Happy Birthday Aunt Evelyn !!!

This picture was taken in 1929 and is one of the very few pictures I have of Aunt Ev when she was young - this seems to be a normal phenomenon the further down the line from the oldest son or daughter the less pictures there are - check your own 'files'

Aunt Evelyn had a rather eventful arrival - when born she was not expected to survive - THANK GOD she did !!!  From best I could tell from hearing a few stories  she was a 'blue' baby.

Evelyn was the second to last child of Frank and Amelia Lorbetske that survived to adulthood - her one 'little' sister was Earlyne - the two of them had a bond that lasts to this day - even though Aunt Earlyne is no longer with us - I bet there isn't a day, heck an hour, goes by that Aunt Ev and Aunt Earlyne are 'together'.

Aunt Evelyn met her future husband Dale Wendorf - thanks to the 'efforts' of Tony Delonay - Omar's son.  Tony introduced a lot of our future Uncles to our Aunts...I swear he was on retainer from Grandpa Frank to get those girl's married off !!!   So welcome Uncle Joe, Uncle John and Uncle Dale.

Ev and Dale married in Schofield Wisconsin in 1950 and  then moved to Milwaukee where they lived and worked until they moved to the Hartford area.  Shortly after their new home was finished they gave us two of our youngest cousins Dean and Kim.

Aunt Ev holds a very special place in my heart she was and is one of the most generous people I have ever known.  From when a 12 year old kid would sell her the school fundraising candy bars that got caught in the spokes of his bike, to the lending of the money to buy his first car, she was always there.  But money was nothing compared to what she 'gives' everyday to her children and family.  She gives her all in selfless devotion.

As I write she is living with my Mom - words can't describe what she does for her and the tears make typing this impossible....Aunt Evelyn is Love - pure and simple.

Percy Delbert Generous

Percy was born on this date in 1901 - he was the first cousin of Omar and Milton Delonay.  Percy enlisted in the US Navy and by the time of World War II he was a Lieutenant Commander.

On 21 Jan 1945 aboard the USS Hancock, a Ticonderoga Class Aircraft carrier, Percy was killed along with 50 other sailors.  He was later buried at sea.

Pauline Lorbetske

Can you imagine making bread and rolls - yes from scratch - every Saturday night for over 40 years....

As was often the case during deer hunting season, I would try and visit as many of my Aunts and Uncles as I had time for, in retrospect, I wish I had MADE more time for that.

When visiting my Aunt Pauline one Saturday night - she was busy in the kitchen making bread - teased her about just going to Trig's but she would have none of that !!  Throughout the course of talking about bread she reported that she has been making  bread and rolls on Saturday night for over 40 years....at the time that didn't sink in....upon reflection,  since that day I think of the love and dedication she must have had for her family - like so many others she could have easily have made that trip to Trig's.  But she didn't as that would have not made sense to her.

Pauline Lorbetske was born on this date in 1916 - Europe was embroiled in WWI, women in the USA had to earned the right to vote, there were 48 States and in a few years the Great Depression was about to engulf the country. Pauline was born in Bevent Wisconsin the seventh child of Frank and Amelia.  Sometime in the early 1930's her parents moved to Sugar Camp Wisconsin where she met and then married Clements Kunda on the 21st of December 1933 at St Kunegunda's Church.

The Kunda's lived in southern Vilas County for a few short years.  As WWII was starting Pauline and Clements bought the family farm on the end of Rolling Acres Drive from her father Frank.

Pauline and Clem had 6 children.  After farming they moved to Mill Lake, at the end of Mill Lake Road; an area which became "Kundaville" (my words) as most of their children also built houses there.

Aunt Pauline died in 2006 and is buried in St Kunegunda's Cemetery - she was survived by her 6 children, 9 grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren.

Like a lot of folks - we own an IPOD, and I keep ours on 'shuffle' - always amusing to hear a song by Ozzy followed up by the Benedictine Monks only to get Willie Nelson next.

Routine has us waking up, easing (and I do MEAN easing) into the day - first the coffee pot and then the Ipod shuffle and then the laptop...."so what?"  right ...lol

This morning the IPOD took us to Neil Diamond - don't know which album but it didn't matter - Neil Diamond always takes my mind to Earlyne Margaret Lorbetske.  Aunt Earlyne 'loved' Neil Diamond - albeit she indeed had LOTS of 'loves'.

Anyone who ever visited Aunt Earlyne's house in Huntsville Alabama soon came to realize that she had a passion for lots of things - did I say LOTS of things.  Aunt Earlyne didn't just casually do anything - she absorbed it, she lived it, she loved it.

So thanks to my IPOD and your shuffle for making me reflect, if even briefly, on one of my favorite people.

Going to give this a shot - hopefully I can stick with it.  My intention is to try and post a little more detail than a facebook post.  Also I would like to relate anecdotal items - funny, interesting and no doubt some sad stories.  We shall see how it goes