This is the month of remembrance. I remember the ancestors who came from European lands to arrive in a new (to them) continent. They worked hard as farmers, coal miners, carpenters, women who cooked and cleaned as hired "girls" and later, birthed their children, cooked, cleaned, raise and put up food, sewed and knitted.They and their friends and neighbors built this country to be the place it is now. Little did they know about what the dangers their descendants would face. They did not concern themselves with global warming. They took pride in what they could do and what they did. They engaged in civic activities. Mother was on our small town school board for many years because she cared passionately about education. Father was on the village board for even more years, many of them as Village President. They both valued education and civic life.
Paternal Grandfather started to work when he was just 10 years old. His father had tried to organize a union at a local paper mill. He was fired and blackballed. Grandfather was the youngest of the boys of his large family and the only one available to work to bring money into the household. He worked hard, learned carpentry, and later worked on the dams and locks of the Wisconsin River. He was gone to work sites much of the time. But, he managed to buy a cottage on Lake Poygan and loved the time he spent there hunting and fishing. Paternal Grandmother loved her church and her church friends. She knit amazing sweaters and afghans. She and he both loved playing cards and listening to ball games on the radio.
Maternal Grandfather died of a heart attack when he was still quite young; he had had rheumatic fever as a child. Maternal Grandmother was left with a 5 year old, a 16 year old and a 17 year old still at home. During the depression, Maternal Grandfather had been a union representative and was able to make enough money to start buying land. The farm he bought kept the family in food, and was quite prosperous for many years. He also bought rental houses. Maternal Grandmother administered his assets after he passed away, and built on them, providing for education for her children who were still at home. She was also quite civic-minded and passionate about education. She was on their small town library board for many years, was an avid gardener, and a noted flower show judge.
I am the descendant of some very talented, conscientious and passionate people who only aimed to be as Mother would say, "the salt of the earth." Only one of them is still alive in this world, Father is in his early 90's, and is quite frail. The others have been gone for many years. May my siblings and I keep the memories alive.
