General Notes

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WWI Years.  During World War I people bought Liberty Bonds to help our country. One neighbor never bought or helped; also, he drove his cattle to his Nebrask a farm when the census taker was going to come...then he would bring them back when Nebraska census was going to come.  So a lot of men got him and took off h is clothes and put tar and feathers on him. He had to walk down Main Street in Gregory.  My Papa was not in on it. This man always went barefoot.  Later in th e years, that was all forgotten and this man's son married a girl whose father helped tar and feather his father.  I have an idea the couple were not even bor n yet at that time when all the unrest and war was going on. I have lived to wo rry through several wars.  The fortunate thing about them is that they have nev er been in this country and none of our boys was ever injured, even though they were in some pretty scary places.  Ed never got out of the States, of course, during WWI, but Neal, Howard, Donald, Marvin and Lloyd were all in areas where there was fighting and danger.  This is how it went. WWII.  On December 7, 1941 was the bombing of Pearl Harbor.  Then young men were drafted at the age of 21 .  Neal was 20 then, so in the fall of 1942 he enlisted.  They were to call him to the Air Force when they got ready for him.  In the meantime, the Government lowered the age to 18. So Howard was drafted in February 1943.  He had been wo rking in the shipyards in Portland, OR.  He came home and said, "My Uncle wants me to come to work for him."  I thought what Uncle? Albert, Perry or Wayne? Ho w dumb I was.  Then he said, "Uncle Sam." Ed was in the hospital at the time. He had fallen and broken his leg between the knee and ankle.  The doctors thoug ht of amputating at first. He fell on February 6, 1943.  It was his mother's bi rthday.  I don't know how we got along...no welfare in those days.  I guess Ed had no work at that time, anyway.  He used crutches for a year.  One day he cam e home and said, "I'm not using those crutches another day."  I said, "Why?"  H e said, "The boys at the Smoke Shop are teasing me." Sons in Service.  So then by July of 1942 Neal was called into the Air Force.  In August of that year Don ald went into the Marines.  Marvin registered in the Navy on his 18th birthday. That was November 23, 1945.  A week later he was called into service.  They a ll saw overseas duty.  They all came home well, no injuries.  V-J Day or Victor y in Japan Day was August 14, 1946.  Then came the Korean War and Lloyd was dra fted in January 1951.  The boys said drafting wasn't any worse than enlisting. He was in Pusan, Korea.  When he came home we met him at the Salem airport.  H e said, "Before you take me home, drive over the new Marion Street Bridge."  It was being built when he left. So all five of our boys were in danger zones, bu t all came home safely. Then later we lost two of our boys.  Donald worked for Portland General Electric.  He was a lineman.  He was killed when a dead wire f lipped and touched a live wire.  12,500 volts went through his left hand and ou t his boot.  That was July 30, 1954. Then we lost Howard on April 7, 1966 from cancer.  His wife, Barbara, five years later on April 10, 1971.  Barbara's moth er passed away two weeks after Howard, and her sister, Maralyn Bartholomew in J une 1977. All from such a nice family and all from cancer. Then I had a shock o n Wednesday morning, 8:14 a.m., July 30, 1980.  I opened my husband's bedroom d oor to ask how he was feeling as he was not feeling well the day before.  I sai d, "Oh, no!"  There he lay as white as the bed sheets.  I felt his cheek and it was cold.  He had passed away sometime in the night.  I called Neal, then Mary Ann, as Joyce had already gone to work.  The children were soon all here.  I s till think it must be a dream.  We had just celebrated our 60th wedding anniver sary on June 16, 1980.  Ed passed away just 26 years to the day after our Donal d. Oregon Calls.  The grasshoppers came in 1935 a