| Subject: Merrill Date: 22 July 2004 3:59 p.m. From: "Watson Lundie" Vern, Merril Sheckler was stepfather of Bernard McNutt, who married my sister Marguerite Jillson. I knew Merril for many years. I was about ten years old when he was in Hawaii. I wrote to him and somewhere I have V-mail letters he wrote me. He also sent me a grass skirt, which I still have. I have many happy memories of Merril when he would at our family gatherings. I enjoyed viewing your web-site. Thank you, Sandra (Jillson) Lundie |
Hello Sandra This is a nice surprise. You must be about 3 years older than me. We must have almost crossed paths out at the farm some time. Would it ever be nice to read a couple of those letters or see a photo of that skirt. Which pages of Uncle Merril did you see? http://sheckler.bouwman.com/Family6/Merril.html http://bouwman.com/world/Hawaii/Merril.html http://sheckler.bouwman.com/Family6/Merril-Mable.html http://sheckler.bouwman.com/Allegan/Merril.html Then there is the attached photo. Uncle Merril on other side of table, On this side, right edge is my mother then me, all in 1945. Did you find the farm Merril's great-grand-father had on my Pennsylvania page? http://sheckler.bouwman.com/Pennsylvania/UnionCounty/Settlement.html Click on Conrad Sheckler Vern |
My web site is huge. My son and
I have our own server which is in his
house. This way you will never see any advertisement popping up. My
wife Letha and I have two children, Bryan and Kelly. They are both
married and only Bryan has children, two.
My mother was divorced in that photo I sent. She remarried after the war. I have another way to display my history, using the train. See: http://ships.bouwman.com/Trains/Rail-1940.html Click on the words "Grand Rapids" or any township, even the train schedule. See mom's second husband: http://hutchins.bouwman.com/ It is good to be conversing with you. Vern |
Date: 22 July 2004 8:23 p.m. Vern, Thank you for answering my e-mail. I had seen all the pages except the Conrad Sheckler Settlement. The photo of the the family picnic I had not seen. The woman to your left is Marguerite, my sister then to her left is Bernard then , of course Merril and Mabel's mother Alice Giles and I beleive the man to Alice's left is Herb Giles, Mabel's brother. Am I correct? Was this just after Merril was discharged from the service and at the farm? I was born in Allegan and Mabel did the laundry for my mother at the time I was born. Ray, Mabel and Merril had been part of my family as long as I can remember, just as if they had been blood relatives. I think I have a photo of Marla, Bernard and Marguerite's daughter, and me with the skirts on, but I will have to look through our photo albums to find it. As for the letters I have not been able to find them but I know I did not distroy them and they are somewhere in my keepsakes, so if I find them I will make copies and send them to you. Sandra |
Date: 23 July 2004 8:38 p.m. Vern, It is strange, but Watson and I live in Holland. We have lived here for about 44 years. Where do your mother and sisters live? I found the photos of Marla, my neice and me dressed with the grass skirts that Merril sent us. They were taken in my parents back yard. Marla now lives in Lake Mary, FL with her husband, John Davis. She has four grown children. Watson and I have two sons. One lives in Loveland, CO, with his wife and our youngest son lives in Grand Rapids near John Ball Park. I looked at the other parts of your web-site and the memories of your mother were very nice to read and we enjoyed them very much. My father Ralph, my mother Leola, Marguerite, my sister, Arthur, my brother are all gone so I am the only one in that family that is still alive. I have been doing my family genealogy for the past 15 years and have traced most of my ancestors back to the 1600's when the arrived here in this country. There is only one family that I know of which came in 1853 from Scotland. I have some and photos and materials that I will send you, so please give me your address. One is a photo from a magazine that a cousin sent me and it is a Kroger store, here in Holland, that Merril managed around the 1930's. He is not in the photo but it was taken about the time he would have been there. Maybe your mother could tell you the time period. Will close for now. Sandra |
Date: 25 July 2004 10:35 a.m. Vern, I have been going through my old postcards and I found only one of the New Richmond depot. It does not have a date in the postmark but it was written to my mother when my parents lived on Cora St in Allegan so it had to be in the mid 1900's. I will make a copy for you. It was written by a friend of my mother's, Zelpha Lameraux of the New Richmond area. The Kroger store in the magazine article was at Washington Square. The one on 31st St was built about 1960 and is no longer there. This would have been too late for Merril to have managed and I believe the one at Washington Square was the one. Will send a copy of this article along with some other photos. We have enjoyed your web-site very much. Will keep searching for the V-mail letters. Maybe I gave them to our son, in Colorado to keep with his stamp collection. Will ask him when we talk to him. Sandra |
| Sandra We have driven two blocks from you house so many times. We stay at the Comfort Inn just East of you when we visit.. My sisters both trade at that garage on SW corner at 56th AV. Wasn't that Kroger Store on old 31 as we come into Holland from the south, just before the hospital? I know my mother has pointed it out before. They live South of the new airport construction. My address is Vern Bouwman 12616 NE 190th St Bothell, WA 98011 |
Sandra Here is another page to follow: http://sheckler.bouwman.com/6th.html Click on Barnett and you will see more Giles. Another interesting link is: http://sheckler.bouwman.com/Conrad.html The Rowe cemetery lists a lot of names we know. My favorite page is about my grandfather, Sheckler home on Hutchins Lake http://www.memorieshop.com/Allegan/Fennville/ Click on BLUE Icon on south side of lake. Where do you live? I live in the Seattle Washington area. My mom is still going strong. She and my two sisters, Jean and Arleen live on south side of Holland. I was just back there to visit them. All husbands are gone so we call them the golden girls. Vern http://www.bouwman.com/vern/ |
Date: 5 May 2005 Hello Vern, We have not corresponded in quite a-while. I had told you in the past that I have two V-mail letters from Merrill. I have looked and looked for them but to no avail. Yesterday my husband and I were cleaning in one of our upstair bedrooms and among our youngest son's stamp collection we found the V-mails. It just goes to show that cleaning house does pay off. Are you still interested in having copies of them? If so, let me know and I will send them to you by snail mail. Sandra Lundie snllundi@wmis.net |
|
What else do you think you will find with
all
that cleaning? I'm so glad you remembered me. I will be in your area in September to see mom. <>Thanks Again. Enjoy the Tulips Vern |
| Subject: Merrill Date: Mon, 9 May 2005 18:16:00 -0400 From: "Watson Lundie" <snllundi@wmis.net> Vern, Called your Mother on Saturday
and she and your sister came over to see
the letters and the grass skirt. We enjoyed meeting them and
talking about Merrill and the family. We had made copies of the letters
but your Mother was unable to read them, as they were very small and
the writing was also very tiny. Your sister said she would take
them to work and enlarge the copies. Hope that will work.
I also gave them a couple of
photos of times when we were together with
Mabel and Ray at an Easter gathering at the farm, north of Allegan, and
another time at my parents home on 19th street , here in Holland.
It was New Years Eve and we were playing a game
 Going from the left side of the table, Bernard,Ruth Jillson, my brother'swife, my mother, Merrill , Marguerite, my sister, Ray, Ruth, a friend of Marguerite and Bernards, Mabel, my father, Relph and me.  In the Easter photo, left to
right, my brother, Arthur in front of
Bernard, with the hat, Ray, Ruth, my sister-in-law, me in front, my
mother Leola, Mabel, Blossom Eilers, Bernard's friend,
and Marguerite.
This will help identify the people in the two photos when you get them
from your mother.Can't beleive your mother is 89. She is such a cute little lady. We were very glad to meet her and your sister. Sandra |
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