Update: Kute Kids 'Kaus - Idaho Crew

With thanks to Grumpa for grabbing these off the sib's social media, so I can collect them and share all at once:

May 2015

Quoth Christina: Finally got the fire pit out for the summer! The kids actually ate the s'mores this year.

June 2015

Visiting Utah to hang out with their cousins from Heber and maternal grandparents

A rarity in our family, but not in others, a gathering of the maternal family tree and branches

Quoth Christina: Fun times at the science center today!

 Pool time!

 Quoth Christina: They wanted to all sleep together!

July 2015

Quoth Grumpa? Christina?: Dad is away to cheese head paddlesports convention so mice will play.

Splash pad fun times

Quoth Christina: We had a great time bowling today! 

We were even lucky enough to have Grandpa Ben and Grandma Virginia with us too!

  Quoth Grumpa: Christina posted the following pictures from their day at the park and lake Friday. 

J took a day off work and headed the family off for a day together.

Quoth Christina: We had a beautiful day playing in Coeur D’Alene.

It's been 1 year, 5 months, a few weeks, and a handful of days since I've seen this crew in person. 

In two days I will FINALLY be on my way to see them.

I can't wait. But I am SO SO SO tired!

Festival Fatigue is real.

Memorial Day 2015

Because we remember.

Because we visit when we can. 

Because we need to learn their stories.

But because the stories are lost to time

we wear the reminder NOT to forget 

every day.

For our family's Army, Air Force, and Navy veterans,

lost in service

or bearing the scars for years to come.

Update: Kute Kids 'Kaus ... Of Course: Families

With thanks to Grumpa for grabbing these off social media, so I can collect them and share all at once:

The Twins:

Kelli says: "DQ* for supper, What was I thinking!"

 *Dairy Queen

I share a lot about Grumpa and Grandmary, but the twins had a special trip in mid-March to see their relatives on the other side of the family tree --their maternal grandpa and great-grandma.

Here's the story in Kelli's own words:

I took the kids to visit my Dad ... The emotions of the day are just now coming to the surface. For those of you who don't know, my dad has Parkinson's disease. He is now in a nursing home as he can no longer be home alone. It was so sweet to see my little boy jump right in his lap and snuggle and give kisses to Papa. My kids have never known him any other way, so they just love him exactly as he is. I was tired, frustrated and just plain worn out from the trip with two grumpy toddlers and Drew, then I took the time to look at the pictures I had taken. Worth every minute to see these!

 Great Grandma Mangum and Sarah

The Idaho Krew:

Christina had this to say: "Exploring today for our Sunday walk. We saw geese, all different kinds of fish, and a turtle."

 Thank goodness for social media and digital photos. It's amazing to see them all growing up before our eyes.

Mary and Max are Going on a Mission

I Hope They Call Me On a Mission
 

Lyrics 

I hope they call me on a mission

When I have grown a foot or two.

I hope by then I will be ready

To teach and preach and work as missionaries do. 

 I hope that I can share the gospel

With those who want to know the truth.

I want to be a missionary

And serve and help the Lord while I am in my youth.*

 Words and music: Newel Kay Brown, b. 1932. (c) 1969 IRI

*These are the words of a traditional Mormon "Sunday School" song for the youth. As far as I know, there isn't a version for the more "mature" sets of missionaries that go out to serve. But there should be.

By the time you read this, Grumpa Max and Grandmary should be en route to/or in Salt Lake City, UT to get a few weeks of specialized training in preparation for about a year's missionary service at the Washington, D.C. Temple starting in October 2014. Here's a drones'-eye view of the Washington, D.C. temple.

If you can't view this video, click this link or cut and paste:  http://youtu.be/aDy81Wxqb8k

Pretty impressive, no?

Now, I'm sure there are questions.

Q: What's a mission? 

A: "Missionary (LDS Church) Missionaries of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church)—widely known as Mormon missionaries—are volunteer representatives of the LDS Church who engage variously in proselytizing, church service, humanitarian aid, and community service."
~ per a wikipedia entry

Q: What's a temple?

A: "...a temple is a building dedicated to be a house of God and is reserved for special forms of worship. A temple differs from a church meetinghouse, which is used for weekly worship services..."
~ per another wikipedia entry

Q: Why do they need retirees to do this?

A: Not to be flip, but some retirees LIKE to be busy AND they have the time. It takes a lot of work to keep humanitarian efforts going, administration churning, training ticking, etc. 

Q: But won't they miss [insert family celebrations here aka births of grandchildren, birthdays, holidays?]

A: Yes, they will miss them -- in person -- but thanks to technology, senior couples can be in contact with family more and more. Family can visit, within reason. If family emergencies or healthy issues arise, things are more flexible for senior couples. I remember visiting Grandma Ollie in D.C. when she was on her mission. I plan to visit the 'rents when they are in D.C. - and apparently I better put my bid in for a visit, since they already have reservations for others who want to visit. THEY AREN'T EVEN IN D.C. YET!


Q: Why do your parents want to do this?

A: Good question. I can't answer for them -- though I will ask -- but I suspect:
a) It's a family tradition. Grandma Ollie actually did a mission in Washington, D.C. Many of my great-aunts and uncles have been on senior Church missions. Both of my brothers went on missions; one to California, the other to Brazil.

b) Dad did not go on the "traditional" youth mission when he was the usual age. He instead served this country faithfully in the Navy during the Vietnam era.
c) Mom did not go on the "traditional" youth mission when she was the usual age. She was serving the youth of America by teaching them about English literature.

d) They have served the Church in other various ways throughout their adult life. While "retired" in Utah, they have worked together in Church service: at the Saint George Temple and in Church humanitarian work in a cannery.

e) They are healthy, willing, and able.

 I'm proud of these two!

I'm hoping to share Max and Mary's Mission Moments as we go through the year. I'm trying to make sure it's documented SOMEWHERE!

Family Trees: So Many (Broken) Branches

This will be a series of family genealogy posts all circulating around an obituary... so, I'm warning you.

You can skip ahead if not interesting to you. But as the family library/archivist/documentarian, I'm going to post these, so they are SOMEWHERE for future generations.

You know how people always make a list of things they would do if they won the lottery?

A new car!

A new house!

Vacations!

Cruises!

College funds!

Endowments Funds!

But more realistically, debt reduction!

Yes, to all of the above, but I would LOVE to have the resources to employ a team from "Who Do You Think You Are?" to  track down the information on a particular line of my family tree. That of my Grandpa Jack.

Maternal Grandma Ollie did such a good job back-tracing her family lines, back in the day before the Internet. My paternal lines are starting to come together - thanks to unique family surnames.

But my mother's father's side of the family?

Well, therein lies the mystery - and really only three to four generations back.

Bear with me ...

This is Grandmary (on a beach!)

photo c. Grumpa, this summer, Oregon Coast

 This on the left is her father's headstone, Grandpa Jack aka Jasper, and

 (right) a picture of a picture of Grandpa Jack. I don't have an actual copy of a photo, and this is a lousy one at that. This original is in Grandmary's possession. There aren't that many photos of Grandpa Jack. This is 8 years before I came along. He's holding up some of his tobacco crop; he was a farmer. The "Agrico" logo on the matte is for a fertilizer company.

 
This is the headstone for my great-grandmother Mary Ann, Jack's mother.

Here's where things get interesting.

Grandpa Jack had a brother, Ira -- pronounced in Southern as "Ory." You try taking an oral history thinking you hear Ory and it's written IRA! Not at all confusing. And the nicknames --- a curse for future genealogists.

Grandpa Jack and Great-Uncle Ira had the same mother, Mary Ann, but different fathers. Half-siblings, yes, AND different surnames. Ira's family used Mary Ann's surname of Bass. So very "interesting......." Something is up there, no?!

Anyway ...

Uncle Ira had children, Grandmary's cousins.

This is a picture of Uncle Ira with his wife Flossie.

taken at Cousin Ida's house in NC, 2010

This is Grandmary on the left with her cousin Ida on the right, c. the North Carolina road-trip of 2010.

See a similarity? (Reminds me: I need glasses - like last decade.)

That genetic legacy is on two sides of a branch of the family tree, and traces down to me, to my brother J, and to his daughter Amber. We can trace it back to great-grandmother Mary Ann. We'd like to trace it further back, but the family history is murky. So many questions, like: Why weren't Ira and Jack raised together? Who were the fathers? Who were Mary Ann's people? What was the story? Must have been a doozy. It's not been told. Also, where is the rumor-family connection to a possible Southern Native American tribe? SOME people in the family can tan like you can't believe. Others of us -- so, so, so, pale to the point of ghost-like.

Sadly, the connections to the past are being lost to time.

We learned this summer that another North Carolina relative, Grandmary's cousin and Cousin Ida's sister, Pauline - aka Ms. Polly - also died in July.

I had only visited Ms. Polly a few times, but Grandma Ollie made a point to keep in contact with Grandpa Jack's side of the family once he passed, and Grandmary continued/continues to do so. I am glad I got to visit back in 2010 and see Ms. Polly for the last time. She was frail even then, and you could see the decline, but she still made an effort for our quick visit.

I had to shoot these surreptitiously.  You need to be discreet when on a proper Southern "rock and talk" with the older generation of relatives.

I much prefer this picture from her obit. That's really how I remember her from when I was much younger.

Obits - for genealogical purposes 

Pauline “Ms. Polly” Bass Gardner

 

Goldsboro Daily News (N.C.)

July 19, 2014

July 19, 94, Pikeville (N.C.)

Pauline “Ms. Polly” Bass Gardner, 94, passed away on Saturday, July 19, 2014 at Wayne Memorial Hospital surrounded by her loving family.

Pauline was born in Johnston County on January 19, 1920, to the late Ira and Flossie Mitchell Bass. She was married to the late Grover Gardner. Pauline was a member of Pleasant Grove Free Will Baptist Church. Although Pauline leaves a vacant place in our hearts, we know she truly earned her special place in heaven. Pauline will always be remembered as a loyal woman of faith, love and respect for everyone who touched her life.

Funeral services will be held at 6:00 p.m. on Sunday, July 20, 2014 in the chapel of Seymour Funeral Home with the Rev. Barry Stallings and Rev. Anderson Barnes officiating. Interment will be on Monday, July 21, 2014 at 10:00 a.m. in the Pikeville Cemetery.

Pauline is survived by her daughter Pat and husband Nick Sutton of Pikeville; sons, Jimmy Gardner and wife Joan of Pikeville, Kenneth Gardner and wife Mary of Pikeville; sisters, Helen Thorn of Goldsboro, and Ida Padgett of Goldsboro; seven grandchildren, and ten great-grandchildren and three great-great grandchildren.

In addition to her parents and her husband she was preceded in death by her sisters, Hilda McManus and Maebelle White and brothers, Ira D. Bass and Eurice Bass.

The family will receive friends following the service at Seymour Funeral Home and at other times at the home.

The family request memorials be made to Lancaster Bryan Sunday School Class, % Pleasant Grove FWB Church, P. O. Box 36, Pikeville, N. C. 27863

Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.seymourfuneralhome.com

The Goldsboro News-Argus (N.C.)

Published in Obituaries on July 20, 2014 12:39 PM

Pauline Bass Gardner

Jan. 19, 1920-July 19, 2014

Pauline "Ms. Polly" Bass Gardner, 94, passed away on Saturday, July 19, 2014, at Wayne Memorial Hospital surrounded by her loving family.

Pauline was born in Johnston County on Jan. 19, 1920, to the late Ira and Flossie Mitchell Bass. She was married to the late Grover Gardner. Pauline was a member of Pleasant Grove Free Will Baptist Church.

Although Pauline leaves a vacant place in our hearts, we know she truly earned her special place in heaven. Pauline will always be remembered as a loyal woman of faith, love and respect for everyone who touched her life.
Funeral services will be held at 6 p.m. Sunday, July 20, 2014, in the chapel of Seymour Funeral Home, with the Rev. Barry Stallings and Rev. Anderson Barnes officiating. Interment will be on Monday, July 21, 2014 at 10 a.m. at the Pikeville Cemetery.

Pauline is survived by her daughter, Pat, and husband Nick Sutton of Pikeville; sons, Jimmy Gardner and wife, Joan, of Pikeville, Kenneth Gardner and wife, Mary, of Pikeville; sisters, Helen Thorn of Goldsboro and Ida Padgett of Goldsboro; seven grandchildren,10 great-grandchildren; and three great-great grandchildren.

In addition to her parents and her husband, she was preceded in death by her sisters, Hilda McManus and Maebelle White, and brothers, Ira D. Bass and Eurice Bass.

The family will receive friends following the service at Seymour Funeral Home and at other times at the home.
The family requests memorials be made to Lancaster Bryan Sunday School Class, Pleasant Grove FWB Church,
P. O. Box 36, Pikeville, N. C. 27863

Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.seymourfuneralhome.com.
(Pd)

WEB-CAST VIDEO CLIPS

There was even a 36 minute recording made of the web-cast of Ms. Polly's funeral service/sermon. Now, that's a first! My Grandma Ollie would NOT know what to do about that.

For the link, please go to: http://webcast.funeralrecording.com/events/viewer/6234/hash:86115587E8FF0965

So much Southern twang, but some stories and preaching bring her to life beyond the words of a printed notice.

Obituaries contain a wealth of family history information. When you can, always include them - and all versions you can find. You may think it's redundant, but sometimes, a slight variation in an obit will have a clue that another version will not. 

Happy Father's/Fathers' Day 2013!

I was flipping through all my pictures trying to find the right ones to post and discovered that I needed to expand my original thoughts about this -- to include celebrating my brothers and them acting as fathers too.

I mean, we have a great dad. The Greatest.

Even now, when we are finally all out of the Ye Old Connecticut House, (finally, even after one last trip in October 2012),

we still manage to creep back into the Western White House to catch him hiding out in the li-berry/'puter room/den-thingy.

You try to creep up on him with a camera -- and watch out for the remote smack-down.

He gets you out of your comfort zone and trying new things -- like hiking in the wilderness, and learning how to defend yourself and work on your aim.

But the grandkids have an even greater Grumpa.

He's passing on his love of the water to another generation. That's Drew out on Sand Hollow this past week with him, learning the ways of the water and paddle.

And he's a hands-on grandpa to Cannon and Sarah, teaching them important things, like rolling over and smiling for other people - occasionally.

I'm so glad I got to travel so much for all the family get-togethers this past year. But I was more glad to document the generations of my family in happy times.

Like when Uncle J finally met his newest niece and nephew back in January. Proud Papa Max/Jed/Jr. (r) want to know if J thinks "dos bebes"  happen to look like him. Regardless, Sarah wasn't impressed. (She still isn't, almost six months later.)

Then there was the double ceremony afternoon on January 26, 2013: Drew's baptism and confirmation, followed by the twins' blessings.

I love this candid on the left. That's Grumpa, his son Max/Jed/Jr. holding Cannon, all looking down at Drew. (Cameo by the biggest big brother of all, totally unintentional.)

On the right, two dads maybe relievedly thinking that they are glad that they didn't have "dos bebes" at the same time! (Also, nope - NO family resemblance at all ... noooooooooo.)

Despite being dads themselves, brothers can't help being brothers when sisters are pointing cameras at them.

Despite being an annoying older sister, I can still give props where props are due to pops.

No only can he scale tall buildings, I mean decorate with a staple gun, but Max/Jed/Jr. can feed two babies at the same time!

Not only can he dole out snark, medical jargon, and discipline where it's merited, he also can hand out hugs. One day Drew will look back and appreciate all that time he had with his dad growing up, before the twins, before school, and remember the trips they took, as well as the love of the Red Sox and UCONN that came from his father.

I think a lot of J's joshing of his older brother that weekend was because now Max/Jed/Jr. has three himself, so he'll learn what that's all about. It's not just the numbers, you can't do 1 adult : 1 kid anymore, but it's learning how to juggle different kids' ages/interests vs.one-on-one time.

Storytime is a good place to start. Teaching kids about quiet reading time, but also

having that one little thing with that one kid. Nathan has solo Poppa time -- and they are both the more awesome for it. There are also birthday trips to Wendy's, which make for cute photos and videos.

J's also great about introducing them to new activities, like kayaking, sledding, and boarding. Teaching them to be adventuresome. For my part, I can't wait to see how they learn to be simultaneously goofy, geeky, techy, and media savvy, and secure in being multidimensional.

So on this Father's Day - I salute all three of the main fathers in my life. 

I love you bros.

But I love my Daddy the bestest!

(and I have embarrassing photos to prove it.)

Sometime in my teens, c. 1980s Church Mutual event

P.S. Sorry about all the cars. And the grey hairs. And the cars!