Seminary--Dad

 Daddy's old slogan when he taught early morning seminary for 8 years was "Commitment, Devotion, Dedication,"  (At some point his students bought him a sweat shirt that had his slogan written on it.) He sure bought  a lot of donuts during those years. Bill touched a lot of lives both in Reno and in California.  He occasionally gets calls from some of them or they stop by.  A few years back one of his Reno students compiled memories of the 4 years he taught there by contacting many students and asking them to write of their memories.  Very nice.  Dad has it saved. It should be included in his story.  

 

Mom had seminary released time during school hours.  I don't think I appreciated it as much as Dad's students did.  Seminary was part of the school curriculum in Cache Valley. 

From Grandma Arlynn's journal when Deb was born...

These are notes from Grandma Arlynn's journal when Debbie was born.  Nice to read her thoughts regarding you guys!  Much love from me Mom

Rosemary Mathews

Grandma Olsen was given a journal for mother’s day in 1982 and she kept it faithfully until 1985.  It’s possible there are other journals out there, but this is all I’ve found so far.

I have been scanning the first few pages and found some entries I thought you might enjoy.

May 24th  Bill called at 8:30 to tell us Rosie had a baby girl.  Born at 6pm weighted 7 lb 10 oz.

May 25th We went over to the Brigham City Hospital to see Rosemary and baby girl.  She’s a little doll.  Lots of brown hair.  We picked up Timmy and Ben at the neighbors and brought them home for a few days.  Their full of life, but are so sweet with each other.  Good kids.

May 27th I washed the boys clothes and in the afternoon went to the doctors for a reading on my blood pressure.  My heart was still beating irregular but my pressure was down to 170 over 86.

May 29th I cleaned house and washed so the boys clothes would be clean to take home.  They were so happy to be going home to see their new baby sister.  After supper we took them back to Brigham.  They had really missed their parents and Luke, Marlies and Becky.  They were so happy with the new baby.  She’s a little doll.  We were glad that we could tend them while Rose was in the hospital.  They are sure lively guys but were good kids.

I’m guessing there are other entries but these are just the first few pages.  She talks about Brian’s graduation from Law School in May as well as my 21st birthday. 

On mother’s day she said “received lovely gifts and cards.  I am so grateful for our families.  Each one is so precious!

She was quite the lady.  Sure do love her!!! 

Love Leeaine

Genealogical Questions 16 &17

Did you ever go hungry as a child?  

Bill:

No. My favorite foods were mush (cereal) and steak (both of my parents cooked.)

My favorite dishes that Mom cooked were spaghetti and chili. Mom use to go to work when as a family we needed something.  Often, she would continue working once she got established in a job. Dad never talked about money. 

My Dad never went hungry even though he was alive during the depression. His Dad worked for the Government as the Assistant to the Attorney General and later was elected as the Attorney General when Bill was about 8.  But the family had what they needed when Woody was a child.  

My Mother did suffer during the depression.  Her Mother was always on church welfare as she was divorced before Lorraine was born. Lorraine use to eat bread and milk for breakfast, lunch and dinner when there was nothing else. Lily Mae's family had a farm so she could always get milk and flour to make bread. Lorraine would have to go to the welfare building to pick up the food they got because her Mother, Lily Mae, was ashamed to go. Lorraine wasn't able to have children until after her teeth were pulled.  She told both Bill and Rosemary it was because she was malnourished as a child.

Rosemary:  

No, I never went hungry.  Infact, I probably had too much to eat because I was chubby.  When Mom died, I suppose my Dad wished he could go hungry because as his cook, I fixed lots of hot dogs and fish sticks.  (Even though our freezer was full of beef and pork).  You see, I didn't know how to cook meat.  At 11, that summer's 4H classes taught us how to use hot dogs.  Hot dogs in eggs, hot dogs and fried potatoes.  Dad finally said "Rosemary, I think I have had enough hotdogs." So, then I started on fish sticks. When Arlynn came to live with us 18 months after my mom died, Arlynn fixed meat and potatoes every day for dinner.  Dad and I both loved that.  

I also loved the school lunch meals.  Emily was the older lady that cooked lunch at the Paradise Elementary School.  I remember gazing in wonder at the huge potato whipper that made mashed potatoes.  I also remember her cinnamon rolls.  It makes my mouth droll just to think about them.

Dad encourages me to tell you this story:  When we were on our honeymoon, Dad wanted to impress me.  So, he took me out to dinner at Fisherman's Wharf.  He ordered for me because I had not grown-up eating fish (except for fish sticks.) He ordered Crab alle Neurenberg for me. He knew I liked gravy and creamy things.  Dad order a Sword Fish Steak for himself.  When the meal came, I was really looking forward to it.  The waiter set my food in front of me first and after an alarmed expression I loudly said "what have you done to me".  Everyone around us turned to look at us.  Dad said, here I'll trade with you.  I agreed, thinking "now that's better".  He was really embarrassed.   

What were your favorite toys?

Bill:

We lived in Herlong California until I was 4.  I got a tiny steam roller.  They were constructing roads where we lived and they were using a great big steam roller.  I use to get my tiny steam roller and play alongside where they were constructing the road.  I got an electric train when I was about 8.  I had a lot of fun with that. My sister got a wind-up train and I never thought about how I was privileged over her until typing this up. 

The rest of the time, my favorite toy was a basketball.

Rosemary:

I loved dollies.  I can't remember names for sure, but I think one was called a "tony doll". She was beautiful.  Burnette hair. I am quite surprised that the name came to my mind.  After all, it has been 65 years since I have thought about a doll. I also loved paper dolls.  Sharon and I played with these kinds of dolls all of the time.

I was really spoiled at Christmas time when my Mom was alive. I was the only child still at home.  However, once she was gone, I spent my sad Christmas alone with my Dad. He gave me a Lone Ranger Game and a blue bathrobe.  I was still not sure if there was a real Santa Claus; I soon found out there wasn't.  Dixie gave me a beautiful ballerina doll one Christmas. I still have it.  I want Kloey to have it as my oldest granddaughter.

John use to give me books.  I liked that.  He gave me a book right after Mother died.  Something to the effect "everything a Mother would want you to know".  It was sweet.  I'm not sure if I actually read it. For Christmas he gave me several different volumes of the "Little House on the Prairie" books.  Maybe that is why I still love that show. I am sure I would have put my Zane Grey novels aside for Little House.

After Mom died, I loved my horse.  Dixie, my horse, wasn't exactly a toy, but I rode her a lot.  I would leave her tied up at the fence during the day; that way I could ride her up to the yard to dump vegetable skins, etc. to the pigs or I could ride her to the Thomas Market that was 1/2 block away from our house.  I would leave her standing to the side of the steps that led to the market and then go in and make a purchase.  I would expect her to wait there for me (Like Silver, the Lone Ranger's horse) without being tied up.  It worked pretty well.  I remember taking eggs to the store and trading them for candy.  I don't think Dad ever knew.  (There is a picture of this Market in the Archives of Cache Valley. A-0437a: Paradise, Utah, Mae E. Thomas store. Lot 5 Block 22 Plat A, Built 1894

Gen 18&19

 

1. What were your favorite games?
2. Was there any fashion that you liked the most?

Dad: 

1. Basketball was my favorite sport. (He played City League and Church Basketball until he was about 55 years old.) I played almost every day in my backyard.   Most of the time by myself.  Usually, Mathews1 beat Mathews2. (Dad (Woody) built the wooden backboard and we carried it from one house to another.  Originally it was on the garage but the ground was uneven so then we moved it to the street. The curb was there.  I sprained my ankle a couple of times. Often, I played with my friends Bruce Couch and Dan Augustine (the tuba player.)  Because there was only 3 of us, I would stand Bruce and Dan and I won more than I lost.
   In high school I ran the mile in track. One time I was out running at Stewart Indian School. (It was South of Carson City.) They had a kid that ran the mile and we were pretty good friend.  One time we were out running on the back roads at Stewart.  We came across a rattlesnake that was crossing the road.  We killed it and then I took the snake to school and put it in a girl's locker.  I hung it over her coat hanger. The next morning the boys all gathered around watching her to see what would happen.  The girl was talking to the rest of her girlfriends.  She reached into her locker to get something and touched the snake. When she looked in her locker and saw it, she screamed and ran down the hallway.  We boys laughed like crazy.  The principal searched for who did it.  He never found out.  She wrote in the year book (over my picture) about her experience with the snake. Dad is laughing as he tells this story. 

2. My favorite fashion was "nude", but I didn't see it very often; I still looked. I never thought of fashion.  Fashion is for girls. 
   

Mom:

1. I loved to ride my horse, Dixie.  I guess Dad and I are thinking sports.  I also played tennis at the court on Paradise Town Square.  When in school at Paradise I played softball and volleyball.  That was lots of fun and we were pretty successful. However, my favorite "game" as a girl was a dice game called "Skunk".  I think it was 6 dice you had to roll at one time and then quickly total the number of points you'd add up from each dice.  I became really fast at addition during that time.  Even after I married Dad I could total numbers like that very quickly.  I think he was rather amazed that I actually had a "math" skill.
2.  We always wore dresses to school.  Both elementary and High School. Darlene, one of my friends from Paradise School, wore huge skirts that her Mom would starch and iron.  There was lots of ironing in those days.  Our family tradition was to go to Ogden to shop for school clothes.  When Arlynn came along the tradition continued.  She loved "brown" and favored brown things for me.  It didn't go too far, but I remember her first taste was usually brown.  In the cold Paradise winter, we wore warm coats, gloves, hats and leggings.  Because I was the largest of all of my classmates, I got to test the winter ice to see if it was solid enough for us to go skating.  In my early years I remember one day testing the ice along our way home from school.  It was not solid and I fell through to the muck and mud beneath the ice sheet.  I sunk pretty deep and went home muddy up to the knees of my leggings.  It has kind of left a scar in my mind.  I'm sure Alyce, my Mom, was not too happy as well.  
   

         While in high school we girls ratted and teased our hair.  Yes, we looked like we had helmets on.  One     of my friends from Paradise turned rather wild and began ratting her hair so much that you could see daylight through it. She also wore lots of makeup.  I don't remember wearing makeup in high school.

Medical concerns

 Grandpa:

diabetic

stroke

heart disease (stints, later quadruple bypass)

blood clots

Rm: 

Trigeminal neuralgia (French name is “tic della rue”) 

cyclic neutrapinia (low white blood count. Immunity issues) 

parathyroid disease

Grandpa’s highest position was Vice President and General Manager at Teleflex Defense Systems, Spanish Fork Division.

His Masters Degree was in Mechanical Engineering. His under graduate degree was in Nuclear Engineering 

Genealogical question 14&15

 Dad: Now a days, I like to read Church Doctrine books /and Apostles life stories. A long time ago my favorites were action/ war stories.  I read everything from Sparks to WEB Griffith and Louis L'Mour. I have kept paperback books that I purchased while in Brigham City.  I have over 2,000 books in our basement now.  Some are hardback as well.

Mom:  I like a variety of books.  I have really enjoyed histories of the life of Joseph Smith.  I am currently working on a large, thick book Joseph, a rough stone rolling.  I am also reading Exodus by Leon Urus, The Hobbit, and The Infinite Atonement.  I am not putting pressure on myself on any of the books.  The religious books especially.  I will read a chapter or 5-6 pages and call it good. I like a good adventure story, but try to avoid bad language, torture, and abuse of people.  I like a good romance novel and don't mind a bit of war violence.  I like historical novels as well. 

Favorite Song or Lullaby?

Dad:  I enjoy many different categories of songs.  

Country and Western, Home on the Range, (hahaha) I like songs by Neal Diamond, Celine Dion, Barbara Streisand, and Whitney Houston.  

My favorite church songs are How Great Thou Art and I stand All Amazed. I loved to sing patriotic songs as well. The Star-Spangled Banner and the State Song Home Means Nevada. 

My favorite opera song that I sang is "Drink Drink Drink" from the Student Prince. I also loved to hear Mom sing Dove Sono from The Marriage of Figaro. 

I was in choir while in high school.  We had a wonderful male music teacher, Al Saliman. He could walk around the football field on his hands. We sang "No Man is an Island at my high school graduation.  It was a joy to sing with Al. When I was at UNR before I went in the Army, I sang with the Institute Choir at church "The Sierra Singers". I remember crying through the song I Need Thee Every Hour."  After the Army, I sang in the choir at UNR and I really enjoyed singing the Messiah.      

I loved some of Mom's choir songs Amor De Mi Alma by Z. Randall Stroope and Water Night by Eric Whitacre. 

My Mom (Lorraine) sang on the radio when she was a teenager. She sang like a baritone.  As she got older, she sang like a bass. Mom used to whistle while working around the house.  It was really neat.

Speaking of family, our missionaries (Luke, Marlies, Tim and Ben) each sang the same song at their Mission Farewell.  I can't remember the name of it, but it had real meaning to our family. 

Mom:  Music?  How do I cover such an important part of my life?  I have at least 15 chuck-full scrapbooks describing my musical journey through out mortality.  An important thought that I would like to share is that until about a year ago, I never really realized what a special musical gift God had given me (and the opportunities to use it that he placed on my path through life.) I was struck with awe, as the reality of this very special gift from God became clear to me.  "I must be someone special to have God trust me with this gift."  I thank Father in Heaven every day for this special gift and the other gifts of the Spirit He has given me.

Non classical songs:  Medley from Oliver that I sang with 2 very talented friends in Brigham City;Wagon Wheels high school duo with Sandra Obray Sorensen, I Would Trust Her from Pajama Game (duet with my cousin, Kim Allen); My Funny Valentine at a Stake Dance; Several Church solo songs. O That I Were an Angel, The Lord's Prayer, I Walked Today Where Jesus Walked, How Beautiful Upon the Mountains. 

Opera:  Donde Lieta from La Boheme (I loved it because it was easy for me).  My favorite opera that I performed was Tosca. I performed in over 20 operas during my career.  19 or so roles were the leading lady roles.  I still don't know if I have seen as many operas as I have performed.  I was so naive.  I didn't have an inkling of the great opportunities given to me.

While preparing for operas or recitals it was so much work, that I found it wasn't so much fun.  It was more fun to sing with friends and family and do lighthearted music. 

Genealogical 12 & 13

 Rosemary Mathews

Leisure

I don't remember any leisure time with my family at the Olsen home in Paradise. My Dad worked so hard during the summer.  The only thing I remember him doing was reading around the kitchen table occasionally when it was dark and he couldn't work any more.  In the winter he read quite a bit, always magazines which were about farming. He also worked on paying bills.  Every night, rain or shine, he watched TV at 10 pm when the news came on. He was especially interested in the weather. He listened to the Farming and Livestock reports on the radio station KVNU and to Paul Harvey's "and now the rest of the Story'' at noon while eating his meat and potatoes (That was dinner on the farm.) He would turn off the radio once the news was over.  Arlynn would like to listen to music.  He had no interest whatsoever in listening to pop music. 

We did occasionally visit long lost relatives who lived in Cache Valley.  I would go along with my parents and be soooo bored. But I never complained.  I wish so much that I could remember the people we visited.  I only had one gramma and we did visit her.  I think my Dad tried to visit his Olsen and Oldham Uncles and Aunts.  They were always older and seemed lonely.  My Dad had a tender heart that way.

I only remember taking one vacation with my family.  We went to California.  Dixie, Alyce, Lloyd, and the Welches--Harry and Viola. We went to Knox Berry Farm (Disneyland wasn't around then). We stayed with the Mildren and Vernal Norman family in Orange County. I remember the long drive and falling asleep on the shoulder of one of the Welches.  There were 6 of us. It was crowded for such a long trip.  On the way back we stayed at a motel in Vegas.  No freeway at the time.  Sometimes I think it may have been on the old Boulder Highway that still exists in Vegas.  We travel it occasionally when we are at Becky's house in Henderson. Dad and Mom traveled a bit during the winter. They enjoyed the Farm Bureau Conventions. Alyce and Lloyd traveled to Florida and Cuba to a Farm Bureau Convention in 1956.  My Mom was struggling with the first signs of cancer.  She didn't know what it was at the time.  She died the next May 7, 1957. Lloyd and Arlynn attended Farm Bureau Conventions during their years together.

Chores I didn't like

I had a lot of chores.  Especially after Mother died.  I worked some in the house in 1957, but mostly I helped my Dad outside.  I did a variety of things, like moving sprinkling pipes, driving the truck while hay was hauled, mowing the lawn, cleaning eggs, rolling hay bales, etc. I learned to drive a jeep when I was about 11.  That made up for some of the work I had to do.  I also had a horse, Dixie, which I loved to ride.  I found comfort in that horse, even though she bit me once and stepped on my foot another time. I suppose the chores I disliked the most were (1) shoveling wheat and barley from the back of our large hay truck into the large container that held the end of the auger.  The auger would then carry the grain up into the silos or grain bins.  That work was so itchy, dirty and hot.  The grain heads would fasten to my clothes and I would be miserable. (2) moving the sprinkling pipes was a big job.  I think Daddy moved them in the morning and it was my job to move them in the evening. Dad would use a tool and grab the sprinkling pipe in the middle to move it to its new location in the field.  I would have to take one end and then the other. The problem was when the field had already been harvested, left in the field were sharp, stick-like projections that would scratch and dig into my ankles.  That was pretty miserable. (3)cleaning eggs was no fun.  I wacked an egg or too and it went mushy in my hand and ran to the floor.  One time I found it was easier to simply pull the loose rug over it than to clean the egg up.  (Sorry, Grandma Dunn.) Dad always gathered the eggs.  I was afraid the chickens would peck me. 

Genealogical Question 12&13

 Dad:

Leisure

When I was young my Dad would read to us.  Mom read by herself. 
Dad read Swiss Family Robinson and Robinson Caruso to us. When we got older the only thing that I can remember that we did for leisure was to read.  We'd all read by ourselves. My sister read comic books.  I would read all kinds of things.     Dad would take us hunting and fishing.  Once in a while Mom would go with us.  That ended the time we went up the Carson River and backwoods into the mountains. On the way in Mom warned us about not driving through a bunch of rocks that were on the road. Dad didn't listen to her and drove on and knocked the oil pan off of underneath the car. Mom was really torqued. Dad had to walk into town. He was able to catch a ride.  He was looking for a way to fix the pan. The drainage lip on the pan was bent and all of the oil drained out. Dad worked very hard at trying to repair the lip.  He soldered all around it.  He also bought a thermos plug that is used as a stopper for bottles. We were way back in the mountains for 2-3 days while he fixed it.  I went fishing while he worked.  Carol played around the camp. Mom "sort of" forgave him. We started home.  On the way we drove over some sage brush and it wrecked all of his hard work.  Then he took the stopper and put it in the pan and IT WORKED!  It only took about 10 minutes.   Then we drove all of the way home. That was the last time Mom went with us.    Dad and I went deer hunting a lot. We really enjoyed it. We didn't usually take drinks. (Dad would drink his coffee.)  If I was getting thirsty my Dad would tell me to put a stone in my mouth and suck on it.  It would delay my need for water. Usually on Sunday afternoons we'd all go for a ride together and look for birds.  Red winged and yellow headed black birds.  That was an enjoyable time.  We usually sang.

Front Porch

When I was in the 7th grade Carol and I would sleep outside on the porch in the summer.  It was really warm inside because we didn't have any air conditioning.  When I was a freshman at Carson High School Carol went in the house.  I stayed out "for as long as I could".  I ended up staying out all year. I hadn't planned to stay out that long.  My Dad suggested that if I put canvas over my blankets, I would stay warmer.  Dad put some sort of a blind over the porch screen so that the water wouldn't come in. I had the "blind" up in the summer and down in the winter. I stayed there all year round for 3-4 years. Mom made sure that I made my bed every day. 

Work

When I was about 14 we put a new furnace in our home on Spear Street. We were changing the furnace from coal to oil. All of the work had to be done under the house.The crawl space under the house was pretty tight.  I hated this job. We could only crawl on our tummies. The tubing was in four-foot lengths and had to run from the furnace to all the rooms in the house. We had to tape every junction and all of the elbows while under the house. We made holes in the flooring of the house in order to connect the elbows to the heat vents.  Every joint had to be connected.  We worked on it from when Dad got home in the evening from work and all-day Saturday and Sunday.  I remember it as the least favorite because I remember only working and not playing at all. I lost my temper and told Dad *"I have got to go out and play".  I ran out the door and went over and played basketball with Bruce Couch. 

Later, during the remodeling of the house, we tore out lathe and plaster walls and put-up wall board.  We changed the living room and the dining room into one room. We tore out the wall between the kitchen and the pantry and the wall between the kitchen and the back porch. We remodeled the bathroom and put in a shower.  All of these remodel "jobs" required a claw hammer, a wrecking bar and more.  Dad didn't know anything about electricity. It was trial and error. Dad figured out how to get the electricity to the back porch and kitchen. We put in a new electric stove. We put in some paneling. (The remodeling was a huge job.)  The back porch was my bedroom before we remodeled.  I moved down in the earthen basement (which had been a coal bin). My old bed room became the dining area and a sunroom. We also waterproofed the shingles on the roof.  The roof was very steep, we had to tie a rope around our waists (the rope was tied off on the other side of the house to prevent us from falling). We had to spread a substance like tar over the roof to water proof it. After the roof was finished, we had to paint the outside of the house.  We had to build scaffolding so that we could stand on planks to paint the house. (I didn't do much painting.) Mom painted the lower portion of the house. (Where she could reach.) We also had to cut down old elm trees.  We cut up the trees for fire wood. We used the wood from those five big old trees in our fireplace. 

All of this work combined took us about six years. I spent my childhood to teenage years working with Dad.  I only had to work on Saturday and Sunday for four hours after I had reminded him "I had to be able to play". My Dad, Woody, was amazing.  He was a very hard worker, he was very smart, most of the time he was slow to anger but if he got mad, LOOKOUT!, he was really mad.  My Mom, Lorraine, was just the opposite.  She was quick to anger but got over it pretty quickly.  Bill says he inherited both of those qualities.  (sigh)  My Dad taught me many things during this time. I used those skills throughout my life.  

Genealogical Question 10 & 11: memories of siblings

 John Paul Olsen              12 years older than me.  He was born in July, 1934

John was a very handsome young man.  He lost his hair when he was quite young.  It seemed to me that after that he was not nearly as handsome.  His physical vanity fled with his hair. 

He married his high school sweetheart.  I think they were both about 18.  Susanne Murray Olsen.

He graduated from Utah State in 1954.  He graduated in education and taught in Logan for about a year.  Suzanne worked as a telephone operator. John worked as a car salesman and sold the "Edsel" a short lived car line.

John had wrestled in high school.  He loved athletics and played football at South Cache. After college graduation, John became a professional wrestler for a while.  They went to the midwest for a time and lived with Dixie while John wrestled.  His name in the wrestling world was "Gentleman John". It was while he was living in the mid-west that he came in contact with the Dog and Suds franchise people.

He became a successful salesman.  He eventually worked in the food and hospitality line selling franchises.  Some of the companies he worked for were Quality Inn, Dog and Suds and Radisson Hotels.  He owned a Dog and Suds food Drive In in Logan. I worked there when I was in high school.  The Drive In was attached to a bowling alley. One day while I was working as a carhop, I was waiting on a customer whose child was standing up in the seat next to him.  I asked "what would your little boy like?"  The customer was very angry at me for calling his little girl a boy.  Yeh, I didn't love that job. I am not a good judge of John at that time.

He never went on a mission and it was my feeling that he kind of "hid" a bit from the church. When John was of missionary age, he was told that only one young man could go on a mission from each ward.  Garth Norman was selected.  John would have been a great missionary.  In fact a great leader in the church.  He was very kind and had a great way with people.

He and Suzanne started their lives in Paradise and Logan.  John really loved my mom, Alyce.  I'm told her death was very hard on him.  They lived in Paradise at the time. Those were hard, dark days. After Mom's death I tried to make an angel food cake.  While baking in the oven, the cake pan leaked. What a mess!  Susanne came down and helped me clean it up.

In later years, John would call me occasionally.  He wanted me to know that he was thinking about me.  It was very sweet.  One Christmas he sent Dixie and I Red-Flier sleds.  Another time he gave us money to go and buy a new dress.  Sweet.  

He loved tractors and collected them.  In fact he liked to travel around the area where he was living and buy items at Antique shops.  After he retired he lived primarily in Paradise where he and Susanne had purchased a fine old home.  They completely gutted it and made a grand small scaled mansion out of it.  

 

Dixie Ruth Olsen Clifford  9 1/2 years older than me.  Birthday is Sept. 29, 1936

Dixie loved me and my family. She was "the" favorite Aunt.  She too, is very kind and thoughtful.  

She married Lincoln Clifford when she was 21.  She had attended Utah State for two years.  Their courtship was short so her education was put on hold when they married and moved to Ohio.  Mother died just a year after their marriage.  Dixie has always had a sensitive heart.  She hurts deeply at someone else's trials.  The death of our mother was very hard on her.  She ached to be with Daddy and I in Paradise, but she was a long way away in Ohio.  

I made several trips to see her.  Once with Grandma Dunn on the train.  (This was in 1957, the summer after my Mom died in May.) She was living in Cleveland.  They next moved to Cincinnati. I never traveled there.  Then they moved to Niles Michigan. I visited her and her family there  3 times.  She was pregnant and miserable. I rode home with them after they had come to visit us in Utah. They lived on Bond Street in a rental house in Niles.  It was extremely hot.  I remember scrubbing the floor in my underwear with sweat dripping off of my nose.  Another time, I flew by myself to Chicago.  They had promised that they would meet me at the arrival gate.  They weren't there and I thought "what do I do now?"  Another time I rode with John, my brother, when he drove to his home in Champaign/Urbana, Illinois. (that trip had 3 scary parts to it.  1.  On part of the trip, he drove the car with his small typewriter on the steering wheel. Typing while driving.  2.  He put his daughter Ronda and I on a bus to send us to Dixie's house in Michigan.  We had a short layover in Chicago.  A bad part of Chicago. Ronda and I sat on our suitcases on a scary street, me thinking we were goners. (She was too young to realize the danger.) 3.  (Not sure if it was this trip or another trip I made to the midwest.) John had met us at O'Hare Airport in Chicago.  He was carrying my suitcase around and set it down while waiting in line to secure my seat.  Someone came by and picked up my suitcase and disappeared.  John was dumbfounded.  I never got it back.) I spent a few days with John in Champaign.  It was beastly hot.  I remember going to their bathroom and turning on the fan to see if that would be a cooler place.  This was the summer I traveled to Michigan with Ronda Leigh, their oldest child.

I loved being with Dixie.  One summer we did 4-H baking.  Another time we spent a lot of hours sewing. (I never became much of a seamstress, but my baking experience set me up for life.  My favorite part of cooking has been baking breads.)

As I analyze what I love about Dixie, I think that in summary it is that she has always loved me so much.  She is a musician, plays piano, guitar and sings.  Yet she has always placed herself in a second position to me.  When I gave my Master's recital and was 7 months pregnant at the time, she wanted to make my recital gown,  We lived hundreds of miles apart, yet while sewing that dress, she prayed for inspiration, sewed, prayed again and made inspired decisions.  The dress fit perfectly, even the length of the hem.  She always wanted to serve me.  She loved our 6 children and always served them as well.  The Cliffords and us moved to California at about the same time in Sept of 1972.  We lived about 3 hours apart.  They lived in Orange County... La Habra and we lived in the Mojave Desert... China Lake.  We loved to visit each other.  What a joy to finally be close.  While in La Habra many of Dixie's talents were used.  She served on the City Council (I believe) in La Habra. She played Marion the LIbrarian in a Stake production of the Music Man and had a supporting role in Sound of Music.  She would do folk music programs in the schools. (She sang and accompanied herself on the guitar.)  She also was able to finish her Bachelor's degree in Communications at Cal State Fullerton.  She was selected as the outstanding senior in Communications the year she graduated.

We all loved her visits to Brigham City when we lived there.  It was her that sent Bill and I on our anniversary to Salt Lake for the night.  9 months later, you were born, Deb.  Linc always used to call me Rosi Blossom.  Dixie still calls me Blossom.

Of course, her service to Linc Junior and his family over the past 12 months is a monumental testimony to her spirit of Love of Family and service.  That, alone, could fill a volume. I think you know that Dixie has published a biography.  I am sure she has a copy for you.

SO JUST CHOOSE ONE OF THE ABOVE MEMORIES.  OF COURSE, THERE IS QUITE A BIT ABOUT MY TRAVELS ABOVE.  SO WHEN THAT Is THE TOPIC YOU ALREADY HAVE SOME OF MY TRAVELS.

(DEB I just looked back at your request and I see that you only needed one memory.  Sorry.  I didn't look carefully enough.) By the time I made my way in to ask Dad his memory, I had realized you just wanted one memory. Well it was a good thing.  He and Carol were not close and so he really didn't remember anything until I reminded him of this story.  Then he was very meticulous.  I think you will enjoy it.

Rosemary Mathews

Carol Lynne Mathews Woolf

When she and l were kids, I used to get angry at her.  She is two years younger than me, but she could really make me mad.  I am sure that I teased her to the point that she was mad at me, as well. Then she would call me B B (meant BABY) Measles (meant FRECKLES), tonged tied Willy (When I was angry and tried to speak, I didn't make sense), Wilvan Woodrow Mathews (My name was "BILL".  I hated the name Wilvan Woodrow.  I could put up with Mathews.)  That would make me yet more angry and I would chase her in an angry stupor.  She could out run me (speed). One day she ran up a rope.  One of the things I could not do was climb a rope.  She climbed higher than I could reach.  So, I stood and threw rocks at her. This happened when I was about 8 and she was 6. I don't think I ever hit her with a rock. My Dad would have killed me if I had hit her.

Genealogy questions 8&9

 

I lived in the same home in Paradise Utah (with the tallest pine tree in town in our front yard) until I was 18.  Then I left home and went to Utah State where I lived in an old rental house with 5 friends from Paradise. Reneal Goldsberry, Linda Mair, Brenda Summers and one other girl. Reneal and I shared a double bed.  One time when she had a cold, I chased her around the bed trying to put my cold cure all, Vicks Vapor Rub, on her throat.   I went home for the summer and then returned to Utah State and lived in another house rental for that next school year.  I spent the summer at home again then moved to Reno Nevada where I attended school in the fall of 1966 at the University of Nevada.  I lived in an apartment complex in Reno with Deanna Merrill and Reneal Goldsberry. 

 

Bill was born in Reno but his family lived in Carson City.  Later the family lived in Yerington, NV and a few other places that he couldn’t remember. When the war broke out, they lived in Herlong, California until the end of the war.  The family then moved to Carson City and lived in VETS housing. Later they moved to 510 East King, their home sat on about three quarters of an acre. Then they moved to the "Yellow House" and then finally they moved to Grandpa Mathews' home on Spear Street.  It was located two blocks from the Governor's Mansion.  Bill loved to roller skate around the Governor's mansion.  Before they moved to Grandpa's house, Bill would ride his bike to Grandpa's house.  He would put his feet up on the handlebars to coast.  The neighbor's dog, Toddles, a Chesapeake, grabbed his leg and dragged him down the street. Bill rode his bike everywhere until he was in high school. He would ride to the swimming pool.  It was a long way.  There was a huge old telescope that was mounted a block from the swimming pool.  

 

After Bill graduated second in his class in high school, he moved to Reno and lived there for a year and a half attending the University of Nevada. He was a member of Theta Chi, a fraternity.  It was a wild year and a half.  Then, because of such low grades, Bill decided to join the army. He was first sent to Fort Ord in California for Basic Training and then to Fort Gordon, Georgia.  At Fort Gordon he learned to be a Radio Teletype Operator and learned Morse Code.  The course work was about 15 weeks long. He then moved to Balm Holder, Germany and was a Radio Teletype Operator and then on to Mainz, Germany where he was also a Teletype Operator.  Dad was asked to volunteer for a test which would indicate his aptitude for Computers.  He maxed it and was one of two men sent to Heidelberg where he attended an IBM computer school.  Bad Kreuznach Germany was his next home.  Here he programmed the 8th Infantry Division 609 Calculator. He lived in Bad Kreuznach for about 2 years.  

 

Bill returned to the U.S. and lived in San Francisco for about 9 months where he worked for IBM.  He then returned to Reno to attend the University of Nevada. Through a set of interesting experiences, he gained a desire to go to church.  (He was baptized into the LDS Church when he was 10.  He'd always had a testimony that the church was true.  He just wondered if he would have the strength to live it. His Mom was born in Tooele, Utah and was a member.  But she left the church.  Bill baptized his Dad, Woody, when he returned from Germany. However, Lorraine forbade Woody to attend Church.)  Bill's family did not give him a foundation of religious upbringing. He was on his own. I think this contributed to his fear that he may not have the strength to keep the commandments.)  Bill met Rosemary shortly after he started going to church.  They were married the next August (1967) in the Salt Lake Temple.  

 

We lived first in a nice apartment which was too expensive for us. (I remember taking pennies and nickels from Bill's "piggy bank", which was actually a huge old Bourbon Bottle, to a nearby convenience store to get bread, milk and a box of macaroni and cheese for dinner). We only lived there for a couple of months and then we moved to married student housing which was a studio apartment.  We lived in the same complex with our good friends the Turleys. 

 

We next lived in the home of a college professor who was on sabbatical leave for the year.  The family left their dog, Ellen, with us.  It was here, in 1970, that I became pregnant with Luke.  I was so sick.  There was no air conditioning and it was HOT.  At one point, I laid bare-naked in the cool bathtub.  Another time on the cool linoleum.  That summer the Nevada Opera Company did 3 operas: La Boheme, Three Penny Opera and La Centerentella.  I had a lead in the first, Bill was in the second and I was in the 3rd.  We tried to keep our pregnancy a secret.  But I got really sick during the 3rd opera and we told the opera director at that point.  That fall we moved into a condominium in SE Reno and lived there a short while until our new home in Sparks was completed.  We almost backed out of purchasing the Sparks home.  Our down payment was $99 (VA first time buyer). We really had to scrape to get that money together. But we persevered. 

 

We lived in our new home in Sparks for about a year. During this time Luke was born, I finished my Master's Degree in Vocal Performance (Master's Recital in December, 2 months before Luke was born). Bill completed all of his course work for his Master's in Mechanical Engineering. Then we moved to China Lake, CA.  A desert.  (I cried and cried.  I had to leave my singing experiences and opportunities behind as well as the culture in Reno.)  I was pregnant again.  Marlies was born October 10, 1972, about 2 months after we had arrived in CA.  We lived first on the base in a duplex for about 2 years.  During the first few months in China Lake, Bill completed his Master's Thesis for his Mechanical Engineering Master's Degree.  (RM typed it for him.  It was a nightmare as much of it was columns of numbers.  Dixie eventually helped me.  Corrections were made with a correction tape. (a pain, much different than today’s computers).  To make copies, one had to made a carbon copy. (No copy machines in that day). Mistakes had to be erased with a regular eraser.  The work on his thesis was done just prior to Marlies' birth.  (I have always worried that I did not get all of the numbers in the columns correct). We sent it off and Bill completed his Master's Degree.  We started at China Lake with a salary of $7,000.  When his Master's was completed the salary went to $9,000.  We were rich!! Meantime, I began teaching at Cerro Coso Community College.  This was my first choral conducting experience.

 

After about two years in base housing, we moved into our newly built custom home in Ridgecrest. Ridgecrest was the small town that was next door to the China Lake Naval Weapons Center where Bill worked. We lived in that area for a total of about 5 years.  Becky and Tim were born there. Richard and Twila Bird were our neighbors.  Although Richard died a number of years ago, we still see Twila and love her so much. In fact, we love the whole family.

 

 

After 5 years in China Lake, Bill got a job at Indiana State University in Terre Haute Indiana.  We lived in a wonderful home South of Terre Haute in a custom housing area.  (Not like today's subdivisions that have cookie cutter homes.) It was one of my favorite houses. There was a wonderful brick fireplace that kept us warm in the winter.  We loved watching red Cardinals and Blue Jays dart from tree to tree with the white snow in the background.   There were about 300 acres of forest behind us that looked like the Sacred Grove. Our next-door neighbors were LDS.  The Dad was in the Bishopric.  (Bill was called as the President of the Elder’s Quorum). They had 4 kids.  Some similar in age to our family. Bill and Bob would drive to Priesthood together and then Carolyn and I would come along a little later in her Volkswagen Van with the 8 kids.  The van had no heater so we would wrap blankets around our kids.  While living in Indiana, the church meeting plan was changed.  Sacrament, RS, Priesthood and Sunday School were all combined into a single block.  That was nice.  It allowed us to just travel to church one time each Sunday. It was a ten-mile trip each way.  Ben was born in Terre Haute.  

 

After 2 years in Indiana, Bill left the education system and went back to work in Industry.  We moved to Brigham City where he worked for Morton Thiokol.  We were there for 10 great years. During this time, we added Deborah Ruth to our family.  (We also had an Native American son, Chris Sloan, who lived with us for two years.) I had the opportunity to direct several musicals for the Stake.  Bill was, once again, the Elder's Quorum president. Debbie was born in Brigham City.  Number 6 for us.  Wow, neither of us had thought about how many children we would have.  Now we had six.  We were never sorry.  We were delighted.  Another very nice thing was that in moving to Brigham City we were just 30 miles from my parents in Paradise.  My Dad loved having us so close after years of being separated from his kids.  My step Mom, Arlynn, had family in Paradise, but we knew Daddy was sure glad to have us so close.  I began teaching at Weber State University.  I loved it.  I spent 10 years there.

 

After the space shuttle exploded in space, the fault was placed on the rocket fuel motors built by Morton Thiokol. Bill eventually lost his job. The loss of his job was a ripple effect of the Space Shuttle tragedy.  However, he worked in a different division than Rocket Motors. 

 

After 16 months of being humbled and beat up a bit, Bill landed a job in Spanish Fork.  Teleflex was the new company and he was the new General Manager.  We felt like the windows of heaven had opened and dumped all of the blessings in our front yard.  We purchased a wonderful home on Grandview Hill in Provo.  Luke soon left on his mission to Australia. (Marlies would leave on her mission to Austria about two years later).  I started teaching part time at BYU and Bill began his new job.  He had a car provided and stock options.  It was a dream come true.  He travelled a lot, primarily to the far east, middle east and Europe. But the pressure of the job was very intense.  The company was based in Pennsylvania. Easterners knew that Utahans knew how to work, but they didn't think we were very smart.  Crazy!!!!  After 5 years of downsizing, the company was sold and Bill was again without a job.

 

His next job took us to Ontario, Oregon.  It was very hard for me to leave BYU.  I had established a good reputation there as a teacher of voice and had been given many opportunities to teach classes and more.  But the family needed to move and so we did.  We found a smaller home in Ontario.  It was comfortable and I enjoyed it.  While Bill worked in Fruitland ID as a GM for a portion of his new company, Woodgrain Moldings, I took two teaching positions.  One at Treasure Valley Community College and the other at Fruitland Middle and High School.  I grew in both experiences. Tim, who lived with Luke in our Grandview home in Provo, left on his mission to the Dominican Republic while we lived in Oregon.  Lorraine also moved there and lived a short distance from our home.  Deb and Ben attended the Oregon schools.  Ben was a successful football player and wrestler.  Deb was into band.  She played the flute.

 

Two years were all we lasted in the Oregon/Idaho areas. We headed back to Utah where Bill and Luke had opened a Manufactured Home business.  Marlette was the supplier.  (Ben left on his mission during this time). We lived in Orem for a short while and then moved to Lindon where we lived in one of the Marlette manufactured homes. I took a job in the Alpine School District at Oak Canyon Junior High School and returned to teaching at BYU for two years. Bill and Luke were a great team, but eventually the company folded.  Luke left to go get his MBA at Colorado University and when he and Amy returned, they lived in the basement of our Lindon home.  Eventually that home was sold and we moved to our present location in Springville.  

 

 

Rosemary Mathews