Att#13 (Family Member Biography - due Friday Week #14)

Neal Miller may just be another man to the rest of the world, but to his family, he is everything. From an early age, he was very important in his parents eyes. He was the youngest of eight children and full of energy. His nickname growing up was gopher because he would stuff his cheeks with food and store it for later. Neal comes from a family of farmers, which would later become his own profession. From an early age he started helping his father on the farm with his first chore being having to hold the tail of the cow while his father milked it. His other daily chores revolved around the farm with gathering eggs from the chickens which he greatly disliked because of the chicken's pecking at him. Being that he was the youngest, his older sister's liked to pick on him. They would make him play dress up and pretend he was their little sister instead. They were loving sisters however, and grew up to all become teachers. Neal's fondest memory of his home growing up was a long bench they had. His siblings and him would all cram to sit on it to keep warm as it sat above a heater. Although Neal grew up in the 60's, the upstairs of the house did not have heat. His earliest childhood memory is grabbing his clothes the minute he woke up and running to the bathroom to get dressed as the bathroom remained warm. The Miller's were a close family growing up and enjoyed eating meals together that were made by his mother and sisters. They also regularly played games together, especially card games which was a tradition continued by Neal's own family when he had one. Because they were busy on the farm, they did not have much time for a lot of extra vacations. However, Neal and his siblings did enjoy riding bikes and going to the local lake to swim. His favorite family tradition was their Christmas Eve tradition. After attending church, they would come home and enjoy oyster stew. In the fall when he went off to school it was to the local school located in Manson, Iowa. He went there until he graduated high school where he ended his education. Neal could not afford college and began working and eventually became a farmer just like his father and grandfather. Neal married Madonna Krebs on Auguest 9, 1986. They went to high school together and Madonna's strong-will and loving manner led Neal to be attracted to her. A very unforgettable event, unfortunatly, happened the day before they were to be wed. Madonna's mother passed away from a long fight with cancer. However, they continued with the wedding and it turned out to be a good time enjoyed by all. After being married for a few years, they had their first child a son they named Blake and few years later a daughter named Blair. Neal's proudest moments were the day they were born, being with them while they accomplished all their achievements throughout their lives, and watching them grow to be successful young adults. As a family, they enjoy going on vacations together and spending time with eachother. Whether that be going to games, playing games, or celebrating holidays together. Neal wants people to remember him by being a generous, honest man who treated everyone fairly. The world has been greatly touched with such a loving man and he will be missed when he is gone.
I interviewed my father for this assignment. He is 52 years old and although we are very close, I wanted to know more about him when he was younger. At first I didn't think I would enjoy this assignment because I didn't think I would learn anything new about him but I was very wrong. I enjoyed watching him talk about his childhood and how different it was from my childhood. I believe I took a historicist approach during this assignment because I looked at the time frame when my father was growing up to understand why him and his family did certain things.

-I interviewed my grandfather, Roger Leininger.
-He is 69 years old
-I chose to interview him, because we have always been close and I wanted to learn more about his childhood and life experiences.

Roger Lee Leininger; husband, father, son, grandfather, and brother was born to Lois and Herbert Leininger on September 16, 1943 in Boone, Iowa. His parents brought him home to a simple farm house right outside of Ogden, Iowa where his older sister, Helen, was eager to meet him. A few years later, Roger and Helen were joined by their younger sister Doris. The Leininger farm home was a large house consisting of 6 rooms, 1 bathroom, a kitchen, and a dining room with no running water. Roger recalls how much of a pain bath time was having to warm up water and then haul it to the bathtub. One thing in the house that he particularly remembers is a skinny cupboard next to their telephone hiding all sorts of forbidden trinkets that he snuck into regularly.
Roger was born into a laid back and easy going family that enjoyed spending time together. Holidays were always a special time, because all of the family was able to get together. Christmas Eve was always spent at one set of grandparents and then Christmas day at the other set. Aside from holidays, the family spent time together every night at dinner, which his mother cooked. Roger says that his mother was a superb cook, and they always were well fed. His favorite meal that his mother would make the family is roast beef or pork chops with mashed potatoes and gravy. The Leiningers were known for their talent in the kitchen. Homemade Dandelion wine and ice cream are a couple of delicious family recipes that have been passed down. The oldest relatives he can recall from his childhood are his grandparents. He just remembers them being really old and wrinkly.
The three Leininger children had various chores on their family’s farm. Roger even vividly remembers hauling water to their chickens in his own little red wagon as a young child. In his free time he enjoyed activities like fishing and hunting with his father and grandpa. He also enjoyed playing outside and playing checkers with his rowdy best friends who nicknamed him Crowbar. His favorite toy growing up was his blue Donald Duck tricycle, because it was his first and no one he knew had one like it. Roger’s earliest memory was when he was four years old and his father let him screw in the license plates on their new car.
Roger attended grade school in Rippey, Iowa. Although he was he enjoyed geography, and spelling, he was not fond of school. His worst class was English, and would have much rather preferred to have been playing outside. School got more enjoyable as he entered high school in Nora Springs, Iowa. Roger became the town sports star, and participated in football, wrestling, and track. He made the local newspaper multiple times for his achievements, and ran in the state track meet in sprinting events. One of the fads in high school was to not wear a belt. To his disappointment the rule at school was a belt had to be worn every day. He and his friends would beat the system by wearing the skinniest belts possible.
After high school, Roger veered away from farming and chose to attend Hamilton Business College in Mason City, Iowa. While in college, he met his future wife. This woman was JoAnn Louise Erickson. JoAnn’s beauty caught Roger’s eye, and he had a lot of competition. After many movie dates, he asked her to be his wife one night at JoAnn’s apartment in February of 1964. Roger had no ring, so the couple went together to pick out their $27.50 wedding bands. A year later they married on March 22 of 1965 at Saint Luke’s Lutheran Church in Nora Springs, Iowa. They now have been married for 47 years, and Roger says that an open mind is key to his successful marriage. Together they had three children; Steven, Kristine, and Jason. Roger says his proudest moment as a parent was when his first child was born. Their family enjoyed going to school activities together, hunting, fishing, and having get-togethers with other family members.
Roger Leininger is a hard working family man that I know today as my grandpa. He is not only the most influential man in my life, but many people in our small Nora Springs, Iowa community look up to him. He is most proud of being able to provide a good living for his family, and wants to be remembered as a kind person. I couldn’t imagine my life without him, and I will teach my future children all of the many lessons he has taught me throughout my life.

I decided to interview my grandpa, Herb Walter. He is 73 years old. I chose my grandpa because he is one of my older relatives that I really look up to and admire. I have always wanted to know more about his life and this gave me the perfect opportunity.
Herbie “Herb” Jay Walter was born in 1939 one mile north of Quasqueton, in the home farm house. He has no idea why his parents picked the name “Herbie”, and sometimes he wishes they hadn’t! There was no naming tradition in his family, and he doesn’t know much about his family surname. Growing up, everyone always commented that he looked like his father. His parents, LD and Enid Walter, both worked at the Mental Health Institute in Independence, where they met and later married. They saved up enough money to buy the farm house and begin the family farm. The house was very small, simple, and modest. There was one bedroom downstairs and two upstairs. Herb was lucky and had 2 sisters, Jane and Peg, who shared a bedroom, so he got his own. They had a hand-crank telephone until he was 5-6 years old, and an outdoor backhouse until he was 8-9 years old. They also had a systern pump at the kitchen sink to pump water by hand, and did not get running water until he was 5-6 years old. The only special item in the house was a buffet that sat against the wall in the dining room that his mother used to serve food from on family get-togethers. They ate all of their meals together as a family, which was always prepared by his mother. His favorite meal was always on Sundays: home cooked chicken and mashed potatoes and gravy. His mom also cooked for all the holidays, were which always at their house too. The oldest relative he remembers is his grandmother Minnie. He always felt so bad for her because she was so old and frail and spent most of her time in the nursing home. She died at 90 years of age, and he remembers her as a nice, sweet lady. Sunday was also the day they attended the Quasky Union Church, a non-denominational church. He and his sisters attended church as well as Sunday school there. Herb, Peg, and Jane all had chores to do, and Herb’s mainly included helping his father on the farm. He would feed the pigs and cows, and help get the cows ready for milking. They always had a dog on the farm that would help him get the cows in from the pasture. He had a lot of dogs, though, since many were hit on the gravel roads. He said this was a common occurrence for farm dogs and they just had to deal with it. He also had to clean out the chicken house and the hog pens, which he greatly despised. Aside from the work, Herb enjoyed playing outside with his sisters and neighbor kids. One of his first memories is riding his new bike, or building airplanes with sticks that he nailed together. He mainly had to make his own toys if he wanted to play with any. He enjoyed playing “hide and seek” with his sisters, which they played day and night! He also enjoyed playing baseball and hunting squirrels with the neighbor boys, who taught him how to shoot a gun and handle it safely. If he or his sisters misbehaved, their dad would cut a willow switch off of the willow tree and give them a stinging in the butt! Herb says he learned to never make the same mistake twice! However, he says his parents, although strict, were always understanding and helped them to have fun even when they had to do chores. They never got to spend much time together as a family, since the farm needed taken care of and raising 3 kids wasn’t easy! He remembers his parents only taking one vacation away from home the whole time he was growing up. His family enjoyed going on picnics, watching sports, and visiting the neighbors. The things he learned most from his parents are: good morals, honesty, respect for others, and to get the job done no matter how hard it was or how long it took. He never received an allowance, but his dad would give him money sometimes when he needed it. While he was growing up, the United States was engaged in what we call the Cold War with Russia. He remembers being terrified as a small boy that Russia would attack us. Herb attended grade school at Quasqueton Elementary, and his first day of school was horrifying for him. His mother took him, dropped him off, and left him. He had never been alone like that before, but his teacher helped him through it and he enjoyed school very much. His best subject was math, and his worst was history. One of the fads in junior high was the “mo hawk”. In high school he played baseball and basketball and participated in high school plays. He was mentioned in a newspaper for basketball when he was in high school. He was very good at it and got picked for the “all county first team”. His inspiration for this was a pro basketball player named “Hot Rod Hundley”, who was his teenage hero. His favorite singers were Elvis Pressley, Conway Twitty, Wanda Jackson, Dolly Parton, and Waylon Jennings. He finished high school in Quasky as well, and attended and graduated Upper Iowa University in Fayette, IA. He graduated with a teaching certificate to teach General Science, Biology, and English, but did the pay at that time was only $3500 a year, so he did not pursue a teaching career. He instead went to work at Colins Radio in Cedar Rapids as a scheduler/coordinator for the Gemini and Apollo space programs. He only worked there for 2 years because of the low pay, and quit and started work at Allis Chalmers factory in Cedar Rapids. This company sold out the P & H Manufacturing, where he worked for 21 years while also farming the home farm. He really wishes he would have gone into teaching, but the pay was just not there. He made more money, got good health care, and even some retirement at the factory, but the work was very hard. He married Janice Kress shortly out of college, and they had two children Chris (my dad) and Angie. He remembers coming home from work one night and Janice said, “Hey, we are going to have a baby!” Chris was named after his great grandfather, and he is unsure of Angie’s name. His proudest moment as a parent was when he found out the baby was born, healthy, and everything was going to be ok. He and Janice divorced after 20 years of marriage. Herb remained single for several years until he posted an ad in the Cedar Rapids Gazette in the section that we would now compare to “online dating”. He got a response from a woman named Carol, who met him for coffee one morning, and he says the rest is history. They went on dates to races, movies, but what really interested them both was antique hunting. They spent much of their time searching for antiques. Since each of them had previously been married, neither one really proposed. They simply just started talking about it and set a date. They got married at his great uncle’s mansion on Cedar Rock in the boat house on July 29, 1994. His great uncle was Lowell Walter who built the Frank Lloyd Wright House on Cedar Rock in Quasky, IA. Frank Lloyd Wright was known as the world’s greatest architect. The most memorable thing about his wedding was when he asked his 4 years old grandson Jonathan (my brother) to be his best little man and stand by him, he refused. There was no amount of pleading that could convince him, he said he was “absolutely not going to do that!” When he then asked his granddaughter Sarah (me), she agreed with no problem. He has been with Carol 24 years now, and he says there are many things that contribute to a successful marriage. He says the most important ones are the ability to say “I’m sorry, I was wrong”, and to be able to kiss each other goodnight at the end of each day, and not letting the sun set on an argument. Carol is a wonderful woman who was faced with the task of raising two children all by herself. She is very good with kids, generous to those who are less fortunate than her, and very smart and understanding. Herb is most proud of farming the family farm. It took a lot of work, which is why he has two artificial shoulder implants and arthritis in all of his joints today. He had to learn the operation from the ground up, and often times the hard way. Although both of his parents have passed away now, he has many things handed down to him, and unfortunately he doesn’t have any of his mother’s recipes because his sisters took them all! He says this may not be a bad thing because then he doesn’t have to cook, but can still enjoy his mom’s recipes. He thinks the world is totally different today because of technology. Although it is beneficial, he says things are just not like they use to be. He also feels we have lost some of our moral upbringing in young people. He says a lot of young people just don’t have any respect for others, while he knows many others who are the nicest, most polite kids we could ask for. Altogether, he says he’s not sure; maybe kids are just as good as they were back then! He hopes people will remember him as a hard worker, very honest and caring, generous to others, and having a robust laugh.
I know that this is how I will always remember my grandpa. He is so very special to me and I am glad I decided to involve him in this assignment. I learned so much more about his life that I probably wouldn’t have known otherwise. I definitely have a new appreciation for him and a new outlook on things. I think I took a historicist approach because I looked at how life was during his childhood and years after to compare how things were and what it would have been like. I really enjoyed this assignment!!

For this assignment I was very excited because it is a lot different from assignments we’ve done so far in the semester. I chose to interview my mother, Colette Vincent, because she is one of my favorite people and I look up to her a lot.
Colette Vincent is 58 years old and was born and raised in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Her parents chose the name Colette because they thought that it was beautiful and unique, but her friends referred to her as “Colettie”. The house Colette grew up in was a new edition in the neighborhood of Bowman Woods and had four bedrooms and two bathrooms. She shared a bedroom with her sister and shared the bathroom with her sister and three brothers. The majority of their family’s relatives still lived in Illinois, and they moved to Cedar Rapids after Colette’s mother finished nursing school. There was one telephone in the house which everyone shared. One of the memories Colette has, although she was very young, is that there was a gas leak in the first home they lived in and they got to a neighbors house just in time and actually witnessed their house blow up. Colette describes her personality as a lot like her sister’s- loud, giggly, and always getting into trouble. Her youngest brother was very quiet and usually got picked on the most. Her older brothers tried to be more responsible but still got into a lot of trouble in their teen years. Colette’s mother and father were strict and old fashioned. Everyone attended Catholic school. For fun, Colette and her sister would go to parties in their teen years and stay at their cabin by the lake. Her favorite things she remembers from her old bed room were posters of celebrities she had crushes on, and the paper chains her and her sister made to divide the room whenever they got into fights. After high school, Colette traveled out to California and lived with friends for about 4 years. When she returned she started working at McDonalds and met a girl her age, who would later become her sister-in-law. Colette never attended college but became a bank teller in Cedar Rapids. She has since moved up and switched from several banks to now being the vice president of Bankers Trust. Her relationship with her family growing up was a little turbulent. Her father had a bad drinking problem and it eventually affected their children as they grew older, with some of them developing problems themselves. It was a quiet household, but they children were very close and had plenty of fun in their own ways. Colette loved listening to the Beatles and anything on the radio. One of the big things she had in common with her future husband. When Colette and Jeff met it was through her friend at McDonalds, which happened to be Jeff’s sister. The two hit it off right away and were best friends for several years before Jeff popped the question. They wanted a small wedding, and did not want to make a spectacle, since she grew up in a very religious household, and she was pregnant (oops). They would later refer to the baby as “the best oops ever”. Colette describes Jeff as reserved and outdoorsy. In his younger years he was obnoxious and crazy, but tamed down as soon as the children began to arrive. Colette and Jeff had a long marriage of 20 years, but things weren’t working anymore, and so they went their separate ways in 2004. Colette has no regrets when she looks back on her life and feels that everything that she has been through and experienced has shaped her to be the person she is today. She never had a dream career picked out for herself; she liked the idea of going with the flow and seeing what worked for her. She has always said that the most important things in her life were her two daughters. The most valuable thing she learned from her parents was how to be a better one and to be someone that her children can always come to with problems and know that she’ll be there for them. Colette has said that at her funeral, she would like “In My Life” by the Beatles played, along with “Amazing Grace” and she wants people to remember that she was a kind soul, and loved life and everyone that was in hers.

The person I chose to write was about Bonnie Jean Tjepkes who is not only my grandma, but one of the softest hearted people I’ve met in my life. Her father and husband both called her by her middle name frequently. She was born on a farm outside of Parkersburg in 1941 after her parents were snowed in for three days. Her grandpa and grandma both farmed and the house was handed down to her parents and they were both carpenters as well. Most of their family lived in nearby towns or close to stay in contact with one another. The house was a traditional Iowa farmhouse she lived in with a two story house with basic amenities and she specifically remembered a story about her father shooting a skunk, missed and instead hit the lightning rod to the house. Did not have a lot of time to play with other kids and was forced to wear dresses and work the farm like the boys. She had only two sisters and was the oldest and had more responsibilities than the other two sisters. Started with a dime a week as an allowance for working the farm and had a bike to ride to the corner to catch the bus and then had to put it in the culvert to hide it. She was always forced to do work and wasn’t able to do sports. She met my Grandpa after working at a car hop diner and he would joke with her by putting frogs in glasses and even give her rides home at night. Grandpa was always a hard and conscientious worker and doing things right. She said not keeping things from a spouse is a great key to marriage and to never go to bed angry. She said after something happens in a negative way to address it and let it go. She believed that a man is a head of the household and the husband must love the wife. She married Larry Lindaman in 1960 at the Lutheran church in Parkersburg. A treasure she holds very dearly is a clock made by her father. She learned from her parents to be honest and sharing which she does very well to this day. Her biggest accomplishments is being saved and the lord changing her life, loving family and living for the lord. I enjoyed this assignment a lot in respect that I was able to learn new things about my grandma and truly realize how people can make things so complicated and sometimes it’s much better to look at them in a much simpler form. I looked at this assignment in a historicist approach to see how my family and more importantly why my mother is the way she is today. Seeing the similarities with my grandma and my mother are almost identical at times and learning how their lives were very similar is interesting.

I decided to interview my grandfather George. He is my mother’s father and my only living grandfather. He is 80 years old. I chose him because I feel very close to him. He has always been willing to help me and teach me things and I think he has had an interesting life.

George was born on a farm in southwest Wisconsin. He had an older sister and a younger brother in his family. He hated farm work and as soon as he had finished high school and was 18 years old he joined the military. This was his first career. He spent 30 years serving in the United States Air Force, retiring as a Master Sargent. His specialty was electronics. This career took him all over the world. He served on bases in Iceland, the Philippines, Spain, and many places in the United States. He liked the Air Force and the work he did. He was able to complete a college degree in Business Administration during his Air force career.

Along the way he met my grandmother; they married and had three children together, two girls and a boy. Near the end of his career he was stationed in Las Vegas at Nellis Air Base, home of the Thunderbirds. The family remained living in Las Vegas when he retired.

It was after that that he began his second career. With his background in electronics he took a job with the City of Las Vegas in the Street Traffic Signal Department. It is the job of this department to install all new street traffic signals and to main repair of existing signals. He started as a technician. But quickly he had to learn about computers and other electronic controls. He worked in traffic engineering for 20 years and the last five he managed both the maintenance and the installation divisions. By this time all signals in the city were controlled from a central location through one large computer.

In retirement George worked on his hobbies. He always liked to follow sports, and had coached his son in Little League Baseball. He still likes to build things, repair things, and do leather work.

I enjoyed doing this project. I have always enjoyed talking to my grandfather. There were many other things we talked about. And while I generally knew about his life story I did not know the details. Things like the car he had when he was young that had a large hole in the floor board; you could actually see the road. There were a couple of funny things like that he remembered as we talked about the various places he had seen as he moved around so much.

Before this interview I didn’t really know much about where he had been stationed during his service (although my mother had talked about giant sized insects falling from the ceiling on to her bed when they lived in the Philippines) and it was clear Grandpa enjoyed telling me about them. He has lived a life to be proud of and I feel fortunate to have had him living nearby when I was growing up.

I think my approach in the interview is best described as an historic one.

I interviewed Richard Sarchet, he is my 79-year-old grandfather. I chose to interview him because I enjoy getting the chance talk to him. Since I’m in college I don’t get the chance to communicate with him as much as I used to and this assignment gave me the opportunity to do that. I have always looked up to my grandfather. He is a smart man who has taught me a lot of valuable life lessons.

Richard Roy Sarchet was born in Algona, Iowa on April 17th, 1933. His nickname is “Sid”. He was raised on farm outside of Algona, Iowa by his parents Roy and Bertha Sarchet who were farmers. The two story farm house had 6 rooms and 1 bathroom. The house didn’t have indoor plumbing or electricity until 1939. Richard is the youngest of four. His older brother, Howard, and his twin sisters, Betty and Letty have all since passed away. Growing up, he spent most of his free time helping his father on the farm. He was responsible to carry out numerous miscellaneous farm chores; his least favorite was shoveling manure out of the cow barn. When he wasn’t doing farm chores, he enjoyed playing with his electric train. As he got older he enjoyed pheasant hunting and fishing. He was once recognized in the local newspaper for shooting and killing a pheasant with only a BB gun. He attended grade school at Union Township, which was a country school house near the family farm. He then attended Algona High School where he participated in football, wresting, and track for all four years. After high school he had plans of continuing his education, but he was drafted into the army. After spending two years in the Army he returned home to farm and met Mary, who was a waitress at a local café. The two carried on a relationship for years to come and got married in West Des Moines, Iowa on March 6th, 1959. The two of them have been happily married ever since. After being married they two of them had three kids; two daughters and a son. Their first born was Lisa (my mother), then Randy, and the youngest was Sandy. He raised his children on the same farm in which he was raised, which he took over after the death of his father. Richard claims something he is most proud of is raising his kids the right way and being able to watch them all start happy lives of their own. Richard spent the majority of his life farming out of Algona, Iowa and retired after surviving open heart surgery in 2002. His wife spent the majority of her life as a cook at the Catholic school in Algona, IA. She now works at Exceptional Opportunities, which is facility for mentally ill individuals. All in all, Richard has lived a long and happy life. He has been happily married for over 50-years and raised three children who now have families of their own. He is also a veteran who served his country for two years.

The person I chose to interview was my mother, Janine Mayer. She just turned 53 yesterday. I chose her for the interview, because I wanted to learn more about her childhood. I already know a lot about my father’s childhood, but never really got to know about my mother’s, and this was the perfect opportunity. Janine Dee Turner Mayer was born on November 29, 1959 in Dunkerton, Iowa to Donald and Myrna Turner. The last name Turner originated in Germany. Her mother originally wanted to name her Jaime, but her father thought it was too much of a boy’s name, so they compromised and decided on Janine. She had a few nicknames when she was young. Some of them included: Neenie Bug, Neenie, and Bugs. She is the oldest of five children. She has two sisters, Jacalyn and Michelle and two brothers, Trent and Curt. They lived in the area, because they had a lot of family there including her grandparents, aunts, uncles, and a number of cousins. They were Methodist, and they went to the Dunkerton Methodist Church. When she was young, she lived in a town house that was white with black shutters. In fact, my grandmother still lives at that house. Anyways, the house had three bedrooms, a living room, dining room, kitchen, one bathroom, an attic, basement, and unattached garage. They had electricity, indoor plumbing, and one phone.
Her first memory was when she was four years old. Her and her sister had been told they’d be getting a baby brother, and they both started crying. She explained her family members as being shy growing up, but gradually becoming more outgoing as they aged. When they were children, they enjoyed playing games like: Annie Annie Over, Red Rover, house, store, hide and seek, and tag. Her favorite toy was always the new doll she got every year for Christmas. Her favorite thing to do for fun was going to movies. She noted that they didn’t go to many, and she could probably remember every movie she ever went to growing up. Janine had to do normal chores as she was the oldest child. Some of her chores included: washing dishes, setting and clearing the table, dusting, and cleaning the bathroom. She didn’t get an allowance for doing any of these chores. They had a few pets when my mother was young. They had two dogs, Smokey and Toby and two cats, Nicki and Aggie.
The only world event she remembered when she was young was a gas shortage in the 70’s, but it didn’t have a personal effect. In her family, holidays were spent at her grandparents’ house. Her aunts, uncles, and cousins would also come. Some things she said that are different in today’s world are that people have to keep their doors locked, more technology with computers, cable TV, cell phones, and gas prices are a lot higher. Janine also noted that her grandmother’s parents died from typhoid fever from drinking water from a bad well. Also, her father had an honorable discharge from the Army. She has no famous relatives. However, a very distant relative worked as a maid for the queen of England and when she married a farmer, they had to leave England. Some physical characteristics that run in her family include: her and all of her siblings all need glasses, they all have dark hair, and they all have brown eyes.
My mother is a very smart woman, so it didn’t surprise me when she said school was easy for her. She said her best subject was math, and there wasn’t really a subject she struggled with. She went to Dunkerton schools for grade school and high school, where she graduated third in her class out of 57 students. While she was in high school, she played softball and was also a member of the band and yearbook staff. At this age, Janine enjoyed listening rock & roll and pop music. Some of her favorite musicians were: Bon Jovi, Journey, Eagles, Bryan Adams, and Bruce Springsteen. Some of the fashion things she remembered were: bell bottom pants, hip huggers, platform shoes, silky wild shirts for guys, long hair on guys, Farrah Fawcett hair style, and perms. After graduating high school, she attended UNI for two years, and then to Hawkeye Tech to become a respiratory therapist.
Her first job was at Allen Hospital. While she was there, she became really good friends with Deborah Mayer. She’s actually the person who set up my mother meeting my father, Richard Mayer. Janine went to babysit for my father’s nieces and nephews while they all went to a wedding, and that’s how they met. They then would go out to eat on dates or just stay in and watch TV and movies together. They were engaged on Christmas Eve in 1985. The ring was actually one of my mother’s presents. I guess my father didn’t really say anything except, “Well, will you?” My father isn’t the most romantic guy in the world, so his proposal wasn’t very shocking. It was actually a very funny story to hear. They were married on June 14, 1986 at the Methodist Church in Dunkerton, Iowa. One memory she had about her wedding was that her cousin was a flower girl and wouldn’t walk down the aisle. Also, my father’s niece was another flower girl, and she cried all the way down the aisle. Janine described her husband as very kind, nice, helpful, and easy going. One thing she admires about him is that he is well respected by everyone in our hometown. She believes the keys to a successful marriage is honesty, trust, and to have fun. She found out she was pregnant for the first time when she took a home pregnancy test. Janine and her husband, Rick, have four children together. Justin is their oldest, and he’s 25, Brittany is next, and she’s 23, I’m the third child, and I’m 21, and Cameron is the youngest, and he’s 19. They got ideas for their children’s names from names on soap operas. They also used a baby name book for their youngest. Her proudest moment as a parent is seeing her children always being respectful to their elders. She noted that she remembers when her children would give up their chair for an older person while their cousins of the same age would just sit there and not get up. Her favorite things to do with her family include: camping, going to Vikings and Twins games, watching sports on TV, and going to her children’s school activities. The one thing she wants to be remembered for is always treating others the way she wanted to be treated.
I really enjoyed this assignment. I got to learn more about not only my mother, but also my father and my extended family. I think I took the historicist approach as I was trying to think of the events during my mother’s childhood, rather than comparing it to present concepts and values.

The person I chose to interview was none other, my mother. I think it’s fairly obvious how she is related to me. My mom is fifty years old and I chose to interview her because she has been a very influential person for me throughout my life. I really liked this assignment. I learned a lot of things that I never knew about my mother. I definitely took a historicist approach with this assignment.

Janet Michelle Tagulaur was born on July 19, 1962 in Fairfield, Iowa. Janet grew up about an hour away from Fairfield in Wayland, Iowa. David, Tim, and Cheryl are her brothers and sisters. Unfortunately, her brother Tim passed away in an accident when he was in his twenties. My mother has told me that Tim was a fun guy and I would’ve liked him very much. Too bad I never got to meet him. Karen and Richard Tagulaur are the parents of these four children. Karen (my grandmother) was a stay at home mom for the most part while Richard (my grandpa) ran his own contracting business, which David (my uncle) ended up taking over. Both my grandparents are still alive and my grandpa was a fantastic contractor back in the day and he has done a phenomenal job at teaching my uncle Dave how to be a great contractor as well.

My mother grew up in a poor family, times were tough but they made it through. The type of house they lived in was a farm-style house out in the country. My Uncle Dave kept this house and still lives in it to this day, although he has done many new improvements to it, I think it’s cool that they kept that house in the family for all these years.

Janet and her family played a lot of board games and other activities outside when she was growing up. Riding her bike was her favorite thing to do, when she didn’t have to work on chores. The children in the family weren’t given an allowance. They were often told that they were paying for “room and board” when they were doing chores. The family was all expected to contribute in some way. It was a very traditional household. The men did manly things, and the girls were expected to help with the kitchen (cleaning, cooking, etc). The family didn’t go on many vacations or do activities that meant spending a lot of money. Janet said she doesn’t remember movies until she was in her teenage years. The family had lots of pets, many cats and a few outside dogs. It was hard to keep dogs around though because she said they got ran over by cars a lot.

My mother was an exceptional music student in high school. Another one of her favorite activities in school was literature. Janet says she didn’t try very hard in school, she just wanted to graduate. Band, track, and jazz-band were the extracurricular activities that she took part in. Bell-bottom jeans and puffed up hair was popular during her high school years.

Janet described her grandmother being one of her great role-models and tended to look to her in times of need and advice. My mother also said she was in love with the beach boys and Elvis Presley when she was younger. I found this humorous. Along with Elvis, she enjoyed a lot of classical rock music like Zztop and Aerosmith.

The events that my mother remembers well were the Nixon scandal and Charles Mansion incident. She said they were scary but didn’t directly affect her or the family in any particular way. Janet said things back then were really simple and that now today the world is very complex and technological.

The family surname of my mothers’ is known to contain Austrian and German heritage. I am told we have family living in Germany. Names in the family were handed down to the middle name of her families children. I got my grandfathers name as my middle name. The family has done a great job at keeping family recipes within the family that my mothers’ side of the family still takes part in, and let me tell you, they sure are good!

My mother met my father, Rick Smith, at a town event called Old Threashers. Janet said her and Rick went out to movies and to eat for dates. My father proposed to my mom on Valentine’s Day and got married on August 22, 1980. The most memorable thing of that day was the sunset, she said it was spectacular. My mother said my father was very romantic, good provider, and was good-looking. Sadly, my mother and father got a divorce. They are mutual friends to this day, thankfully. She now says that communication, being open, accepting, and caring is the key to a successful relationship/marriage.

This is the part I liked most, I asked my mother how she found out she was pregnant, and of course she replied… a pregnancy test, duh! She and my father named my older siblings Justin and Allison because they liked the names. I’m told I was named after the bible and my grandfather. As a parent, she says her proudest moments were watching her children graduate and seeing my great football career. When we were being raised by my mother and father, we did a lot of things together. These ranged from vacations, movies, bike rides, and going swimming. We had a lot of fun until the divorce, and then the family events virtually ceased to exist.

My mother went on to get her BA degree from a local private school in Business along with a minor in Music. She now works as a human resources manager and has not remarried. The things she is most proud of is graduating from college, going on mission trips (Nicaragua, Ukraine-Chernobyl Nuclear reactor disaster area, Russia), and her brand new BMW. I like the car myself, but I don’t let her know that, or how fast I drive it.

Janet wants to be remembered for her caring heart, being generous to others, being a great mother, and her present and future accomplishments.

I decided to interview my mother, Glenda Skallerud, she is 58 years old. I decided to interview my mom, because it gave me an excuse to ask her some things I didn’t entirely know about her.
My Mom was born in Sioux Center, Iowa in September of 1954. She grew up in a rural part of the state, and helped her farming father work the land at a young age. She was one of 5 kids. Their families, for the most part, stayed in the same area. So she saw her aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents on a regular basis. The family home was old, with an indoor and an oil burning stove. By time she was 10, her parents decided to build a smaller home that had better heat and plumbing. This house had a cellar with a trapdoor and an L-shaped porch. While the 5 siblings were all born within 10 years of each other, the older three, herself included, were expected more of academically and competitively. But they had a good childhood around lots of family. She played a lot of softball, various board games, and loved her Tammy doll when she was a child. But being a farm kid in that era meant there were a lot more duties than the modern child. She helped her mom wash dishes, clean around the house, and can food in addition to feeding the animals on the farm. Most of their dinners were standard meat, potatoes, and vegetables, but loved her mother’s sloppy joe sandwiches and ham. She and her siblings weren’t given an allowance, but were occasionally given 5 cents to buy an ice cream. As a child of that era, she rolled along with a lot of the pop culture of the time. She liked The Beatles and The Monkees from a young age, and wore bellbottom pants. Every Sunday they would attend their Reformed church in town, a denomination similar to Presbyterians and conservative. In addition, she and her siblings participated in 4H. She showed cattle, quilted, made her own clothes, and baked. In 1963, she heard about the assassination of President Kennedy. And later on, she wrote to her uncle in Vietnam.
Her family was close. She was only a 2nd generation American. Her grandfather Wilhelm DeVos (dutch for “the fox”), came to the U.S. from the Netherlands in 1916 with his uncle. Their families rarely went further that 70 miles away from their homes. But their grandparents would have “boy” or “girl” days, where they would go to the zoo, fishing, or just spend time with their grandparents. They were all tall Dutchmen (and women), and jokingly mentions they all had big feet. Glenda still keeps a handful of index cards with recipes handwritten by her grandmother. Her own mother has a some mementoes, like a necklace from Glenda’s grandmother, a lavaliere from when her grandfather went off to WWI, and a quilt from the 1930’s. She met her future husband Dave Skallerud, through some friends. They would go see movies together and play softball. Their engagement was informal, and they were married on June 28, 1975 in her home church. It was a hot day, and she remembers her father being so nervous and overheated that he thought he was going to faint. He admires his generosity and kindness, but his work for the military meant time away and his need to have a plan of action for everything. In 1989, they went to a clinic at the university hospital found that their round with IVF was successful. In 1990, their twins were born. Another son was born in 1993. They chose names that were simple compared to their complicated last name. She said that she is glad to see their lives coming together and start their own lives.
School was always an important aspect of her life. She attended a K-8 one room school house until she was in 1st grade. She was academically skilled, and participated in track , yearbook, and other activities. Her enjoyment of math and science led to a long road of secondary schooling to become a laboratory scientist. She attended a lab program in Minneapolis, college courses at the University of Minnesota, community colleges in Minnesota and Iowa, and finally completed the Clinical Laboratory Scientist program at the University of Iowa. Her career is what she wanted, and says she still would have been in the medical field in some way.
I enjoyed this assignment, it gave a different insight into my mom’s life, even though it wasn’t necessarily an envasive interview. My mom keeps personal things to herself, so it was interesting to see how she felt about things.

-I interviewed my mother Dartanya Vorland
-She is 43 years old
-I chose to interview her because she is very close to me and I wanted to learn more about her life when she was a child.
Before my mother was married her name was Dartanya Dee Mason. She is 43 years old and her father named her after one of the three musketeers. Her nick name growing up and still today is Tammy. Everyone calls her that. It started when she was very young and her older brother couldn’t say her name when they were little and randomly started calling her Tammy. She was born on September 2nd, 1969 in Iowa City. They lived in Goldfield Iowa, because her mom wanted to live in a small town. They did not have any family members that lived in the area, most were about one to two hours away. Her house while growing up was a four bedroom house and they had a fairly large yard for living in town. They had one and a half bathrooms, electricity, plumming, and a telephone. One of the items in the house that my mother remembers is the fireplace. She said they used it all the time when she was growing up. She also remembers the laundry chute that went to the basement right next to the washing machine, because many houses these days don’t have them.
My mom told that one of her first memories was a Christmas when she was around the age of three and she got her first riding bike. Not a peddle one, but a bike that you just push off the ground with your feet.
When I asked my mom what she thought about her family members growing up, she told that her mother was fun. She doesn’t have any full siblings they are all half siblings. She told that her older brother Don was also fun he is just a couple years older than her. Her half-sisters from her mother, Candy and Jackie were both rebellious, and her step-sister from her father’s side was fun to be around, although she didn’t spend much time growing up with her when they were young, but they are pretty close now. She said that she didn’t really know how to describe her father, because he wasn’t around for her life much when she was young, but what she does remember is him being drunk a lot.
She said that some of the games she played when she was younger were kick the can, softball, basketball, track, rode bikes, board games, and cards. She collected fancy dolls which were made of bleach jugs and a lady put a head and wig on them with formal dresses. She said she didn’t play with them much they were just nice to look at and she liked collecting them.
Some of my things my mother said she enjoyed doing while growing up was going roller skating or bowling.
Her and her siblings had to split up the chores each week. One week someone would do the kitchen, another would do the bathroom, and another would do the living room. Her least favorite chore was doing the kitchen, because that mean she had to do the dishes and she really disliked doing the dishes. The kids didn’t get a regular allowance growing up, because they didn’t have the money for it but they would get some money here and there.
My mom liked school she said it was a lot of fun. Her favorite class was math, and her least favorites were computer and English. She went to grade school in Goldfield, IA and Alder Gulch, MT. Then they moved back to Goldfield where she attended high school. She did not going to college. While in high school, she participated in track, basketball, cheerleading, and softball.
She remembers one of the major fads during her time was the high hair and perms. She said she remembers going through at least a can of hair spray every couple weeks. Another fad was the parachute pants and leg warmers. Growing up she liked listening to Pink Floyd.
My mom had a couple dogs and some cats while growing up. She had two black labs, and their names were Mandi and Toby.
She went to the United Methodist church in Goldfield.
She wasn’t really in the newspaper for anything except when she got into high school she was in there for her sports events.
Some of her friends while growing up were Danielle, Kelly, and Lynette, they grew up in her town.
My mother remembers her grandfather always talking about the depression and her great-grandfather wouldn’t put money in the bank for a fear of losing it, so he would hide it in various places around the house like in the freezer.
For dinner the family sat together her mother did most of the cooking, but as the kids got older they helped out with the cooking. She said a few of her favorite foods were chili, pizza, and lasagna. For holidays their family got together and they would have special dinners and cake and ice cream.
Mom thinks that times now are very different from when she was growing up. She said that there is too much technology, and kids have too much that they don’t enjoy life outside like they did when they were kids.
The oldest person my mom remembers while growing up was her great-grandmother Huff. She told that she was mean to her but not her brother Don. My mother told me that her mom actually stepped in and said that if she didn’t treat her children the same then she wasn’t going to get to visit them at all. After that her great-grandmother treated them fairly. Tammy doesn’t know much about her surname, because she never asked her mother about it. There is no name that continues on in the family, but every once in a while someone would name their son the same name as them, or they would pass on their middle name to one of their children. I have my mother’s middle name.
Tammy said that there were really no stories from her family about where they came from except that they were from the Fox tribe. Some recopies her mother passed down to her that she likes were her recopies for ham balls and Swedish meatballs. There are about the same characteristics that are passed down to each family member, most of her family has dark brown hair and blue eyes. My mom has a picture of her great-great-grandmother, and her grandmother (before she ran away) holding her mom. It is a black and white picture. No one has ever found out what happened to her mother’s mom.
Tammy’s husbands name is Kirk Alan Vorland, her mother’s name is Amy Eileen (Jackson) Pederson, her father’s name is Dan Mason, her half-brother’s name is Don Duane Jackson, and her half-sister’s names are: April May (Mason) Schumacher, Candy Nola (Ades-Mason) Gomez, and Jackie Eileen (Ades) Oppman, but is now called Rose Bacardi. My parents met through her friend’s parents and when they went out on dates they enjoyed going out to eat, movies and bowling. Tammy also took him to her senior year prom in April of 1989. He asked her to marry him on July 3rd 1989. Her husband Kirk asked her to marry him while they were driving to the campgrounds to see his family. She was happy and they got married at her church on November 18th, 1989. Her memory that sticks from their wedding was her walking down the aisle and them cutting the cake together. She looks up to her spouse, because he “works his tail off” and helps others. She thinks that to have a successful marriage there needs to be love and a lot of communication.
It took a little while before Tammy found out she was pregnant, because she did not get morning sickness. During the interview she told that when her cousin was getting married she went in for the dress fitting and it didn’t fit around her bust. Then she was in another wedding and the dress was even tighter when she went to that fitting so she went to the doctor. At first she wasn’t for sure if she just gained weight or if they measured her wrong. Her children’s names are Saundra, Bryce, and Chandler. Her husband and she wanted to choose names that were unique and people couldn’t give them nicknames. Her proudest moment as a parent was when she got to hold her kids in her arms and when they started walking. They spent a lot of time together camping when they were younger.
Tammy didn’t go to college she was a stay at home mother for about 12 years and then she started daycare in her home and then decided to be a cook at the high school now she is a cook at the elementary school where they live. She says she would like to be a home decorator, she didn’t choose this at first, because it is something she recently found that she likes to do.
She thinks the most valuable characteristics are caring, giving, and helping. She told that her accomplishments were raising three kids and sending two of them to college, the last one is now a junior in high school. She wants people to remember he that she cared greatly about her family and friends and she hopes to live a long and happy life with her family.

For this assignment I chose to interview Charles Anthony Aldrich or as I like to call him ‘Dad’. I chose him because I’ve lived with him most of my life since my parents divorced when I was three. I got a lot of things from him, my love for story-telling, my humor, and my love for Frank Sinatra. Although we don’t both share his love for the Yankees, we were both born the youngest of three kids which is something I think is pretty cool.

Charles was born in Waterloo, IA on June 20, 1953. His mother, Julie, chose his name because she was fond of England’s Prince Charles and her brother’s name happened to also be Charlie. His father, Verne Aldrich, was originally from Mason City and came to Waterloo in hopes to getting on at John Deere while working as an independent carpenter with his uncle. Charlie, sometimes referred to as A-man, grew up in a three bedroom, 2 bathroom, ranch style home that in fact did have indoor plumbing, working electricity, and telephones. When asked what he remembered being in his house as a kid, he recalled his mother’s Frank Sinatra record albums. He had two older siblings, one brother, Wayne, and one sister, Barb. Firm, fair, hardworking blue-collar, intelligent and loving were only a few words to describe his father Verne. On the other hand, his mother was very vibrant, outgoing, energetic, and a woman with a flair for fashion. One of his heroes growing up was his brother. Wayne took after their mother, being the life of the party, friendly and fun loving. Like her dad, his sister Barb was hardworking, dedicated, studious and driven. Charlie was more of the athlete in the family. Growing up he played baseball, football, and basketball. His most precious possessions were his baseball and glove. He always had a fun time playing with the neighborhood kids outside. Being a kid in 50s meant doing chores. Charlie had chores like cleaning his room, but he hated doing the dishes the most. He did however receive an allowance of 50 cents a week which he had to save half though he ended up usually spending all of it.

When it came to school Charlie’s favorite subject was social studies and he enjoyed P.E and despised science. Charlie went to Lincoln Elementary, Logan Junior High, East High School, NIACC, Drake, and finally UNI. In high school he participated in football, basketball, and baseball and only continued with football in college. He was mentioned in the paper quite frequently throughout high school and even college for athletics. As for fads during his time, bell bottoms, paisley shirts, leather jackets, and two-tone platform shoes were popular. He was a fan of rock and roll and loved the Beatles (still does today). Charlie did have a dog growing up named Rocket, but sadly he took off on New Years Eve and never came back. Thankfully, he had the neighborhood kids to run around with and has kept friendships from before high school intact now thirty plus years later.

The Aldrichs were Episcopalians and attended Trinity Episcopal in Waterloo. The JFK assassination took place when Charlie was in 4th grade. There was a lot of racial tension in school and the community of Waterloo after the assassination of MLKJ also. Things are a lot different today compared to when he grew up. Today’s generation is more computerized with cell phones and Facebook. “You can’t do something without someone possibly taking a picture or broadcasting your every move,” he stated. When he was kid, his family sat down at dinner every night and they particularly enjoyed spaghetti and salad night on nights his grandma would come and make the meatballs and sauce for the spaghetti. His family spent holidays together and even went to the midnight service on Christmas Eve every year.

The stories of Charlie as a child are ones he remembers being told as he grew up. One winter Charlie and his siblings went out skating on the pond behind their house. Not knowing how thick the ice was his parents watched from a close distance. The ice was not too thick and unfortunately Charlie fell through causing his mother, who just bought some new expensive shoes, to dive in after him. Julie ended up saving her baby boy at the cost of losing her shoes in the process. Another quick story is when the family was all in the station wagon and hit a bump and out flew Charlie. Charlie was around 6 or 7 at the time running after the car with a bloody head. His mother never let him forget those stories of terror he caused her during his childhood.

Charlie met his first wife and mother of his three children, Lori, in his thirties. Lori Lynn Kristensen was the oldest of two and grew up in Hudson, Iowa with her parents Marcy and Ken. Charlie and Lori were both fond of going out to the softball complex to hang out and that’s where they met. They typically went to concerts and danced on dates. After a few years of dating, Charlie asked Lori to marry him in 1984 and they were married at Christ Episcopal Church in Waterloo on June 15, 1985. His favorite memories of that day were spending the reception with all his friends and family. Lori told Charlie he was going to be a dad for the first time by shaking a baby bib in his face one day as he came home from work. Brian was their first born, second came Lindsey, and Kristen came in 1990. Lindsey and Kristen’s names were due to consensus from both him and Lori whereas Brian was named after his best friend Brian Claney. Charlie’s proudest moment as a parent couldn’t be narrowed down to a specific time, but rather seeing his children grow up into quality people in society. His favorite times of being with his kids were over summers he had off since he was a physical education teacher. He chose his profession because he admired his teacher and coaches who had taught him in the past. Originally he wanted to be a disc jockey because nothing sounded better than getting paid to play records all day, but instead he went to college on scholarship.

A few things he learned from his parents were to do the right thing, to treat people decent, and to be honest. His biggest accomplishment is again watching his kids grow up and be as productive as they are. If Charlie had to be remembered for one thing, it would be that he did his best as a parent, teacher, coach and person in life.

Overall, I liked this assignment. I learned things about my dad I didn’t know and was reminded of things I did know. I didn’t know he was called A-man and frankly I could’ve gone without knowing that. I learned that my dad admired his older brother and wanted to be like him the way I admire and want to be like my older sister. Although I enjoyed the assignment, it was difficult talking about the spouse part due to my parents being divorced, but we got through it. I typically have a presentist type of view, but I tried to stay on the historicist side since we were dealing with the past. It started off as asking about his first memory and him as a child and grew to what he does for a job, which he’s done for over twenty years, and talking about his kids. I guess I used both approaches to fit the questions being asked.

Overview: Who is LeRoy James Luhring?
I interviewed my soon to be grandfather in-law, LeRoy James Luhring. He is 75 years old and I chose him because I have never had a grandfather, he will be my first. I figured that I had a lot of catching up to do. He’s also one of the most influential people in my fiancé’s life. I figured it would be a good way to get to know more about my fiancé. I took the historicist approach to my interview as I tried to place myself in his shoes and time or refers. I compared many things between his generation and how things were when he was my age, and my present situation and generation.
Born at 2pm in the afternoon of June 27th, 1937 was LeRoy James Luhring, Lee for short. His mother joked that he was difficult from the start. It was 102 degrees the day he was born and she did not have a fan. He was born in a small country farm house right outside of Parkersburg, Iowa. Lee was the fifth or eleven children. He had six sisters and four brothers. He was born and raised to be a farm hand for his father on the dairy farm. He was worked constantly until the day he turned eighteen and was kicked out. Lee went directly to the military on his birthday.
LeRoy served in the 101st Airborne as a paratrooper for two years. He describes the military as the best time of his life. It provided him with structure and friends that were as good as family. He described his mother as a saint, yet his father was an, “abusive asshole”. The military was an escape from his difficult home life with his father. Still he came home to work on a farm after a couple short years in the service.
After returning home, LeRoy got married and had five children, three boys and two girls. He loves his children dearly and worked hard to provide by working on the farm and driving a school bus. He also worked as a custodian at a college through mid to late-mid life. He worked his way up to the head custodian. He has worked in blue collar and farm jobs most of his life. He never went beyond his high school degree since he was forced to leave the house and go straight to the military on his eighteens birthday, however, he was more than a hard worker.
LeRoy went on to divorce his first wife, Ann, as she suffered from mental illness. He remarried the woman, whom he refers to as the love of his life, at the age of forty two. He adopted her youngest daughter to have an even six children of his own. Sadly, his second wife, Darilyn, died of breast cancer when he was in his mid-sixties. He remarried again for companionship. He remains with his third wife Judy.

Marriage &. Companionship
As I am not his biological grandchild, and not “yet” in the family (I be marrying in July 6th), I felt that I may have been treading water to ask about his marriages. I got limited information as I was sensitive with my questions. LeRoy has experienced many aspects of marriage. He divorced before forty, but fell in love and remarried at forty-two. I’m sure that this action had a very different effect on the family when it originally happened, but today, at the age of seventy-five, the family talks fondly of his second wife and all love their adopted sister. The loss of LeRoy’s second wife, Darilyn, was the one that worried the family. She was considered the real love of his life and she passed shortly after he turned sixty-five. When she passed away to cancer, the entire family was upset and she was grieved as if she were the biological mother of LeRoy’s children. She was the one who the grandkids referred to as grandma. It caused some worry to think about how LeRoy who recover and nobody wanted him to remain widowed and lonely.
LeRoy was able to move on and he remarried as he jokes, “I was lonely”. Judy is his companion and friend she helped him to enjoy life again after losing Darilyn. They keep each other company and always make time for their families. The bonds between them and every member of their family is so tight, that there seems to be no hurt feelings about either of them being remarried. They contribute to the twenty percent of widows who remarry. For LeRoy, both of his remarriages have resulted in higher life satisfaction and continued strong relationships with his children. He has a companion to keep him company and be his friend throughout the remainder of his life.
In terms of his other personal relationship with friends, he says that they try to keep up as best they can. It is more difficult for them to get around so it is harder to see everyone. He is happy to enjoy more sporting events at his alma mater in Parkersburg. He says he has few friends but sounds pleased with his friendships. It seems as though many of his close friendships are the strongest they’ve been, he simply regrets the difficulty of getting together with them.
Longest, Most Influential, Important, & Valued Relationship
After talking about Lee’s marriages and the biographical details of his family and upbringing, I asked him the question that heads this section of the paper, “what is the most influential, important, and valued relationship of your life, and what was your longest relationship?” His response makes sense, though for some reason it shocked me, his mother. He told how his mother was a saint. He is most grateful for her bringing the family together and keeping them together.
Despite having a trying life between Lee’s abusive father, eleven children, and a farm/house to run, his mother showed pure and deep love to all. He gives her all of the credit for the good in him. “She taught me love and faith”, said Lee. LeRoy recalls her as “kind, honest, straightforward, faithful, and incredibly good”. She was close to all of his siblings as well. She is the reason for the tight family bonds that exist in the Luhring family today. It was amazing to hear about a woman who is responsible for some much of the love and welcome I have been blessed to receive from the Luhring family.
Grandchildren
Lee is without a doubt, a companionate grandfather. Though when I asked him about his grandchildren he did not expand much beyond the very quick and enthusiastic, “I love them all”, I know from personal accounts that he encompasses all of the aspects of a companionate grandparent. Lee has fun, emotionally close, easy-going relationships with all of his relationships with his nearly twenty grandchildren and six great-grand children. They always have friendly interactions and he likes to enjoy leisure activities like hunting and fishing with all of his grandkids. He rarely, if ever, disciplines them and it is clear that he has a pure and unconditional love for them all. Even when they get tattoos or do things he doesn’t agree with, he still shows them unending love and support.
Retirement
LeRoy retired from driving the school bus six years ago at the age of sixty nine. He retired slightly later than the average age, yet many seem surprised that he retired so young. LeRoy has been a hard worker his entire life. Growing up with an abusive, alcoholic father who gave Lee no choice but to work until his finger bled, it was hard for anyone to imagine him staying at home. His son Rod joked that he did not think his dad would know how to relax. However, Lee had found ways to enjoy his retirement.
When LeRoy first retired, he bought an acreage and went back to farming. However, this time it was more of a hobby farm. He had poultry, chickens and geese with the occasional duck or turkey. He also had some pigs and a large garden. It seemed that he could not stay away from the farm. I met him out on the acreage and I have fond memories of helping to butcher chickens and such with LeRoy as I was just beginning to become part of the family.
Recently, LeRoy sold the acreage to move back to Parkersburg-where he was born. He wanted a smaller house and to be closer to family. The Parkersburg area is very densely populated by the Luhring family. Lee seems to enjoy being closer to family, local businesses, his old high school, sporting events, and perhaps most simply, familiarity. It seems that now he has officially retired as he no longer has a daily job for pay and he no longer has his hobby farm on the acreage.
After selling the farm, LeRoy has been blessed to go on an Alaskan cruise with Judy. He talks about the trip so fondly. He also continues to enjoy to hunt and fish when physically able. Even as my interview with him was wrapping up, he was getting ready to leave to go hunting with his brother. Though he does not have as much energy as he used and he talks frequently about his struggles with his heart, he still finds ways to get out and do the things he’s loved most since his childhood.
Medicare
The only complaining that I’ve ever heard from grandpa LeRoy has been about his heart. The way I understand it, he has rare, genetic heart condition. His oldest brother died at a young age as a result. LeRoy has had a pace maker for a number of years and he’s had to be in and out of the University of Iowa Hospitals and Mayo Clinic. He has a hard time now with getting excited and keeping his energy. He seems to feel most guilty about passing it on to two of his three sons. I could tell that he was sad and did not like to talk about it. When I asked if there was anything now that he wished was different about his life or anything that he would change, he said that he wants his energy back
After talking about his heart, I asked LeRoy what he thought about Medicare. He stated that it has helped him and that he thinks it’s a good idea. Many people he knows has benefitted from it. He further stated that he doesn’t think it should be changed and that he likes the way it works now. He has been able to benefit from the help of Medicare and he seems to be very appreciative.
I asked Lee what he thought about Social Security and he had a similar response. He has benefited from it and he thinks it’s a good service. However, he also saved a great deal of his own money. Additionally, he sold his acreage property so that he could enjoy his retirement in even greater comfort. I asked where he thought it was going and his response made me laugh, “I don’t know, but it doesn’t really matter to me”. LeRoy more or less alluded to the fact that, by the time it matters, he’ll be passed. He did state that it’s unfortunate to us (meaning his kids and grandkids) as we probably will not get to enjoy the benefits of social security.
Thoughts About Society
One of the most fun topics to talk to Lee about was today’s general society and his opinions of it. I asked him about technology, social changes, family changes, historical events, etc. I began by asking about technology and I was a little surprised when he said, “it’s wonderful, we need it”. I was expecting the farmer to bash on computers, yet he did not insult the devices themselves, rather, he was upset by the operators of technology. He stated that our country seems to be behind other countries in terms of technological advances. Lee believed that technology was useful for innovation in saving lives and improving business. Yet, the majority of our country uses it for Facebook and texting. Rather that stereotypically bash on the complication of technology itself, he was upset about the complications technology causes in family relationships.
Lee believes that both the biggest problem facing my generation and the biggest change between when he was 20-30 and today’s 20-30 year olds is technology. Not so much technology in business or medicine, but constant technical stimulation. LeRoy believes that my generation will not be able to communicate appropriately without barriers. He is saddened by the fact that when he goes to hold a conversation with an individual, they may be multi-tasking by answering an e-mail, Tweet, Facebook message, or a text at the same time. When asked if he knew how to use technology or wanted to attempt to use it he said, “no that’s not for me, I don’t want to waste my time”. I found it interesting that though Lee loves to communicate with his family via phone, he has no desire to learn new technology (including skype), when it comes to communication.
Relationships, Advice, & Bonus words from LeRoy
When asking grandpa Lee what message or advice he would give to his younger self and to his family he had the same message for both, “be kind, trust in God, and love others like yourself”. Lee has the strongest faith of anyone I know. However, he does not preach it or force it upon others. He simply encourages others to live by the golden rule and don’t let the wrong doings of your past impede your present or your future. “One of the biggest problems facing the younger generation is a lack of faith and caring,” says Lee. “We used to talk to one another-now we just look at each other”. It’s amazing to think about how true his words are, and how much many of us wish this could change.
Lee hopes that my generation can learn how to improve their moral. He believes that of all things harming our future, it is that we all have terrible, selfish attitudes and a low moral. Of course he knows that there are expectations, but he wishes people were not so caught up in the world away from the real, personal relationships of value. His take home message is that he hopes the future of our country can learn how to really talk to each other and be kind to one another.
My Final Thoughts & Personal Reaction
It was incredibly to get to know my grandpa in-law to be. I chose to interview LeRoy as I have always wished that I could have known my own grandpas. Both of my grandpas died before my parents were even ten years old, as they barely knew their fathers; I never got to know my grandfathers. I have always wanted to have a grandfather.
I am engaged to be married to LeRoy’s grandson Lijah. I am incredibly please to have a grandfather. Over the last three years, Grandpa Lee and I have formed a close relationship. I have helped him tear shingles off his garage, do maintenance work on houses that he owns, butcher chickens, and work on machinery. He’s adopted me as another one of his grandchildren and I could not be happier.
This projected helped me to get closer to a man I love and admire. Moreover, it helped me to feel like, for the first time in my life, I had a grandpa. It was interesting to look at his take on technology and today’s culture; it was fascinating to hear about the various social changes he has experienced; it was sad to listen to him talk about his health and his opinions and experiences with Medicare and social security; and it made me smile to hear about his relationships throughout life. Grandpa LeRoy is the man most admired by my fiancé. I felt that getting to know LeRoy better, also helped me to get closer to another side of Lijah.
Following my interview, I was able to have an hour plus conversation with LeRoy’s second son Rod (my father-in-law) and Lijah. The shared so many stories that gave me an even better idea of what kind of parent and grandparent LeRoy is. It was helpful to hear their stories as LeRoy is incredibly short spoken. It was difficult to get him to elaborate on anything. He would answer the specific question and only that every time-nothing more and nothing less. Throughout the interview, LeRoy was very respectful and short in all that he said. He’s a man of great strength and love. Talking with him about his beliefs, passions, life, relationships, family, and social issues facing out world was an absolute pleasure. I am glad to know him, and indirectly the rest of his family, better.