was a good sign!

And at 8 PM the trucks started rolling across the dirt ramp and when we got up at 6 and left at 7 AM there was hardly a vehicle to be seen anywhere. The road to Encinada was practically empty and we made it back to the border in record time. We even only had a 20 minute wait at the border.

Here we are heading for the end of the bridge ! A few days ago a drop off into empty space.

And here we are sloping down toward what would have been the river bed a few days before. We waved out the windows and called "Gracias!" as we finally started for home.

All in all it was a great trip. It was more of an adventure than we had anticipated. We were stretched in our faith to trust God for the outcome and we were all pleased that we got to help out our friends in Baja. It was actually perfect. We were there a total of 11 days instead of seven, we got to experience a dramatic event and help make a different and, yet, the whole time we had warm beds, clean water and even our usual morning coffee. A good time as had by all! Three of the group had to go home earlier for various important reasons and they got to experience flying on little private planes from Vicente Guerrero to Encinada and then taking a taxi to the border and a second from the border to the airport (or some variation on that). And we got to be on the news, American's stranded in Mexico.

Oh, and the prayer garden survived! A little muddy but not too much the worse for wear. The plants looked greener (probably because the dust was washed off) and they all got a long-awaited extra large drink!

We do praise God for His care and faithfulness and that we could help bring comfort to others in real need!

For more info on the mission/orphanage and all it's fabulous services and ministries to the community, see http://www.ffhm.org/. For our news report see http://www.king5.com/news/local/Local-Group-Stranded-in-Mexico-82571922.html

Healy & Steel; Resting Together in Peace

Before we traveled off to Washington, New Hampshire, I had discovered, or been discovered by another descendant of the Steel family through Ancestry.com. Between information the two of us had, we were able to verify that Church Tabor's wife, Elizabeth Steel, was the daughter of John and Jane Steel. There are a few sources that have Jane as the wife of James Steel, but we think that Patricia, James' actual wife, would have some complaints about this idea. Jane is buried next to Church Tabor, her son in law (see previous post about them) in South Hero, Vermont. I found records that John had died and been buried in Massachusetts. That information had him dying about a month after his wife. That seemed odd to me but the discovery that Jane and John had four other children besides Elizabeth and their youngest (married) daughter lived in Massachusetts cast some light on this situation. It is likely that after Jane passed away, John, who was likely living there in South Hero as well and in fact might have been the first of the group to move to South Hero, probably decided to go to either live with his daughter Sarah or to visit her before the harshest part of winter set in. He was apparently taken ill and died there a month after Jane had passed away in South Hero. He was buried in Massachusetts either for convenience of those in Massachusetts, or because winter was setting in and it would have been difficult to transport him to South Hero to rest by his wife. Of course, there could be other skeleton's in the closet and maybe husband and wife had separated years before. Maybe we will find out some day -- or not.

But back to Washington, New Hampshire. Church Tabor and Elizabeth Steel were married in September of 1782 in Washington, New Hampshire. Perhaps they knew each other previously since the Tabor family came from Rhode Island and before helping to build the Meeting House at Washington, Church had helped with the original Meeting House (now gone) in Nelson, New Hampshire. Or perhaps all the families moved there for one or another reasons and they met there. Regardless of how they met, John Steel, Jane's husband and Elizabeth's father, was the brother of William Steel who was well known in Washington, NH. William had a major dispute with John Healy (husband of Mary Wight formerly of Dedham, Massachusetts). John & Mary Healy and family had moved from Newton, Massachusettes to Washington, New Hampshire in 1778. John lived in the south of the town, right on the border of Stoddard, New Hampshire. William Steel lived closer to the center of the town and both men had strong opinions about where the Meeting House should be built. William apparently stirred things up quite a bit and finally John and other members of the community decided to try to annex the south part of Washington and create another town. This got William's wind up and he invoked the state legislature and once they got involved they determined the meeting house would be built where it now stands (neither John nor William's first choice) and everyone could just live with it -- and no new town -- and so they did.

So Church Tabor and colleagues got to work on the Meeting House and one could say they all lived happily ever after. Perhaps after that big brouhaha things settled down and John Healy (my great X 5 grandfather) and William got along for the rest of their lives. John lived until August 19, 1810. William died on October 26, 1810, apparently falling off his horse and drowning in a stream. Some descendents have wondered if he was helped along to drown, but since John had passed away previously, we know he did not help him along. Why is it important that these men lay down their differences? Well, John Healy's son, Nathaniel, married Church Tabor and Elizabeth Steel's daughter Jane Tabor (my great X 5 grandmother). So William is stuck with the Healy family because Nathaniel, John's son, married William's niece.

Whether or not they could get along well in life -- which they probably did except for having strong and differing opinions on various topics -- they now lie near each other in the Old Washington Cemetery. In the photo above, the large Healy monument marks the final resting place of 13 Healy's of three generations; next to that monument is a row of Steel slate headstone (not the closest two, but the further back line of 6), including William, Hannah his wife, Sarah Putnam Steel, William and John's mother, and a few others. All together they lie silently as the seasons cycle through year after year. In 2010 the two strong pioneer men who helped build New Hampshire, the Washington Meeting House and whose children and grandchildren helped to settle Vermont and later Wisconsin and Minnesota and beyond, will have rested only feet apart for 200 years. It looks like the children and great grandchildren have had the last laugh. And a good reminder why we need to treat all people well -- you never know who will end up on the branch next to you on your family tree.