Happy Independence Day!

Sweet Liberty ...of thee, I sing...
Statue of Liberty, public domain photos
Miss Liberty lifts her lamp "beside the golden door."

Updates -

UPDATE -- Coni to start new chemo this week
by Weston Johnson
Maple Grove, MN

Last Wednesday (June 21st), Coni and her brother Jeff drove to Rochester to meet with Dr. Bible, an oncologist at the Mayo Clinic who is starting a couple of clinical trials for cancer treatments that may be good options for Coni. Unfortunately, the trials have not yet opened, so we're not sure if or when they may become an option, although they could be good fallback plans if other treatments are not effective.

Today (Friday) we met with Dr. Rousey, the oncologist in Edina with whom we had met a couple of times while Coni was still being treated in Maryland. He went over several chemo options with us, and we decided on a particular treatment, which Coni will start next Thursday. After a few weeks of researching and waiting for Dr. Rousey to return from his vacation, it is good to know what the next step will be. Now we just hope it will be effective in eliminating Coni's cancer.

The following report was posted earlier this week by Coni:

While doing research the last couple weeks, I found that I can have testing done on my frozen tumors (post surgery) to see which drugs may have the greatest impact. I have decided to have the testing done at the Mayo clinic in addition to Advanced Treatment of Adrenal Cortical (ATAC) research center in Arizona. So hopefully I will have some answers soon.

In the meantime, since I have not had any chemo treatment other than the oral chemo pills I take, Weston and I have really been working on our diets. I am sure all of you are thinking right now, this is one couple that does not need a diet. However, from speaking to a naturopathic doctor, we are working on a nutritious diet. Our diet consists of lean meats, nuts, veggies, fruit and berries.

I know this probably sounds very extreme and radical, but it is absolutely amazing how many more fruits and veggies we go through. For all of you who may be concerned with weight loss, don't worry; I am pretty creative and have been able to put together some amazing dishes.

Please keep Coni in your thoughts and prayers again this week. You can send e-mails and e-cards to her here: c_waltzing@hotmail.com.



Photo © Adriana Brown
Trinidy Creede Roberson

UPDATE -- let's welcome Trinidy Creede Roberson
by Adriana (Stahlecker) Brown
Granbury, TX

Hi! Just wanted to let everyone know that Trinidy Creede Roberson, daughter of Angela (Stahlecker) Roberson and Scott Roberson, was born on Thursday, June 29, at 8:52 a.m. She weighed 7 lbs. 6 oz. and is 18 inches long. She has a headful of dark hair and is absolutely beautiful. (I may be just a little biased since I am her aunt!)

Angela is doing well and hopes to be able to go home either Sunday or Monday. Trinidy has jaundice and is being monitored very closely, but is stable. She also has a heart murmur, which the doctor believes is something that will repair itself with time. If not, he will refer them to a pediatric cardiologist.

The three boys (Tracer, Trevor and Trenton) are very excited and are anxious to get Mommy and Little Sister home. I have attached a few pictures!

Love, Adriana


Photos © Adriana Brown
Trinidy Creede Roberson gets acquainted with her family.


UPDATE -- new home is taking shape
by Janie Anderson
Soon to be Wahpeton, ND

I'm finally getting a minute to send you a picture and a little update on our house.

They started staking it out on April 13th and it's to be done before school starts in August. Our contractor, Dave, thinks he's about a week ahead of schedule now. We've had a wonderful summer for building -- very little rain! The farmers probably don't appreciate that as much as we do! :)

We've had lots of fun with this project so far. As you know, Barb is our architect. We sent her a list of our "wants" last fall and she came up with a design, which we modified, she redesigned, we modified, etc. etc. etc. (E-mail is great!)

The first contractor we talked to was rather inflexible, so we made the rather difficult decision at the time to go with a different contractor. We're now VERY glad we did. Dave is very talented and is very willing to work with us and with Barb as a team. He's one of the true "craftsmen." He also has a great crew -- his son, Jon, his daughter, Amy, and another young guy, Jesse. They work so well together and seem to enjoy every minute of it.

We've also had lots of fun picking things out. Pretty much everything is ready now -- the last minute details on the cabinets are to be decided tomorrow. The bathtub/ shower modules are already in place. We have the front door, toilets, sinks, mirrors, light fixtures, door handles, faucets, etc. sitting in our garage here waiting to be taken in at the appropriate time. The floor covering, millwork, and appliances have been picked out. Most of the paint colors have been decided on.

And Brenda and Nathan's house has been sold! I'll let them tell you about that. They close on our house Friday, so we'll be renting from them for a bit until our house is done and their closing takes place.


Dwight & Janie's new house will be their new home by late August.



Photo illustration © Virginia McCorkell; photo of Levi by Larry T. Dake


Day to Day R
With Donna Mae
Ashby, MN

Memories...

About 18 years ago, I started doing nanny work for a couple in St. Louis Park. I started with their 3-month-old daughter, Marissa, and her cousin, 2-month-old Kaia. Their mothers were sisters, Megan and Kate. Megan's husband is Dave Kuettel; Kate's husband is Jon Bjorlie.

There was a move to Edina and two more boys for each family. Joining Marissa were David and Jacob. In Kaia's family it was Jack and Lucas. We also had various cousins drop in from time to time. It was always a very active, lively and most times noisy group. We sang, played and laughed together ... with a few fights thrown in here and there. The girls loved staging plays and dressing up. They also enjoyed going to garage sales with me, where we managed to find a few choice "dress up" dresses. They spent time arguing which one got to wear which dress. The boys enjoyed the parks, swimming pools and horsing around more, of course.

Those years bring back so many fun, great memories for me! The years have flown so quickly, though. I quit working in the cities when the girls were 8 years old, as Caity had arrived and it was too much to be driving back and forth to the cities any longer. It was with a sad, heavy heart that I left behind some very dear people -- although I did not miss the long drive! It seems as though I blinked a couple times and now my little charges have grown up and the girls have just graduated from high school! I find that shocking, to say the least.

I stopped in the night before I left the cities, en route to Florida, to drop off gifts and cards for Marissa and Kaia. I got in on helping celebrating David's birthday ... how fun!

After watching David open his gifts and having some great cake and ice cream, we all sat around recalling the fun times we'd had together. They even brought up the fact that I'd taught them to eat macaroni and cheese with V-8 in it and peanut butter on their pancakes. (I learned the peanut butter on pancakes thing from Ginny and Ernie eating theirs that way. I still eat them that way to this day!)

It was a very fun evening and I was so glad I'd stopped in. It also made me realize how much I miss all of them!


Photos © Donna Johnson
Jack, Kate, Luke, Jon & Kaia Bjorlie, left; Megan, Dave, Marissa's cut-out, Marissa, David & Jacob Kuettel (holding Pepe), right.


Brain Stretchers

Keeping our brain in shape is as important as our bodies ... here are some sites that help to do so: Think of these sites as virtual gyms for your mind:

Brain Teasers and Math Puzzles
http://www.syvum.com/teasers
BrainBashers
http://www.brainbashers.com
Braingle
http://www.braingle.com
Bill's Games–Brain Teasers
http://www.billsgames.com/brain-teasers

For kids:
Brainteasers, Puzzles, & Riddles
http://www.niehs.nih.gov/kids/braint.htm


The Matriarch Speaks W
by Dorothy (Dake) Anderson
Alexandria, MN

Who Is This?

Let's Play a Guessing Game: Whenever it is handy to do so we will run a picture of someone of the subscribers or staff members of our e-magazine. Tell us who you think it is -- we will let you know who was the first to guess it right -- and the correct guess -- in the following week's Bulletin.
 
(Send us some to run; we will line them up in our staging area to take their turn. Thanks to Ken Hellevang for sending last week's mystery picture.)


How many can you identify?

Answers to last week's mystery pictures (click here to review them):

On the guessing game, my guess is Ryan Hellevang, Great-grandma Cleo Anderson and Jessica Myron.

Mavis Anderson Morgan
Hope, ND


I know that the little boy on the left is Ryan Hellevang and it's Grandma Cleo in the middle, but is it Jessica Myron on the right?

Janie Anderson
Dwight, ND

Editor's Note: Yes, you are correct...


I forgot to send in the "guess who" picture. Maybe someone else has. I know it is Cleo and Ryan Hellevang; the girl I think is Jessica Myron.

Elaine Anderson Wold
Wahpeton, ND


Travelogue t

Greg and Sonja Dake left Durham, North Carolina, for Shanghai, China, on January 6th and returned January 28th. It was a business trip for Greg and Sonja went along. They took extra time for sightseeing while they were there.


Photo © Greg & Sonja Dake
Chinese temple on island on Erhai Lake.

Traveling to Yunnan Province

Visiting Dali -- A Boat Tour on Erhai Lake
(posted by Sonja)

Monday, January 23, was our second and last day in Dali. Will had told us the night before we would leave the hotel around 8 a.m. for a boat tour of Erhai Lake, that it would be cold on the water and to dress warmly. We packed our luggage up to load in the van to take back to Lijiang later in the day. We had asked for a bellboy to come for our luggage at 7:45, after we had eaten breakfast, but he showed up at 7:15 instead. We weren't finished packing up and asked him to come back in ten minutes. At 7:30 he wasn't back, and we only had the two roly-bags and two backpacks, so rather than risk missing breakfast, we took our own luggage down.

Will had also told us to be sure to eat breakfast because the boat tour was four hours and didn't have food. The deserted restaurant of the night before was transformed into a busy, crowded room! A breakfast buffet was available down the middle of the room, with both Chinese and semi-Western breakfast food. There was a chef cooking eggs to order over a gas burner at the end of the room.

We found an empty table and dumped our luggage around it. Will came over and saw we had luggage and asked if the bellboy had not come. We said he was early, before we were ready, and didn't come back. He said he would find someone to take it to the van, and we should get some food. We walked around the buffet and got a few things. Boiled eggs, some noodles, and stuff. Will came back and said he couldn't find a bellboy; we told him not to worry about it. He went to the chef and ordered and brought us back some fried eggs. We ate, Will sat a few tables away and ate, then we took our luggage out to the van. The driver had also eaten in the hotel restaurant; I suppose he got some perks for the job, too.

We drove about 20 minutes to get to the boat dock. I tried to download pictures from our camera to have plenty of free space but wasn't quite finished when we got there. Will said he would go buy the tickets and come back for us. By then I had the pictures done, so we were good to go. We walked through a turnstyle and over to one of several large tour boats parked at the dock.

As we walked onto the ship, a lady handed us small heart-shaped necklaces in red strings with Chinese words embroidered on them. Will explained that these were our identifying badges for this boat; each boat has its own unique necklace. The heart was made from red felt, stuffed a bit to puff it out. It was a very nice alternative to sticky blue nametags.

We climbed three flights of very steep stairs to take seats on the top deck at the back of the boat and were soon underway. Will took a napkin out of his pocket and wiped off two seats for us, which was very nice of him, I thought. He told us that we would make two stops off the boat today, one on a tiny island with a small temple and one larger island with a hotel and some other things to see. He said that while on the boat we would take part in the Bai tea ceremony, "Three Courses of Tea." He explained this was an ancient custom that was once reserved only for the king of the people, but now was allowed to commoners.

The first course was bitter tea with no sweetener. Its symbolism was the harsh lessons early in life, before one gains maturity and wisdom. The second course was very sweet tea, with honey and herbs. Its symbolism was middle age, where you have established yourself and can begin to enjoy the fruits of your labors. The third course was tea with ginger and peppers, to clear the palate and symbolize attaining old age and clearing one's mind to prepare for the next level of existence after death. During this we would watch dancers perform the traditional Bai courtship and wedding ceremonies.

We were soon glad Will had warned us in advance to dress warmly. I had worn the nice long underwear that I got for Christmas, under jeans and a T-shirt, with my circus sweatshirt over the T-shirt. We had also brought knit hats, scarves and gloves. We ended up bundling up in all of our clothes and it was still chilly. Greg took a picture of me close up, bundled in my jacket with the hood tied close under my chin. He seemed to think that was funny! He took a few other pictures out of the boat as well, but for the first hour or so there wasn't much to see except water.

We arrived at our first stop after an hour or so, a very tiny island with barely room for a small temple. What little space there was, aside from the temple, was crammed full of vendors. Most of them had charcoal grills going and were selling grilled seafood. Some had small fish, anchovy sized, on toothpicks. Some had larger fish on larger sticks, whole fish with heads and tails and all. Many of them had grilled shrimp, and to try to convince you of the freshness, had baskets of live shrimp beside the grill. The shrimp were not in water, and would jump around in the baskets. They cooked them while pouring red pepper sauce over them, so I decided not to try them, suspecting they would be very spicy.

Once you got past the gantlet of food vendors, there were tables set up on the rocks around the temple selling local crafts and jewelry. We glanced at them as we walked past, but didn't see anything we wanted to buy. We didn't get to go inside the temple, just walk on the rocks around it and back to the food vendor side to get back to the boat.

Then it was time for the Three Courses of Tea ceremony. We were ushered inside a room on the bottom deck, with rows of benches with low tables in front of them. The benches were supposed to be for four people, and not long-legged people at that. Luckily there wasn't anyone on the bench with us, because there was barely enough room for us on it, even minus those two people. The table was very close to our legs, too, making it pretty cramped. We watched the dancers, and I took a few pictures. We were on the end on one side, though, with music stands and microphone stands near us, so I didn't get any very good pictures.

The wedding ceremony was amusing, in that the guests took turns pinching the "newlyweds'" cheeks, and shoving them playfully around. The poor groom got shoved pretty hard and nearly fell a few times. Not sure what the significance of that was, as the narration was only in Chinese. We were the only Caucasians on the boat that we saw, and definitely the only ones in the Three Courses of Tea.

The first tea was indeed kind of bitter, but not terribly so. The second tea was cloyingly sweet after the bitter first one. It not only had honey in it but bits of walnut as well. The third one was good, not sweet, not bitter, just very clean and brisk-tasting. We were also given packages of some kind of candy or candied fruit, that we didn't eat at the time. The end of the ceremony was the "bride and groom" (it wasn't a real wedding, just a re-enactment for the tourists' sakes) throwing small wrapped candies out into the audience. We didn't catch any but on the way out I saw one on a table and grabbed it. It was ginger-flavored hard candy, not terrible, but not this American's usual idea of candy.

to be continued


Photos © Greg & Sonja Dake
Boat Dock on Erhai Lake, left; Three Courses of Tea Ceremony, right.

Photo Editor's Note: We are serializing Sonja and Greg's web log and illustrating it with the photos they are posting, but there is far more photo material available than we will be able to fit in The Bulletin, so we also provide the links to the blog, for those who are interested:

Web Log: http://sonjas-travels.blogspot.com/


Greetings from the Netherlands
by Ary Ommert, Jr.
Maassluis, The Netherlands

Photo © Ary Ommert, Jr.
Dutch soccer fans decorated their homes in orange to spur their team

Hello Friends and readers of The Bulletin.

The past weeks people in the Netherlands had their mind on soccer. The world championship is in Germany. We had high hopes to win the cup, but unfortunately we lost our third match against Portugal and the hope for Holland was over.

In the period we were in the race, many people decorated their homes with flags and even some homes were painted orange. Orange is the color of the clothes from the Dutch soccer team. Also in the garden center we could feel the orange fever. Plants with orange flowers were very popular.

Before and during a match with the Dutch team on TV, the fans also dressed up in orange clothes, hats, shoes, etc. On the above picture you can see how many streets and homes were decorated.

On June 21 I celebrated my 51st birthday. Last year was special, becoming 50; this year was a normal birthday. When you get older seems a year is over faster every time.

After the painters were ready on my balcony, I started to work on placing some plants and flowers on it. Started with surfinias [cascading petunias] in three colors hanging on the fence and standing on the floor. Against the outside wall I placed a wooden rack to hold climbing plants, a clematis and a kamperfoelie [honeysuckle] and also two evergreen plants. Against the glass shield also two evergreens and two separate pots with evergreens on the floor.

I also placed three solar lamps in between the plants. During the daytime the battery is charged and when it becomes dark they automatically switch on the lamp. Looks very nice in the dark and works 4 to 6 hours. I'm very happy with the result. I've enclosed some pictures from the balcony.

Next week my holidays begin. The first week my friends from Norway will come. Cor and Kine and their two children, Timian and Cees. We want to see something from the Netherlands, visit Madurodam (this is a park where many buildings are made in miniature), go to Amsterdam for a day and the zoo in Rotterdam.

Summer is coming back towards the weekend; the past weeks have been cold and we had rain and thunderstorms.

Greetings to you all from the Netherlands,

Ary Ommert Jr.


Photos © Ary Ommert, Jr.
Petunias, honeysuckle, clematis & evergreens thrive on Ary's balcony.


The Donnas Visit Florida J
By Donna Johnson
Ashby, MN
Part 2 of 2

Photo Editor's Note: the web links for the Gamble Plantation have been hit and miss this week and may not work. You can find alternate links with some of the information at Google.com

One day we toured the Robert Gamble Plantation. (Robert Gamble is no relation to Proctor and Gamble.) It was a hot day, so the breeze coming through the half shuttered windows was welcomed by the whole tour group. In spite of being overly warm, it was worth the tour and I even managed to learn several new things and refreshed some facts I'd heard before and forgotten. I've always been interested in the stories of the south and have toured mansions in the past. This was a true antebellum mansion, the only surviving one in south Florida.

Saturday had us heading for the "Sponge Docks." Tarpon Springs is known as "the sponge capital of the world." In the 1930's the sponge industry was very prosperous, bringing in millions of dollars yearly. Then it became contaminated and destroyed in the 40's. The industry was revived in the 80's, which brought Tarpon Springs back to being the world's leader in natural sponges.

It reminded me of other tourist towns, where there are shop after shop of the mostly the same items to choose from. We wandered through a few, then headed back into the heart of the town to check out some antique shops we'd seen. There weren't many open, but we did get to browse through some. Shari found a "keepsake" and then we headed off to the Clearwater beach. Shari and I took a walk on the beach, found some seashells and then rejoined Donna at our chosen restaurant. Donna and I had seared tuna, oh my goodness ... was that good! Our canned tuna should not even have the same name!

I spent some time helping Shari hang pictures, curtain rods and shopping for more decorating "goodies" (the original reason for my trip to Florida). There are a few more things to finish, but her home is shaping up nicely. Lots of space and very lovely! She is a gracious hostess and made us feel thoroughly at home.

Thanks again, to Shari, for having us for a visit! It was AWESOME!


Photo © Donna Johnson
Gamble Plantation, a true antebellum mansion.


o In Service To Our Nation j
Gert Dake Pettit is compiling information on family members and friends of the Dake family who served in the armed forces during and after World War II.


Photos courtesy of Dan Mellon
Roland "Rolly" Mellon in U.S. Army Air Corps uniform (undated), left; Daisy & Everett Mellon (back), Diana & Rolly (front), September 15, 1944, right.

Roland "Rolly" Mellon's Service in WWII

Dad was still in high school on Pearl Harbor Day, December 7, 1941. He dropped out of high school on December 8th and enlisted in the Marine Corps the same day. But he failed the physical exam. There was nothing wrong with him; to his final days he was certain a clerical error kept him out of the Marine Corps. That left him classified as 4F, so he could have avoided service completely if he had wanted to.

Sometime in late '42 or early '43 a buddy of his said," Let's go join the Army."

Dad said, "They won't take me; I tried." But he went anyway, took the same physical and passed and so was in the Army Air Corps.

I'm not certain of where he took his basic training. I believe it was near Minneapolis. This is what happened to him there. Many rifle ranges have targets on a wooden frame that slide up and down behind an earthen berm. But Dad's camp wasn't that modern. Instead, there was a rope about the length of a football field with hundreds of targets hanging from the rope.

There were company after company, or thousands or more recruits, waiting for their turn at the range. Dad held his rifle, loaded one round in it that an instructor handed him, and fired. Unfortunately, he missed the entire target but hit the rope; 100 yards of targets fell to the ground. No more rifle range for that day!

Later that day a messenger brought Dad a message to report to a Captain. Anyone who has been in basic training or boot camp knows you never see an officer unless it's on a parade ground. Dad was sure he was going to be thrown out of the army for being the worst soldier in it.

The Captain explained the whole current history of Germany and the Nazis and what was going on in Europe. Dad kept saying, "Yes Sir," ... "Yes Sir," over and over.

Finally the Captain said, "So you see, Private, why it is important that we train as many men as fast as possible."

Dad said, "Yes Sir."

Then the Captain said, "Good. Then I would appreciate it, as a personal favor, if you would not show off anymore."

Dad said, "Oh, I won't!"

He's lucky they didn't turn him into a sniper.

Dad and Mom met on a blind date a few weeks before he was transferred to an air base in Pampa, Texas, in 1944, where he attended a tire school. Mom went with him and they were married in Texas.

Later he was sent to an air base in Brazil. There, planes en route from Europe to the Pacific received whatever maintenance or repairs were needed. (The Army didn't want the crews stopping off in the U.S.; they were afraid there would be too many desertions by men who thought fighting the Germans was enough and that they didn't need to go fight the Japanese, also.) Dad supervised civilian employees who repaired or replaced aircraft tires, as needed.

Dad, Corporal Roland Mellon, was discharged in February 1946.

Written by son Tom Mellon
Balboa Island, CA


Photos courtesy of Dan Mellon
Marcella & Rolly married in 1944, left; 50th wedding anniversary, 1994, right.


Photo courtesy of Dan Mellon
Corporal Roland Mellon flanked by both sets of grandparents; from left: Alonzo & Angie Mellon, Rolly, Emma & Claude Williamson (Daisy Mellon's parents).

Note by Gert Dake Pettit: Rolly and Marcella had three children: Tom (who was born four months before his dad's discharge), Dan and Colleen. Rolly was a first cousin of the Dake kids -- his dad, Everett Mellon, was our mom's brother. Alonzo Mellon was our mom's father.


Observations
By Don Anderson
Alexandria, MN

On June 27 I enjoyed a trip to my old stamping grounds. I got an early start getting to the North Dakota border at 7:30 a.m.

First stop was Great Bend, a home town of my mother's parents. It has been a while since I last visited there and noticed lots of changes. I visited the graves of my Grandparents, Uncles and Aunts. Also many old friends I got to know over the years who are buried there.

Next to Mooreton, a town where we used to buy our IHC machinery from Feneis Imp. Co. George Feneis was a very fine mechanic and also known for his honesty and welding.

I drove north and angled toward my old farm in Ibsen. I stopped briefly to talk to the owner and looked around to see some buildings that were still there as they were 55 years ago.

Next to Dwight, the town I was born in, in 1927. I got my formal education there and graduated third highest in my class of 1940! I guess I should tell you there were three in that class!

In Dwight I stopped to see the graves of my Father's side and lot of my other friends in the cemetery. I visited briefly with Jim Score, a friend of 60 years.

Then on to Wahpeton where I had dinner with my two sisters; then we checked over the construction on Dwight and Janie's new home that is under construction. I was glad to point out an error and bring it to their attention regarding a poorly designed bathroom tub fitting.

Visited Donny Score at a Wahpeton Nursing home.

Stopped at Cousin Delwood Berndt's and visited with Del and Shirley for an hour or so.

At Fergus Falls I was to visit an old school chum in a nursing home, only to find out he was discharged earlier in the day.

I drove home to Alexandria via Underwood and Battle Lake, a route I drove many times back in the mid '50s, and was surprised to see the many changes since I last saw it.

I enjoyed the day and a thought come to me... I knew more friends in the cemetery then I know in Wahpeton. I must be getting old!


Home Cookin' H

If you have access to fresh berries, this is a spectacular dessert for the 4th of July. I put 1/2 the recipe amount in a tart pan. It's from Taste of Home. --Mitzi Swenson, Dickinson, ND


Mitzi baked half a recipe of Berry Pizza as a tart.

Berry Pizza
Serves 10-12

1 cup flour
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup cold butter or margarine
1/2 cup chopped pecans

1-8 oz. pkg. low-fat cream cheese, softened
1 egg
1/3 cup sugar

1-3/4 cups frozen mixed berries, thawed
1/2 cup sugar
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
1/4 cup water

2-1/2 cups fresh strawberries, sliced
2 cups fresh blackberries
2 cups fresh raspberries
1 cup fresh blueberries

Combine flour and powdered sugar. Cut in butter until crumbly. Stir in pecans. Press into an ungreased 12" pizza pan. Bake at 350 12-14 minutes or until crust is set and edges are lightly browned. Meanwhile, beat cream cheese, egg and sugar until smooth. Spread over crust. Bake 8-10 minutes longer or until set. Cool to room temperature.

Process mixed berries and sugar in a blender or food processor. Combine cornstarch, water and berry mixture. Boil 2 minutes or until thickened (microwave works great). Cool.

Spread berry mixture over the cream cheese layer. Arrange fresh fruit on top. Refrigerate at least 2 hours before slicing.


Celebrations & Observances
From the Files of
5
Hetty Hooper

This Week's Special Days
July 4---Independence Day
Happy Birthday, America!

This Week's Wedding
July 8---Lori Chap to Shawn Ostendorf
Best Wishes!

This Week's Birthdays
July 1---Suzanne McCorkell
July 1---Zachary Elliot Smith (2 years)
July 3---Vonnie Dake
July 5---LeRoy Dake
July 5---Jennifer Dake Horne
July 6---James Miller
July 7---Kimberly Johnson
July 8---Trenton Loredo Roberson (3 years)
Happy Birthday!

More July Birthdays
' 
July 13---Zach Bratten
July 15---Tom Morgan
July 15---William Earl Dake
July 15---Sherry Dake
July 18---Callie Printz (5 years)
July 19---Patricia Dake Myer
July 19---Marlee Morgan Freesemann
July 19---Devon S. Stewart (12 years)
July 20---Michael Miller
July 20---Susie Miller Smith
July 24---Jeni Larson
July 26---Tytus Joshua Myron (11 years)
July 27---Wyatt Timothy Mellon (9 years)
July 29---Heather Henderson
July 29---Colleen Mellon Scott
July 30---Justin Printz
July 31---Tim Myron

July Anniversaries
Z
July 9---Shawn and Lori Ostendorf (next year)
July 19---Dan and Nancy Mellon (37 years)
July 27---Larry and Sherry Dake (28 years)
July 29---Charles and Ardis Sigman Quick (34 years)

July Special Days
O
July 4---Independence Day

Miss Hetty's Mailbox:


Photo illustration © Virginia McCorkell; Mason photos by Heather Henderson
How about a red, white and blue song for the 4th of July, Mason?


Miss Hetty Says


Shawn Ostendorf & Lori Chap

Lori Chap, daughter of George Chap of Howard Lake and David and Donna Johnson of Ashby, and Shawn Ostendorf, son of Larry and Shirley Ostendorf of Maple Grove, will be married Saturday, July 8, 2006, at the Church of Saint Walburga in Rogers. Lori is a graduate of Dassel-Cokato High School and Bemidji State University; she is currently a Senior Reinsurance Analyst with Benfield Group of Bloomington, Minnesota. Shawn is a graduate of Osseo High School and the University of Minnesota. He is currently a Senior Recruiter with the card services division of HSBC in Minnetonka, Minnesota. They plan to reside in Rogers.

Best Wishes to Lori & Shawn!


Keep Us Posted!

Please drop Miss Hetty a line and tell us who, and what, we've missed. And how about a report (photos welcome) of YOUR special celebration?

'Many Thankse
Everyone!

Miss Hetty


+ LETTERS TO THE EDITORS?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Click here to review last week's Bulletin

Just had to send off a note on this week's Bulletin. As always, it was fun, interesting, and entertaining. Thanks to Donna Johnson for writing up our trip to Florida. We packed a lot of non-traditional sight seeing things into those too few days in Florida. Thanks to Shari for sharing her home and time with us. Donna did a great job with remembering and including details I didn't know. Excellent reporter!

Also have to comment on the Anderson sibling photos, Then and Now. Even though 60 years have passed since the family photo was taken, I was impressed with how easily you could recognize each of the family. I know Don best, so he was easy to pick out (looks a lot like his dad, don't you think?), but the girls still are still easy to recognize, then and now. Thanks for providing the comparison.

The whole issue was a pleasure to read (as always). You have such talented contributors providing stories and/or photos. Thanks for all your hard work. The Bulletin always brightens my day!

Donna Richards
Eden Prairie, MN


Hello Dorothy,

I have a Lars Wold Family Tree that Elaine (Anderson) Wold compiled in 1982. I was searching on Google to see if I could find her, and found your Bulletin instead. What a great site! I loved looking around, reading the stories, and seeing the photos.

I happen to be visiting my mom and dad, Dorothy (Flaa) and Bill Jensen, in Orlando, Florida, this weekend. I live in Minneapolis. I showed Mom The Bulletin because it is the kind of site that I knew she would love. She appreciates writing and staying connected; she has been busy writing newsletters as long as I can remember. Currently she writes two newsletters a week for her neighbors. (It helps to stay connected with so many snowbirds currently back North). She also writes a weekly update for church.

Last year she finished a book about the history of the Fireman's Park in Waterloo, Wisconsin, where I grew up. With all that writing, I thought she would appreciate your site, and she did. She commented about how The Bulletin is a great service of love and wonderful that you can keep everyone in your family connected and updated on the latest Anderson family events. She also wondered out loud how you keep so many people contributing. Do you have to send out a lot of reminders and phone calls? We were very impressed; and thank you for posting them on the web where we could discover The Bulletin.

Mom was reading this e-mail before I sent it and said that I hadn't told you enough about myself so I think I better add a paragraph here. :-) I enjoy traveling, walking around the lakes, or spending time doing creative art stuff -- lately working with glass. I am saving to get a kiln so I can fuse glass together to make plates, bowls, vases, etc.

As I mentioned, I am living in Minneapolis. I'm working as a research engineer at Zimmer Spine. I study spinal implants and how they interact with the spine -- how they interact with the movement of the spine or with the tissues in the spine --especially the bone. I usually tell people that I get paid to break stuff because I also do a lot of strength testing in the lab -- on prototypes, to make sure implants are strong enough and durable enough to, hopefully, never fail in a patient's body.

I was in Orlando for a conference for work on Friday and was lucky to be able to stay for the weekend to spend time with Mom and Dad. I've been working on putting all the bits of family history I know together in one place and then doing more research to fill in the gaps, so this is a good weekend to get their help. Toward that end, I was wondering if you have an e-mail address or another way to contact Elaine Wold. If so, would you mind connecting me with her, please? I was wondering if she would mind helping me with my family tree as I do more research.

Thank you for your help and for the stories.

Sincerely,
Laura Jensen
Minneapolis, MN


You did another great job on The Bulletin. Always so much of interest. It's getting so late, so I just scanned it now and will read it thoroughly tomorrow, as I often read each one several times. Thanks!!!!!

Nice of you to get me in contact with Laura Jensen. I will get in touch with her. Earl's cousin is married to a Flaa, so it's from that family. Thanks for sending it on to me.

Elaine Anderson Wold
Wahpeton, ND


Congratulations to Rich on his new job!

I must say I had very mixed emotions hearing about them moving so far away! But, it sounds like a true adventure, as I know living in other states was for me when I was young. A person does learn a lot in the process, so it's a real geography/ history/ life lesson for the whole family. And now, thanks to cell phone rates and e-mail, there is no reason we still can't stay in close touch, so I console myself with those facts. :-)

Donna Anderson Johnson
Ashby, MN


Doug, You really need to go into the Foto-funnies for a business. The two-headed guppy was great! That picture was taken about 1980 +/-, not sure. Keep up the good work. Other than that there's not much else new here.

Larry McCorkell
Blaine, MN


Last Week's Bulletin Review JKL
by Betty Droel
MoundsView, MN

On Jun 24, 2006, at 9:06 a.m....

OH NOOOOOOO, a storm is rolling in. Thundering. Very dark. I MUST turn off the computer so I have it to get The Bulletin instead of stubbornly leaving it on and then wishing I hadn't.

But I will be right here ready to turn it on as soon as I dare.

It is 10:19 a.m.... I have Roy's breakfast in front of him, the sun came out, and now I will be printing my addiction.

I made Roy pecan waffles with fresh picked strawberries on top and real honest to goodness maple syrup. I will have granola -- tell Donna Mae.

Now, then ... I have just turned over the last page of this, another special issue, of The Bulletin, and what better time to write an LTTE than right now when I'm so enthused and inspired?

The first picture was a winner again. I think it is so darling. So innocent and so sweet and so cute. What a nice "big brother" to share his ear of corn with his sister. I get a funny feeling to think I knew their GRANDPA at their age. It has something to do with becoming very old. I love the way Virginia McCorkell puts the details and interesting edges on those pictures that end up worthy of top and center of most Bulletins. I wonder if it being her nieces and nephews gives her a special incentive? Could be!

I was wondering if Coni was having such a difficult week that they chose not to send an Update this time. Or maybe it was just too late to get included. Whatever, we are thinking of them and wishing them the best. [Weston has assured us that he was desperate for time during an extremely busy week at work and just wasn't able to get us an update in time. --Ed.]

Diana, we are so glad you gave us an Update on your condition and treatments. We have definitely been thinking of you, and you can look for a call from us soon just to wish you well in this unknown and in the disappointing burden of not selling your cabin home yet. Right now people are not as quick to spend money as they were. You have a lot to bear, but I didn't see any complaints, which is so amazing to me.

Well, Mavis, we feel more acquainted with you now since this birthday story, and the family pictures. I spent a lot of time studying the pictures. I wonder which of the Syversons Erma is? I am thinking of Doris Spangler, and is that a relation? I was surprised at Helen Slotten, as I remember her as a young person just past a teenager. It was very interesting to me to see the pictures -- all of them. The picture I have in my mind is when we used to come up to Wahpeton/ Breckenridge from Minneapolis for young folks' picnics and weekends, and that included some baseball games for the more athletic ones -- and, Mavis, YOU were one of the best batters and runners they had on the team.

I will have to pass on the Guess pictures again.

I noticed a couple times in the Travelogue that Sonja said she had forgotten the name of something. Well, I can't even imagine all the names she DID remember, and by this time of their trip they would be spinning from all the new things and firsts and deadlines and obligations so for her to record all she did was a lot of detail work. We can allow her several "forgettings."

Donna Mae, you had such great days in Florida. How nice. I was in Orlando with a Tupperware Jubilee promotion trip in the '50's, so was fun hearing about you being in Orlando now. We are looking for "the rest of the story" next week.

Wesley Sigman must be Gertie's son, right? I'm glad there was a present picture of him, also. Who was that with him? [Yes, Wes Sigman is Gertie's son and Joanne, pictured with him, is Wes Sigman's wife. --Ed.]

Caity's birthday story sounded fun, too, and 10 years old is really getting up there.

Thank you for all the space for the story and pictures you included of Roy's 85th birthday. We had the grand finale when Rodger and Claudia took us to the Science Museum on Saturday. That was a first for us to be at the new one, and no way could we have time to get beyond just one floor of the four floors of exhibits. Thank you, Dorothy, for his birthday e-card. You are thoughtful even when you are so busy. He felt he had been very well birthday'd.

All the letters to the editors were a proof to you that your hard work and expertise of layout and design and editing is appreciated by us all. The LTTE writers sounded like they enjoyed the Father's Day supplement on Grandpa Dake, too -- and who wouldn't?

It couldn't possibly tell you in words how we feel when Saturday finally rolls around -- and please know we are very glad to be included in The Bulletin family.

Roy and Betty Droel


CHUCKLES


Photo illustration © Douglas A. Anderson

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Quotation for the day: America is rather like life. You can usually find in it what you look for.... It will probably be interesting, and it is sure to be large. --E. M. Forester

EDITOR'S POLICY: If you wish to subscribe to The Bulletin, simply send me a statement of that fact. If you wish to keep receiving it I hope you will contribute to one of the columns that are running in this family epistle (at least occasionally!). My e-mail address is dma49261@juno.com


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