A Mele Kalikimaka Surprise in Hawaii

The Courier
THE COURIER, TUESDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2014
1
Westward ho ho ho!
Christmas
gift ignites
imagination
I remember Christmas 1989.
It was when our son, Jeremy, was
3 years old. He had gotten a red
riding fire truck with ladders on
each side that Christmas. It was
very exciting for him to receive the
fire truck as a gift.
He rode it all over our house.
Jeremy would pretend the Christmas tree or our furniture was on
fire. Then he would put the fire
truck beside the object. He then
proceeded to climb the ladders
against the objects.
Well, it was working on everything, until I got to our living room
just in time to catch him and the
ladder from falling into the tree.
He was so proud, and said,
“Mommy, I was putting out a fire.”
Thank goodness there was no
fire. He was just a young child with
a giant imagination. He always
kept us laughing and giving us
memories to keep for years.
Then, our two daughters
Andrea and Elizabeth got their
American Girl dolls that same
Christmas. He would try to get
their dolls to drive in the fire truck
and they said, “No!”
It was a fun Christmas for us
all, one we all laugh about and hold
dear to our hearts.
Merry Christmas!
Karen Sue Scheiderer
Findlay
The little
wooden box
During the 2005 Christmas
season, I had a booth reserved at
Caesar Creek Flea Market in Wilmington, Ohio, to sell gift items and
homemade sugar cream pies. Several thousand people would walk
through this “mega market” each
weekend. Wanting to spend time
with my adult daughter, Heather,
she accepted my invitation to help.
The market attracted many
group outings and each weekend
we would witness a parade of
people from adult handicap homes,
special needs children’s homes and
orphanages, along with a variety of
less fortunate people.
Our hearts were touched, so we
purchased a large supply of springoperated mini cars to give away to
the children and small novelty gifts
for the adults. Our original intent
to earn a little extra cash turned
into a campaign to distribute a
little joy to those in need.
The last weekend before Christmas, a little boy who had been a
“repeat customer” for free cars
approached us with a huge smile
on his face. He told us he had been
given $5 to go Christmas shopping
and he used it to buy us a small
wooden carved box as a token of
appreciation for giving him gifts.
Overwhelmed that he spent his
only $5 on us, we humbly accepted
the box as tears welled in our eyes.
Responding with several hugs, we
thanked him for making us feel so
very special. When this venture
ended, we realized we barely covered our season’s expenses, but
our reward of a lifetime’s worth of
memories was priceless.
I’m still reminded today, as I
look at the little wooden box displayed in my kitchen, that keeping
Christ in Christmas and obeying
his teachings to share his love with
others is a fulfillment that fosters
true happiness.
Jeanie Ploeger
Findlay
and
Heather (Bowman) Hypes
Denton, Texas
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A Mele Kalikimaka
Surprise in Hawaii
Before we went out to visit
our son Dave in Hawaii in 1990
for Christmas (it was Dave’s
first Christmas in Hawaii after
moving to the island of Oahu in
April of that same year), our son
Doug from Lake Tahoe, California, said he wished he could
come out also, but he wouldn’t
be able to make it because of his
work obligations.
While my husband Bob and
I were standing on the beach at
the Gold Coast of Waikiki, our
son Dave was videoing us and
kept saying to watch the surfers
and snorkelers in the water.
One of the snorkelers came
out of the water, walked toward
us carrying his fins in his hands
while still wearing his snorkel
mask and started talking to us
saying, “That was a long swim,
but I finally made it…!”
Bob and I were so surprised
when this “friendly snorkeler”
turned out to be our son Doug,
whom we didn’t think would be
able to make the trip.
It was great our family
could be together for a wonderful Hawaiian Merry Christmas
(Mele Kalikimaka) and Happy
New Year’s (Hauoli Maka Hiki
Hou) holiday!
I have many memories of
trips together through the
years with my husband Bob,
who passed away this July 15th
on his 83rd birthday, his belated
twin brother Dick’s birthday
and our son Dave’s birthday.
Mele Kalikimaka and Hauoli
Maka Hiki Hou to all my family
and friends!!
Ellie Clymer
Findlay
I could hardly contain my
happy emotions when my parents announced we would be
spending vacation time traveling
to western states and settling in
Phoenix, Arizona, until spring.
As a 12-year-old girl in 1947 who
had never been outside the Ohio
border, well, it was beyond wonderful news. What a Christmas
this will be!
In August, we moved from
the farm, attached a Continental
house trailer to our new Buick
and headed for Chicago on Route
66. Gas was 30 cents a gallon, and
the speed limit was 40 mph!
My journal was being filled
with “never seen before” highlights, and by the time we reached
Denver the landscape had drastically changed from flat farmland
to mountain ranges, larger cities,
and winding roads. Everywhere
we ventured seemed like a whole
new world of variety.
In 1947, Phoenix was not large
enough to get lost in. We found a
trailer park with a restaurant and
during the day drove to see this
special wonderland. Glendale,
nearby as far as the eye could
see, as it is today, is known for
its vegetables and citrus groves,
fields of fruit and grape arbors.
The fields were dotted with water
sprinklers. There were irrigation
ditches alongside the roads — it
all resembled a picture postcard
as I tried to put it all on paper, not
to miss any important detail. The
weather offered a dry heat, and
with the car windows down, the
aroma of soil, water and vegetation was intoxicating.
We were fortunate to see
old-fashioned farm trucks and
workers as they were gathering in some crops and loaded
the crates. Processing buildings
were nearby. I quickly realized
how beneficial Ohio crops were,
as well as southwestern farming,
to feed our country’s population.
I was fascinated seeing Indians in their traditional clothing.
Many had roadside booths selling blankets, rugs, baskets and
jewelry they proudly made.
Traveling out of town was
desert displaying every kind of
cactus. It was a mystery to my
young mind how such beautiful
plants grew in sand, and yet survived. There were birds, bugs and
desert critters that were intriguing, but I kept my distance.
Back in town were tiny grocery stores, vegetable and fruit
markets, which were under tents.
Many different nationalities of
people, and it was a time of peace.
How much I appreciate my
parents deciding at that time to
explore parts of our country. It
was truly a Merry Christmas, and
it has lived in my memory almost
70 years. Happy year of 1947.
Lila Rose Roszman
Marion
A valuable lesson about giving
A very memorable Christmas
for me took place in 1951 when
I was 10 years old. My mother
took me to a Christmas Eve service at our church in Bluffton.
My mother did this with some
trepidation, as I had a 4-year-old
sister who would be staying home
with my father. In my memory,
my father had never taken care
of me or my sister before and he
was not a warm and cuddly type
of person. Despite this, we went
to church.
Upon arriving home, everything was peaceful and quiet. My
father told my sister to show her
mother what they had done while
we were at church.
My sister went to our Christmas tree and picked up a shoe
box wrapped in newspaper that
contained several baby bottles.
She told my mother that dad
had told her that there were a lot
of babies in the world who needed
these bottles and that it was time
for her to give hers to them. My
mother was really skeptical and
told Dad that he would have to
deal with her when she screamed
for her nightly bottle. But not a
peep was heard.
It was amazing that my father
found a perfect solution to a problem they had been dealing with
for a couple of years and gave a
valuable lesson to my sister as
well.
Sue Montgomery
Findlay
Cooking up a good Christmas at Dad’s bakery
My favorite Christmas memories revolve around my parents
and the small bakery they owned
in Fostoria for 16 years. It would
begin shortly before Thanksgiving when Dad, a.k.a. Bud Bovee,
would happily announce he had
made the first batch of fruit cake
for the season. Dad had been a
baker all his life and Christmas
was his favorite time of the year.
The day after Thanksgiving
began endless rounds of making,
icing and decorating cookies, anise
and butter cut-outs. Our hands
were stained red and green the
whole month of December, with
some blue and yellow mixed in.
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You see, the Santa cookies were
always sprinkled with red sugar,
the trees were green, the bells
were blue and the stars yellow
(because who wants a blue Santa
or a green star?), though sometimes I did it just to make him
laugh. Closer to Christmas would
be the cakes, cupcakes and petit
fours decorated with bells, poinsettias, holly and, though I didn’t
know it at the time, some of the
best memories of my life.
Mom spent her time in the
store area, happily decorating
the show window for the holiday
and filling the cases with seasonal
treats of sweet rolls, pies, cakes,
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breads and cookies. I spent my
share of time in the store too,
but we were both there because
of Dad. Mom always said he was
born with flour in his veins.
As a teenager, I took working
alongside Dad at the bakery as an
everyday occurrence and even did
my share of complaining about the
early morning hours, no later than
6 a.m. I wish I would have realized
just how special that time was. Oh,
what I would give to spend one
more day in that sweet smelling
building with Dad laughing at my
blue and yellow Santa cookies.
Jodee Paxton
Findlay
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Photo provided to The Courier by KRISTY SZKUDLAREK
Sawyer scribbles to Santa
My son, Sawyer, turned 4 on November 23. This year, he was so excited
to write his own letter to Santa. He told me what he wanted to say, and I
helped with spelling. But, he wrote every letter with such determination.
In case you cannot read it: “Dear Santa, I would like a gup s, r, o.
Sawyer.” Fingers crossed that Santa watches Disney Jr. and Octonauts!
— Kristy Szkudlarek
Findlay
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2
CHR ISTM AS MEMOR IES
THE COURIER
TUEsday, dECEMBER 23, 2014
The angels waited for Bud God sent an
This will be the third Christmas without
him: “Bud,” as he was known all his life. He was
my wife susan’s brother, my brother-in-law, but
he always introduced me as his brother when
we went out together.
Backtrack to November 2012. Up until this
time he had married, had two children, been
divorced and had a grandchild.
There was a telephone call one cold November evening from his son, aaron, and Bud was
out in the emergency room at Blanchard Valley
Hospital. It was hard to see this shrunken shell
of a man we all knew and loved.
Bud was moved to an intensive care unit
room. after several sessions with the doctors,
we learned that he had lost around 80 pounds
and was not able to eat any longer. What was
it? That word everyone dreads to hear: cancer.
He had endured it for many months. Outside
the ICU, the lights of Christmas were ablaze,
the snow was falling and the shoppers were
running home with their treasures, as the seasonal song goes.
I dared not try to think what was passing
through the mind of susan, sitting there waiting for the doctors to come, at last with her
brother in a quiet setting: one of them unresponsive and the other wondering why this
had to be and what force of nature took his
strength.
Three weeks after many attempts to save
him, hope was gone. He was transferred to a
peaceful room in the hospice unit. No more
tubes to deal with and a relief that he was
being watched over and sleeping peacefully.
He awoke that evening and susan was there.
He believed that he was in his new apartment
and as much as she never wanted to deceive
him, she let him believe that; her last gift to
him. He spent only one night in that room. He
passed early the following morning.
sue noticed a soft, peaceful look on his face
as if he was just taking a nap. His skin was soft.
after a little while she thought she noticed a
mist or puff of air emanating over his body and
going up toward the ceiling. Could it be that
the angels had waited to take him, so that she
and her brother might have some more time
together before he had to go?
That’s what I think.
Thomas and Susan Slagel
Findlay
Christmas goes back to school
EDITOR’S NOTE: These letters
were submitted from Lori Hunt’s
seventh-grade class at Glenwood
Middle School, where students
were asked to write a Christmas
memory for an assignment.
Two beautiful necklaces
My favorite Christmas memory
happened five years ago. My
memory is of my family gathered
around the sparkling Christmas
tree at my grandma’s house. My
mom, dad, aunt and uncle were
passing out the gifts. The first gift
they passed out was mine. When
all the presents were passed out,
we began to open them.
My aunt opened her gift and it
was a beautiful shiny silver necklace. I loved it! I wished I had one
just like it. My grandma told me
to open up my beautiful red- and
green-wrapped gift. Everyone was
watching anxiously as I opened my
gift. I opened up my gift, it was
the same box, I opened the lid and
there was the same necklace.
I jumped up and down, I gave
my grandma a hug and then my
aunt. We put the necklaces on
and laughed. I showed my mom
that my aunt and I had received
the same necklace. she said they
were very beautiful. We would
wear them on the same days. I
loved my aunt, and we were best
friends. since then, my aunt has
passed away, so the necklace is
very important to me.
— Bri Searls
My magical Christmas
My name is Gabriela, and this
is the story of not only my favorite,
but my most magical Christmas.
Five years ago, when I was
about 7, it was rough in school.
all the kids in my grade were just
finding out the truth about santa
Claus and were trying to tell all
the rest of the kids that he was
fake. I kept on telling myself that
he was real, but after so long I
started to have doubts.
My mom, trying so hard to
keep me believing, watched “The
Polar Express” with me. Even
though I had seen it many times
prior to that, this was the first
time I actually understood the
message it gives.
at the end of the movie, when
the bell flies off the reindeer, was
the moment I decided what I
really wanted for Christmas: one
of Rudolph’s bells.
after about a month of sending
letters and bugging my parents,
Christmas morning came. When
I woke up that morning, I ran to
the tree not really caring about
the toys because all I wanted was
that bell.
When I finally spotted it, it
was like there was a spotlight on
it. I ran to my parents’ room to
tell them what I saw. They got up
and we all went to the living room
to open presents. When I finally
opened that little purple box and
saw the bell, I was so happy. It also
came with a letter that I memorized. That Christmas was my
all-time favorite because I truly
believed.
— Gabriela Pergram
Grandma Ruth’s doll
I wrote a memory from my
grandmother, Ruth Folk. she is
69 years old. I asked her what
her favorite Christmas memory
was and she said that her favorite
Christmas memory was in 1953,
when she was about 8 or 9 years
old.
It was a time when she and her
family did not have a lot of money.
When she was a child, there was
a place called “The City Mission,”
which was in a small church that
would help poor people in the
community. They gave Christmas
presents to all the children in my
grandmother’s family.
all she ever wanted was a baby
doll. One Christmas morning her
sister woke her up, went downstairs and they noticed a baby doll
underneath the Christmas tree.
Her sister ran up to the tree,
grabbed the baby doll and hugged
it until one moment when their
mother noticed a tag attached to
the baby doll’s arm, and when she
read the tag it said “Ruthy.”
My grandmother was so happy
when she figured out it was hers.
she named her doll “Betsy.” she
had her doll until she was about
13 or 14 years old, when suddenly
it was mysteriously destroyed.
Thank you for letting me share my
story about my Grandma Ruth’s
eighth Christmas memory.
— Jade Treft
A fast-paced Christmas
a couple years ago at Christmas, it was fun because my cousins and I played some basketball
for a little bit. after that, we went
sledding and we were all out there
all night. The best part was sliding
into the creek. When we were done
we went inside to open our presents. When we were done opening
our presents, my uncle chased me
around the house trying to make
me eat shrimp. He almost made
me, but I hid in the closet. Then
we were ready to go home. That
was the best Christmas memory
ever.
— Noah Wilkinson
Decorating the Christmas
tree and cookies
My best Christmas memory is
when I decorated my Christmas
tree and sugar cookies. When we
decorated my Christmas tree, we
didn’t use the fancy ones you buy
at the store; we used personal
ones. For example, my sister really
likes sasquatch, so we had bought
her an ornament of him. When I
was little, every year I would make
an ornament with my handprint
on them.
When my family decorated our
tree, we teased each other about
our silly ornaments we were putting up on the tree. We also teased
each other about not being able
to untangle the lights. When my
dad couldn’t get the lights untangled, he got really frustrated, so
I started to laugh. I still haven’t
laughed so hard! I was nearly
crying! But when the tree was
decorated, we went to bed furious
with everyone. But when we woke
up, we all forgot.
We also decorated sugar cookies. I decorated them with my dad
and sister. We all thought that
eating them was the best part ...
my dad and I made all of the dough
and stuff like that, then everyone
else decorated them. Those are my
favorite Christmas memories :)
— Haleigh Heckaman
The years in
between were
wonderful
Photo provided to The Courier by DENISE MITCHELL
Every Christmas Eve since
I could remember, we would
gather at my Grandma and
Grandpa Humphrey ’s for a
Christmas Eve get-together.
It was always a fun and wonderful time visiting with my
family, catching up, and enjoying all the food and dessert that
was prepared.
O f course, the dea l my
grandpa had set was we would
open presents after he finished
his coffee.
so each and every one of us
kids would go on reconnaissance to check on the level of
his coffee in his cup, haha.
Eventually, we would take
pictures by the tree with everyone and open presents.
I also recall one time santa
had shown up, passed out candy
canes.
He told us to be good, go right
home and go to bed because he
had already started delivering
presents.
Oh, the memories. Rest in
peace, Grandpa!
Robert J. Spence III
Benton Ridge
Gesture brightened a blue Christmas
In august of 2013, I lost my
mother. Christmas that year was
tough, but 2014 was not starting
to look any merrier.
I went to the local Meijer
store to do some shopping on
12/12/14, and while crossing
the crosswalk, some driver
almost ran over me. I’m thinking he forgot he had brakes.
I was NOT in the mood for
Christmas spirit or Christmas
songs. This day was not going
as I had planned. I wanted to
get my shopping done and be
outta there.
as I went up and down the
aisles looking for my groceries
and watching where I was going,
I could hear all the little children
and their parents in the conjoining aisles. I was finding myself
getting deeper and deeper into
a depression.
as I was turning the corner
I navigated around a young
mother and her two little children in a big cart. One of the
children was a little girl and
she had a white piece of paper
that was folded in half and had
a green drawing on it, clearly
done by the little girl herself.
This little girl was chatting
with her mother and I heard her
say, “stop, stop. I want to see
this lady.”
I looked over at her and realized she was handing me her
precious drawing. she jumped
off her cart and walked over to
me and said, “Merry Christmas”
as she handed me the card.
I took the card and tears
welled up in my eyes. I then realized that this little girl was sent
to me by the angels who knew of
my pained heart. I got down on
a lower level to meet this little
girl’s eyes and asked her name.
she told me it was alana. she
gave me a hug and got back in
her cart with her mom pushing
her and her little brother down
the aisle.
I took the opportunity to look
inside the card and her mom had
written, “Merry Christmas, God
Bless.”
This Christmas was going to
be indeed, a wonderful Christmas thanks to my little angel,
alana.
Ronnie Cheney
Upper Sandusky
Mom’s precious
Christmas jewel
doctor’s comment led to baby’s name
I was expecting my third
child in december 1970, and
the doctor said the baby was
due around the 16th.
We had two sons, ages 13 and
15, and they were excited about
getting a little brother or sister!
But the 16th came and went
and there was still no baby.
a week went by and we were
hoping the baby might arrive
on Christmas, but that didn’t
happen either!
My mot he r - i n - l aw s a id ,
“Well, since you’ve gone this
long, you might have it on my
birthday.
and that’s what happened! I
delivered a beautiful baby girl
on dec. 28, so close to Christmas and my mother-in-law’s
birthday! It truly was a blessed
event!
Later in the day, after my
baby was born, I was sitting on
the side of my hospital bed with
my baby in my arms. My doctor
came in and sat down beside me.
He looked at my baby and
said, “What are you going to
name your little girl? ”
I said, “I’m debating on
stephanie or Tiffany.”
He looked at me and said,
“she looks like a little jewel to
me!” That did it for me.
My sweet baby was named
Tiffany ann.
she is now married with two
boys of her own. and she will
always be “My little Jewel”!
Donna K. Trenor
Findlay
Christmas carolers
stop by for a meal
dec. 23, 1959, was a wonderful day.
That Christmas I had a little
dark-haired baby girl.
I spent Christmas in the hospital. My mother-in-law asked
me what I wanted, and I told
her candy, so she made me black
walnut fudge. so good, and I have
never had any since.
I never dreamed 39 years later
that same little girl would pass
away at another Christmas.
so, in 1959, that Christmas was
joyful, and in 1998, that Christmas
was joyless.
But all the years in between
were wonderful.
Clara B. Yoder
Findlay
Christmas with
the grandparents
angel to Meijer
FRONT ROW, left to right: Shannon (Mitchell) Friedmeyer, Santa (John McDaniel), Mathew McDaniel,
Andrea Mitchell. Back row, left to right: Marlene McDaniel, Misty (Reed) Webster, Andrew McDaniel.
The photo was taken in 1996.
Santa’s 14-year Christmas tradition
The Christmas of 1982 was the first year my
father, John Mcdaniel, showed up to our family
Christmas dressed as santa to celebrate my niece
Misty’s first Christmas.
For the next 14 years until my father passed, he
would dress up as santa and visit our family every
Christmas. The visit from santa became even more
special to my husband and I when our two daughters,
shannon and andrea, were born. From the young-
est child to the oldest adult, everyone waited with
excitement for santa’s jolly entrance. When santa
finally arrived, each family member would take turns
sitting on santa’s knee to tell him what they wanted
for Christmas. We didn’t know it then, but the Christmas of 1996 has become our most cherished santa
visit ever.
Denise Mitchell
Findlay
It was 1950 and I was 6 years
old and my little sister was 2
years old.
My mom had baked for several
days many beautiful delicious
delicacies and sweets.
Mom was so tired that she
couldn’t think of washing her
long, long hair. Our loving daddy
told Mama that he would wash
her hair. We didn’t have a shower,
so he put the heavy-duty ironing
board up to the kitchen sink and
Mom stretched out on her back.
Well — when he was just finishing the doorbell rang and carolers began to sing outside our
front door.
Mom quickly got her hair
whipped in a towel and we all
answered the door and enjoyed
the wonderful sounds of Christmas. The carolers were students
from the Bible school across the
way.
Then Mom invited them in
and shared her freshly-baked
goodies with them. This little girl
felt the joy of Christmas and still
does today.
My mom and dad are celebrating Christmas in heaven this year.
Alna Braun
Findlay
A moving movie memory
1994 was the last Christmas
my entire “scattered” family
shared the Christmas season.
My mother, my five children,
their spouses, children and, of
course, myself were able to be
together for the weekend.
We shared gifts, chores and
laughter, ending the weekend by
watching the movie, “Homeward
Bound.”
My eldest daughter, a stoic,
no-nonsense person (with two
teenage daughters herself) ended
up crying and sobbing during the
movie.
It has made for a lot of teasing
and a memory of a wonderful time.
For me, I think of it as “a Wonderful Lifetime” memory.
Joella Cecil
Findlay
Alaskan Christmas seems like yesterday
snow and cold
were unfamiliar
commodities
It was the Christmas of 1955.
I was 7 years old. We had just
moved to Kodiak, alaska, that
summer. My father was in the
Coast Guard and had been
posted from a ship based in
Miami, Florida, to the LORaN
station on Kodiak Island.
I had lived all of my short
life in Florida and was completely unfamiliar with seasonal
changes; except for the change
from hurricane season to sandflea season. snow, wearing a
coat, mittens, cold noses, were
all new to me.
What a culture shock when
we got several feet of snow
just before Christmas. Nevertheless, we waded out and cut
our own tree; well, dad did all
the work. Back then everybody
cut their own trees on Kodiak,
since nearly all of the island
was owned by the federal government.
Everything about that winter
– the snow, the cold, dark days,
the frozen fingers, the warm hot
chocolate and the smell of a real
tree — will never be repeated
in my experience. It was a truly
unique Christmas season. Mom
had cooked a ham on Christmas
Eve, which added to the ambi-
ance with the heady smell in a
closed-up house.
Then came Christmas day.
We all slept in late, even though
it was hard for me. For about
10 days around december 21,
there is NO sun at that latitude, so Christmas was dark all
day long; but when it came to
opening gifts my day got really
bright. I got an honest-to-goodness sLEd! I had never seen one
before coming to Kodiak, except
in the department store Christ-
mas displays in Miami.
By spring, that sled was
nearly worn out, but it really
didn’t matter, because the next
fall, dad was posted to a ship
based in Mobile, a laba ma.
yes, the Christmas of 1955
was almost 60 years ago, but
it stands out in my memory as
totally unique. In some ways it
seems almost like yesterday.
Denny Scales
Fostoria
CHR ISTM AS MEMOR IES
THE COURIER
TUEsday, dECEMBER 23, 2014
Everlasting Gift
Tis the season to be jolly
Christmas gifts and
boughs of holly.
But underneath the glitter
and glow
Is the real meaning of
Christmas that all should
know.
a precious little baby boy
lying in a manger
The brilliant star up in
the sky that led the way of
strangers.
They came from near,
they came from far to see the
baby boy
But little did they know
right then he’d bring the
world such joy.
Thirty-three years he
worked on earth
Just a short walk from the
day of his birth.
Unconditional love he gave
so that the world might
be saved.
Reflect for a moment on
your Christmas past.
The gifts you received:
did that joy last?
santa would be the first
to say
“Now, everyone bow your
heads and pray.”
Thank you heavenly father
above
For the precious baby and
his love.
Let every day be Christmas.
share peace, joy and love
and remember the precious
gift he gives. Eternal life is
so we all may live.
Judy Kisseberth
Benton Ridge
Change of plans sparks road
trip on coldest Christmas ever
scant traffic allows man to
surprise his father on holiday
My mother-in-law and fatherin-law, Cloyd “sport” and dorotha Inbody, were married on
Christmas day 1938. so they
were to celebrate their 45th
anniversary on Christmas day
in 1983. It so happened that was
a sunday, so the entire family
(nine sons and daughters and a
host of grandchildren) planned
to attend the sunday morning
worship service with them at
Bethlehem United Methodist
Church just outside of Findlay, south of the reservoir. We
planned to present the church
with pew Bibles in honor of
their anniversary. since it was
a small, family-oriented church,
we had also planned to be a large
part of the worship service that
Christmas morning.
Everything was in place, but
earlier in the week the weather
turned bitterly cold. so much so
that the pastor called saturday
evening and said that the church
service would be canceled the
next morning because the pipes
in the church were frozen. Most
other services in town were canceled as well, due to the extreme
cold, so all of our plans went out
the window.
But this was going to be the
first Christmas morning that
I wouldn’t be home with my
family, so we saw an opportunity to still make it in time for
Christmas dinner even though
home was four hours away! I
had filled the car with gasoline
earlier in the week and had
spoken to our mechanic friend,
Emil Layne at Findlay service
Garage, who told me that if we
got the car good and warm we
shouldn’t have any problems on
the road. With the thermometer
reading -22 degrees at about
7:30 a.m. sunday morning, we
got the car warmed up, loaded
up and headed off to Tiltonsville
in eastern Ohio along the Ohio
River. What a trip; we had the
roads to ourselves! We passed
all of about a half-dozen cars
One of my most cherished
memories started in 1982 when
our granddaughter got her wish.
But it was not until 1988, at age
11, that she wrote her very own
letter to The Courier’s Favorite
Christmas Memories (which I
still have).
It read:
“My favorite Christmas was
when I was about five. I had
wanted a wagon for the whole
year. My Birthday went past and
I didn’t get one. so Christmas
came at our house and I still didn’t
get one. The next day I went to
Grandma’s house. We ate a good
meal then unwrapped the pres-
A Little Jesus
I was a depression kid! Born in
1930, I was the first of eight children.
daddy worked two days a week. We
didn’t get much for Christmas, but
lots of love! We had a tree with bright
lights on it! Mama always saw to it
that we had a book and a game to
share! she made homemade candy
and we each had an orange. We
didn’t feel deprived! We were happy
and thankful!
Wilmetta Copus
Findlay
P.s.: I still have my Nancy drew
book!
dinner. The plans for the church
service were put on hold until
the next sunday and all seemed
to end well.
Now, thirty-one years later,
my family is gone but the memories of those special Christmas
mornings will remain with me
forever. However, none will be
any more special than ringing
that doorbell on that cold, cold
Christmas sunday morning in
1983.
so enjoy Christmas this year
with family, friends and loved
ones. Cherish the memories of
Christmas past and make your
own special memories to be
savored in years to come.
Dan L. Merkel
Findlay
ents. I still hadn’t got a wagon. My
grandma said “sarah go check in
the back bedroom I think I forgot
one.” When I walked in I saw a
wagon. I was so excited and happy
I think that was one of my favorite
Christmas.” - sarah yockey
This has become a family tradition. Each firstborn of our three
children received a wagon and
now as tradition has it each firstborn of our seven grandchildren
receive a wagon from us.
Grand and Great Grandparents
Clair and Bev
Beverly J. Romick
Ada
The joy of giving
Grandma made
Christmas special
Lots of love enough
for Christmas
between Findlay and Columbus. around the outer beltway
in Columbus, we may have seen
another two dozen vehicles but
traffic “thinned out” again and
we saw maybe a total of a dozen
cars along eastbound I-70 on the
way home.
Thankfully, we had no problems and at 11:30 a.m., I rang
the doorbell at home. dad
was so surprised to see us; he
couldn’t imagine who might be
calling at that hour on such a
cold Christmas morning. We did
make it home and we celebrated
a very special Christmas dinner
and thoroughly enjoyed the rest
of the day celebrating Christmas
with family and friends. Most
of the rest of my wife’s family
gathered at her sister’s (Carolyn McRill) home for Christmas
A family tradition
rolls in for Christmas
When the night is dark
and long,
We need a little Jesus.
When our hearts have lost
their song,
We need a little Jesus.
When our faith is not so
strong
and everything seems
wrong,
We need a little Jesus.
There are moments every
day,
We need a little Jesus.
For a friend to show the
way,
We need a little Jesus.
Now the Christmas star
shines bright,
and there beneath its light
We meet our Little Jesus.
Cora L. Kerr
Findlay
Remembering my favorite
memory is hard because I have had
so many, but one in particular is special because of who I shared it with.
I lost my grandmother a couple of
months ago so I’m doing this for
her. When I was in third grade I had
gotten my tonsils out and it was very
close to Christmas. My grandmother
saw how sick I was and how much
pain I was in, so she let me open a
gift. It was a fire truck with all the
lights and ladders. It made me feel
good, and makes me feel even better
now, knowing I had a wonderful
grandmother.
Dustin Greer
Findlay
3
“God Bless Us Every One!”
Photo by DAVID WOHLGAMUTH
EVEN though the faith of the world is shaken by the treacheries and agonies of war, the faith of little
children remains the same, year in and year out. Bobby, Sharon and Donnie Perkins, age 8, 4 and 7
years, are children of Donald Perkins, 121 West Sandusky street. Like children the world over, they
kneel by their bed before Christmas and whisper softly their wants to God, and to old Santa Claus.
While kingdoms totter and armies, crumble, the faith of a child remains steadfast.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This photo was taken for The Republican-Courier that ran Dec. 24, 1941, with World
War II acknowledged in the cutline, taken verbatim from that issue. The photo was submitted by Bob
Perkins, of Findlay, who is the child on the left. The photo was taken in the back room of his father’s
business, Superior Cleaners. Bob lived at Superior Cleaners from July 1941 to January 1942, moving
in after his mother died from leukemia in April 1941.
Christmas was always a big, festive family celebration
Our parents, Raul and Rosa arredondo, plus nine
children, moved to Findlay in the 1960s. since that
time, we lived in a beautiful house at 123 East Pine
avenue. There are so many memories that were made
as we were growing up.
Christmas was always a big, festive family celebration. The nativity was always the first to be set up.
The first weekend of december, we would pile into
our station wagon to find the perfect tree. Imagine
getting nine kids to agree on the perfect tree, but
somehow we agreed and took it home to decorate.
My dad would bring the ornaments down from
the attic, and my mom would take out the lights and
lovingly unwrap our precious ornaments. The ornaments were hung as everyone would put their favorites on the tree. The Christmas music would always
be playing in the background and would continue
until Christmas day.
I can still remember the smell of the cinnamon
and cloves that Mom kept simmering on the stove
throughout the holidays. We baked and decorated
cookies; then came the assembly line we had for
making tamales. My dad was the official tester. I can
still smell those wonderful tamales. another custom
was hot chocolate and pan dulce (sweet bread). What
a treat they were.
On Christmas morning, we always opened our
gifts. Those are wonderful memories. The children
have all grown up, and now there are great-grandchildren. Our beloved home has been sold and our
beloved 90- and 93-year-old parents have moved to
Virginia Beach. Those were the days, as the saying
goes, but the memories will always be in our hearts.
Feliz Navidad!!
Rosita Harper
Findlay
I have many wonderful Christmas memories, however, what
sticks out most in my mind is that
in our family, I have never heard
anyone say, “I want this …” or
“What’s for me under the tree?”
Rather, the concern has always
been what they could give to
someone else. My fondest memories are how our children handled
gift giving when they were young.
We didn’t have a lot of money, and
eventually there were five of them,
so they had to be creative!
One particular memory that
comes to mind happened when we
were stationed in Germany and we
took them to the post exchange to
shop. There were four of them
then, ages 4 to 12, so being in one
place made it easier to let them
have some autonomy, while keeping an eye on them.
Their budget that year was $10
each to buy for their siblings and
Mom and dad! It was such a joy
to watch them look around and
figure out what they could buy.
They were all very imaginative,
even the four-year-old, and managed to buy something for each
person; the older ones even pooled
their resources!
Christmas morning everyone
was much more excited about sharing their gifts and wanted to be
first to pick a gift to have someone
open! To this day, our family opens
gifts one at a time, going around
the room, so opening gifts can take
time, but it is always a blessing.
My Christmas memories
remind me that it is in giving that
we receive and now I get to share
that with my grandchildren! God’s
blessings to all!
Louise Brooks
Findlay
A laugh that was all his own
This isn’t my Christmas
memory, but one that my dad,
Robert schoonover sr. of Benton
Ridge, has told me about.
My great-grandparents, Harl
and Eva schoonover, lived on a
farm just outside Benton Ridge
on Hancock County 84. The farm
was located at the back of a lane
at least half a mile long.
My dad told me that one
Christmas in the late 1930s
or early 1940s that he and his
dad and mom, Clair and Golda
schoonover, had gone to the farm
for Christmas with the other aunts
and uncles.
While they were there, it
snowed quite a bit and they were
unable to make it out to the road
as the lane had drifted.
Back then, my great-grandpa
had horses that were still used for
farming. My dad said he can still
see Great-Grandpa Harl sitting
on the radiator of their car with
the horses hitched to the front
bumper pulling them to the road,
laughing the whole way.
I remember when I was growing up, and Great-Grandpa and
Great-Grandma lived in Benton in
the late 1960s, that Grandpa had a
laugh that was all his own, so I can
see this picture in my mind even
though it was long before my time.
Robert Schoonover Jr.
Benton Ridge
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4
CHR ISTM AS MEMOR IES
West side
Santa
during most of the 1960s I
was lucky enough to help my
grandmother deliver Christmas
boxes to the folks “in need” in my
grandparents’ west side mobile
home park, usually around dec.
22 or 23. Grandma belonged to a
“buyers group” (back then located
in West Park) which enabled her
to find just about anything at bargain prices.
Being the proprietor of the
park, she always knew who was
struggling during the holidays, as
well as how many children were in
the family and any special needs
that came into play.
Boxes would contain food
enough to run from Christmas
through Jan. 1, and toys and hats
and mittens (she would knit) for
each child. My job was to pull my
red Flyer (always housed there)
with the boxes through the park,
and under cover of darkness we
would place the box on the porch
or steps leading to the mobile
home. I was to knock on the door
three times and say, “Ho-ho-ho,”
and run to Grandma out of sight
and get a big hug.
There was somewhere around
60 to 70 trailers in the park and
many years there would be 10 to
15 families that would receive
some form of assistance. The park
is all gone and Walmart is where
the lake once was and restaurants
took the place of Grandma and
Grandpa’s house and where the
park once stood, but the memories remain for the oldest of several grandkids who was taught a
big lesson on what Christmas is
all about. I have never forgotten
what Grandma always called “our
secret.” I think she would not mind
my sharing now....
Rick Aurand
Arcadia
THE COURIER
TUEsday, dECEMBER 23, 2014
Marathon Oil Company
flies Santa in for deliveries
One of my favorite Christmas
memories is when I was growing
up and attending the Christmas
party where my father worked.
This wasn’t just any Christmas
party! It was santa Claus flying in
on Marathon Oil Company’s Gulfstream One from the North Pole
and giving each and every child at
the party a wrapped present.
In anticipation of santa
arriving at the party, one of the
Marathon dispatchers would
keep the whole party abreast by
announcing over the Pa system
that santa was ten minutes out,
then five, then sure enough the
airplane would come pulling up
to the hangar. The plane would
shut down, the door would open,
and santa Claus would come down
the stairs followed by two of his
Christmas elves. santa would have
a big white sack of toys thrown
over his shoulder, and into the
hangar he’d come! I remember
the pictures of all the children and
their faces placed against the glass
waiting for that magical moment
when santa would arrive!
santa would then sit in the BIG
chair especially set up for him. He
would take a seat and then begin
calling out names that he had on
a list. The children would come
as their names were called and sit
on santa’s lap while he asked if we
had been good that year! He then
would give a gift and set you free
to be with the rest of the children
at his feet, opening gifts.
If you haven’t guessed, my
father was a pilot for the Marathon
Oil Company. sadly, a lot of these
gentlemen who put on this kind
act at Christmas have passed on. I
run into the children of these great
men and almost every time the stories come up of the Christmas parties. One gentleman in particular
would always say, “When I was
growing up santa did not have a
sleigh, but had a red-striped Gulfstream One!”
But for those still around who
remember or have had the good
fortune of being a part of one of
those great Christmas parties, I
too have followed in my father’s
footsteps and became a pilot for
the now Marathon Petroleum
Company. Rest assured (rumor
has it) that santa still comes to
the Marathon hangar, but has
changed the stripes on his plane
to red, white and blue!
To all the Marathon aviators
past and present, Merry Christmas and God Bless!
Ronald O. Neds
Findlay
Santa claws
Round about 1960-1962 I was
(and still am!!) so infatuated with
Christmas and santa Claus.
Long about mid-december
my little sister and I would start
“practicing” sneaking up so we
could catch santa putting our gifts
under the tree.
By Christmas Eve we had
things down pat, but I decided to
get up by myself.
I dozed off on our sofa and our
tree was behind it.
suddenly, I heard a noise at the
tree.
Ornaments clinking, paper
rustling.
I was so scared but finally got
the courage to peek my head over
the back of the sofa.
Much to my surprise and somewhat to my relief — there was our
cat drinking the milk we had left
under the tree for santa!! Ho ho
ho!
Susan Martin Henry
McComb
However, a beautiful baby doll
was left for me. she is just like a
real baby, at one time she even
said “Ma-Ma” when gently laid
down for a nap. I still have her.
she was played with many times
over the years and whenever I
hold her it brings back wonderful
times and memories of long-ago
Christmas childhood. Thanks,
santa!
Mary Ellen Cain
Findlay
It was Christmas 2002. My
son, Cody, was 8 years old and
my daughter, Chelsea, was 5. at
our house, Christmas tradition is
to go to Grandma’s on Christmas
Eve, then on Christmas day, we
stayed home so the kids could
play with all their new toys they
just got from santa.
This year, I thought it would
be nice to invite santa to our
house Christmas morning (of
course, this was a surprise). It
was about 10 a.m. and there was
a knock at the door. We called the
kids to the door when we saw it
was santa, and they could not
believe their eyes: There he was,
at their house!
Chelsea was not too sure of
santa and stayed very close to
her brother. santa had a gift for
each of them and explained how
he got back to the North Pole and
noticed that these were mistakenly left on the sleigh. He wanted
to make sure that they got them,
so he brought them in person. He
sat down and had some cookies
and milk, and asked Cody and
Chelsea if they got everything
they had asked for.
It was a very nice visit and
the kids were mesmerized. The
time came for santa to go back
home to the North Pole, so he
wished us all a Merry Christmas
and reminded the kids that he is
always watching them, so continue being GOOd. My husband
and I remained in the kitchen
talking about this visit when all
of a sudden, Cody came running
through the house, saying “santa
is driving a Chevy truck!”
at that point, we couldn’t
believe he would notice something like that and laughed. The
kids then asked where the reindeer and the sleigh were. We
explained that the reindeer had
worked all night long flying santa
and his sleigh around the world to
deliver presents to all the good
boys and girls, and they were very
tired and hungry, which is why
santa drove “a Chevy truck” to
deliver those misplaced gifts.
My kids are now 20 and 17,
but memories like these of all the
magical times we shared always
makes me smile and takes me
back to those days when they
were small. My wish for them now
that they are grown, is that someday, they will be blessed with children as wonderful as they are, and
have many special memories, as I
have had with them. I LOVE yOU
BOTH, COdy aNd CHELsEa
sTILLBERGER!
Tonya Stillberger
Findlay
Never too
old to watch
for Santa
Just missed him
about 70 years ago, santa
came to our house on North Main
street on Christmas Eve. I was
surprised to hear a noise in the
middle of the night (9 or 10 p.m.).
My parents said, “Come quickly,
santa is about to leave the roof.”
Of course, I missed him.
When the
reindeer
get tired
Waiting up for Santa Claus
Christmas Eve is still and always will be
the best night of the year for my sisters and
me. Growing up in the 1950s, Christmas was
a big deal because, besides your birthday, it
was the only other time during the year you
received presents. Mom and dad let us four
girls scour the sears & Roebuck catalog and
after countless hours and days we circled and
put our initials on the perfect presents!
We made paper chains for the big countdown and watched it torturously creep toward
Christmas Eve. at last, the big night finally
arrived and my sister Jane (who I shared a
bedroom with) would dismantle the bunk beds
and lay them side by side excitedly anticipating
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the long night ahead.
We knew sleep wasn’t going to happen and
we needed a way to spend the endless hours,
so we had stockpiled candy and laid in wait
talking endlessly in whispers about what would
be under the tree. Whispering was the key!
dad had said if santa heard us, he would not
leave us gifts! and there were times we were
certain there would be no gifts!
In the wee hours of the morning, Jane and I
would sneak over to Julie and Ellen’s room and
much to our disbelief, they were always fast
asleep! We would wake them and all four of us
would head for the tree. The light from the TV
provided us just enough light to see that once
again, santa had come. Back to our beds with
strict orders from the parents not to wake them
until 7 a.m., and believe me, they never slept a
minute past 7! Beautiful, wonderful memories
made with the best sisters in the world!
Last Christmas Eve, the four of us ended
up on my bed and we talked about the many
Christmas Eves of our past. Little did we know
that would be our last Christmas together, as
Jane passed away in May and our Christmases
are forever changed and we are all deeply saddened, but the memories and love we shared
will be forever cherished.
Amy Kubly
Findlay
Our parents were always
very happy when their grandchildren came to visit. In 1948
they had several grandchildren
and they thought it would be fun
to have santa come on Christmas. as the years went by, more
babies came, numbering to 19.
When the older grandchildren
became teenagers, their mothers decided they were too old
for santa.
The next year, dad stood at
the dining room window, waiting and watching for santa, who
never came. as the presents
were being opened, we could
see how disappointed he was.
The next year, santa came and
every year after until he died at
age 86!
Rhoda N. Basinger
Findlay
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