Tag Archives: John F. Yegerlehner

Summer Break

Letter transcription:

[Wright 533 – handwritten by David]
5-21-63

Dear David:

We received a letter from John yesterday. He plans to come home July 21 and return to Indonesia the 17^th of August – that is, leave the states on that day. I am glad you will be home this summer (for several reasons). I think you will enjoy being with John again.

We received our finished itineraries. The first one was dated from Jan. 25^th and this one is dated from Jan. 10^th. I am looking at it from time to time. I intend to have it memorized by the time we are ready to leave. (I said itineraries, because we have two copies).

Dad finally got over his tooth trouble. He had to have one tooth pulled and another one filled – then the filling dropped out and he had to go back and have another filling put in. He really didn’t feel very good for several days, but is about back to normal. He says he wants to mow the lawn this evening and then it will be your job from then on, so you had better plan to get home as soon as possible. Luckily, we are having a little cool weather. Maybe the grass won’t grow so fast.

I talked to Rev. Fields about writing to you and he said he would. However, since you will be home within a week, I am not too sure you will hear from him. He was wondering if you would be able to teach on Sunday June 2. If you will drop me a line so I can tell him. He said they had a discussion with the MYF group as to what they want in the way of lessons, but he didn’t say what had been decided. He has finished the series of lessons he was giving them.

I have a club meeting to attend this morning – the last one for this season and am I glad. I have so much to do before Jan. 10 that I have to get a little bit done each day. When I think of all the things we will have to take along I think I am not starting too soon.

Doris told me that Bill was coming home to get the car to bring his things home. You didn’t mention Bonnie in your last letter. Are you still planning for her to come with you? Let me know.

I have to be at my meeting by 10:30, so must get ready and go. – I almost forgot to tell you, Jim Egan died yesterday afternoon. Doris Marvin’s mother Mrs. Ethel Herriman was buried last week. I forget you get the paper and get all these news items.

Love Mother

P.S. We notified the janitor to turn his key in May 24. We will empty the wastebaskets Saturday and hope you will be here to do same on Monday.

©2016 copyright owned and transcribed by Deborah Sweeney
Post originally found: https://genealogylady.net/2016/11/12/summer-break/

Mother’s Day 1963

1 Reply

Letter transcription:

[Wright 533 – handwritten by David]
Monday the 13^th (May 1963)

Dear David:

Your Mother’s Day gift received Saturday afternoon. I listened to two records Sunday morning before I went to Sunday school, then in the afternoon I listened to the rest of the opera. I think the music is just beautiful. According to the information with the album that opera is considered the composer’s best. Thanks, you couldn’t have given me anything I enjoyed more. Dad had the Goodland florist make me a corsage. One orchid with three pink rose buds. I just should have some place to wear it, since I just had a chance to show it off once. Mark and his family remembered me with a card and I doubt that brother John even knew it was Mother’s day. I think he has probably forgotten most of the things like that. I still haven’t had an answer from my letters asking him to let me know if he is going to be home and when. I finally gave the girls their vacation dates. One is to be gone June 9 thru 23. The other August 18 thru 31. Edna had a dental appointment this past week and was told she should have her teeth pulled. She plan[s] to have that done while she is on vacation. Not a very pleasant thing to look forward to for vacation. Dad has been having some teeth trouble. He is going to see Dr. Logan tonight. I talked to Geo. Dye last week and he said he knew you were planning to be home this summer and he plans to let you take the Sunday school class. He said Rev. Fields was going to write you about it. Rev. Fields has been having some very informative sermons about John Wesley. I think most of the congregation have been impressed. Of course, there is always the element that can’t be pleased. I have a meeting to attend at the hospital today. I went out last Wednesday and Dr. Gery burned the wart off my little finger. Left quite a hole. It is looking better, but is not entirely healed yet. Week before last, Garnett Janssen’s brother passed away and last week Marge’s father passed away. We attended Mr. Cobb’s funeral yesterday. Dad set out the tuberous begonias and then the weather turned cold. We were fooled by that very warm weather the early part of last week. It is supposed to get into the 70’s today, so maybe the little cold spell hasn’t hurt them. I had to have a new tire put on the car. I just got the car back from the garage and the window in the front door dropped down into the door and I had to have that taken care of. The body man at the garage told me I should have the spots touched up with paint, so one day this week I am going to have that taken care of. I am also going to get a new cover put on the front seat, so my car should take on a new look (for you to wear off this summer). Finally got the new typewriter. I am using it here at home. We kept the old typewriter so when it is necessary to use two typewriters at the office we will have the old one.

Love Mother

© 2016 copyright owned and transcribed by Deborah Sweeney
Post originally found: https://genealogylady.net/2016/11/10/mothers-day-1963/

5 Below

1 Reply

Letter transcription:

[Wright 533 – handwritten by David]
Monday January 28, 1963

Dear David:

It is 10 below here this morning at 10 o’clock. According to the Chicago forecast I think it was to reach a 5 below, but I didn’t think they really meant it would get that cold. The schools are still not open – due to drifted country roads the school buses aren’t running. From what I can hear from parents, most of them are ready for the school to reopen.

We still haven’t decided definitely how we will travel. I talked to L. Kresler two weeks ago about a conducted tour, but the more we think about it the more we think we wouldn’t get much rest and one of the reasons we want to take a two or three months vacations is to get away from work and hurrying around. I think those conducted tours have too many time schedules to meet.

I was very glad about your grad report. From the difficulty you were having with the two courses, I am glad you didn’t flunk, but of course, I am expecting much better from you next semester, or I should say the present semester.

John’s address is
Dr. John Yegerlehner
FAK KIP
Djalan Semarang
Malang (Djatim)
Indonesia

We liked the little cartoon you enclosed in your letter.

I have deposited $225.00 to your account. I also like your sense of humor about GM & INR. Of course when GM goes up, your four shares increase in value also.

I think we had about the smallest attendance at Sunday school and Church yesterday we have had this winter. Of course, some people couldn’t get out because of the drifted snow. Bill Williams has been keeping our driveway and the street here cleared with his earth moving machine.

I hate to think of going out, but since all my errand runners are gone, I will have to brave the cold myself.

If you have a preference as to which weekend you would rather come home for that Official Board meeting, let me know.

Love Mother

©2016 copyright owned and transcribed by Deborah Sweeney
Post originally found: https://genealogylady.net/2016/11/01/5-below/

About to Vanish

1 Reply

Letter transcription:

1-17-63

Dear David:

Your card came today. Sorry you won’t get to come home, but you should know more about your time schedule that I do. It is about time for Dad to come for lunch. He was in the hospital all day yesterday and all night last night. He didn’t even get a chance to change his shirt this morning. Pat Unger Murphy has a son (one that Dad delivered yesterday).

Mark and family came Friday evening and stayed until Sunday afternoon. Becky ran into the hearth and got a goose egg on her forehead, but we put ice packs on it and the next day it didn’t look so bad. She howled for awhile, but as soon as we let her up from the ice packs she made a quick recovery and was running and playing as usual. Kirk is growing so fast, it doesn’t seem possible. He is still very good and sleeps most of the time, but when he wants his food he lets out quite a noise.

We received a letter from Lea yesterday and at long last, she is going to have a baby. She said she is due in August. I know she is probably as happy as a person can be about anything. I will have to start collecting things for the new one.

The Company that is to replace our window is supposed to do the work this afternoon. I am glad the temperature is up a little. I would hate to have that sort of thing going on in sub zero weather.

We brought some Minnesota Mining last week and it has been going up. However, yesterday there was a dip in the market and MM went down a little, but it is still over what we paid for it. We bought it as 57 7/8 and it closed yesterday at 59 3/8. It did go up over 60 one day.

Kentland Bank is having a stockholders meeting Saturday afternoon and a dinner Saturday evening. Dad said he wouldn’t get to attend the meeting, but we plan to attend the dinner. Did we tell you the Bank stock is going to split? We have 50 shares now and after the split we will have 62½. Since John has the same amount, we will either buy his ½ share or sell him ours. I rather think we will buy his.

I plan (weather permitting) to go to Lafayette Monday to see a tax consultant. Mark and I worked on taxes while he was here over the weekend, but he is just learning and I decided I would like to have an expert check our figures. There is a legislative seminar (sponsored by Council of Churches of Indiana) and I was supposed to attend, but decided not to. The Seminar is next Tuesday the 22^nd and since I have an appointment in Lafayette on Monday, I decided that would be too much driving for me.

I talked to Miss Kresler Monday night about arranging our trip. We decided since she is a professional guide – she conducts tours every summer and has for 20 years – except during the war – we couldn’t find anyone who could better advise us. I took some of the literature along that I have accumulated since we have been planning our trip. She pointed out some things she thought we wouldn’t like in the literature we have. If we decide to take the trip she sells, it will be entirely by jet, but I think we will see much more that way. Once of the places included on the Olson Tour is Athens. The Olson Tour also includes the Holy Land and I want to see the Parthenon. She toured in Asia last summer, visiting Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong and a few other places. Dad told Dr. K. yesterday that we are planning to be away next Jan. & Feb. He didn’t tell him any more than that. Miss Kresler told me that she is conducting a tour of Europe next summer and that Dr. & Mrs. Kresler and children, the Battons and another family are going on the tour with her.

I was going to give you the candy that was left over from Christmas, but discovered after you left that it was still in the refrigerator, so when Mark and Shirley left Sunday I gave them a box of Fanny May and opened the box of Snappers for us, so the only Christmas candy that is left is what came from South Africa and it is about to vanish.

—Dad has been home and we have had lunch. He had to make two house calls in Sheldon and is there now. The people who were supposed to replace the window haven’t come and since it is past 2 o’clock I doubt if they get here today. – I just answered the door and it was the glass people. They are now tearing out the broken window.

Love Mother

©2016 copyright owned and transcribed by Deborah Sweeney
Post originally found: https://genealogylady.net/2016/10/30/about-to-vanish/

The New Arrival

3 Replies

Letter transcription:

Thursday afternoon
October 11, 1962

Dear David:

Yours received via Corbins. It is a wonderful day and just like summer. I suppose it is a few degrees warmer where you are. Dad has had a very busy week. He had to spend most of his time this week in the hospital, taking care of accident cases, surgery and baby cases. He is getting some work done around the yard this afternoon. He is going to the office at 5 o’clock to put a new handle on the inside front door. The old one keeps getting out of order. We keep getting a few more things done at the office and Dad is working on the speaker system to get the FM radio hooked up. Don’t worry about my record player. If we want to, Dad can make it into a stereo. We have been too busy it seems to even listen to records, but I hope this pace doesn’t keep up. Anyway, you know I am not (at this time) interested in spending anything on record players. We will charge the FM off to office expense when Dad gets it ready to be installed. I am so used to writing John without using any paragraphs that I just decided to do the same with you. This is the easiest way. I hope you get your studies. You sounded so busy in your last letter, I was beginning to wonder if you were going to get it all done. We haven’t heard from Mark’s since a week ago today. Mark says Shirley isn’t due until the 20^th or 21^st. Of course, that isn’t going to keep her from going a little early if the baby decides not to wait until the date set. It would have been nice to have Becky here during this nice weather so she could have played out of doors some. I will let you know when the new arrival gets here (or there, rather). Lea and Bob came last Saturday and spent the night and Sunday with us. We took them to the KC for smorgasbord Sunday noon. We didn’t know they were coming. I was supposed to attend a class party at the parsonage, and had baked a cake, after I finished baking yours (incidentally that was your birthday cake, if a little late) to take to the party. I cancelled attending party and had cake to serve for dessert Saturday evening.

Dad has gone to the office to work on the door and I am going down to do some work on a thing or two I can’t get done while the office is open for business.

Love Mother

©2016 copyright owned and transcribed by Deborah Sweeney
Post originally found: https://genealogylady.net/2016/10/26/the-new-arrival/

Mackinac Bridge

3 Replies

Letter transcription:

[Memorial Hall I.U. – Handwritten by David]
Thurs. July 19, 1962

Dear David –

I went to Lafayette yesterday and while in the hospital had a chance to see Dr. Ferguson. He wants me to continue therapy two more weeks – or until I have normal motion with my right arm. I am to go again tomorrow. I think I had too much therapy yesterday – my arm is a little sore today.

I asked Rev. Fields about the book you wrote about but he didn’t know anything about it. He was to give me a list of books he does know about. He is at camp this week and I didn’t get the list from him. While the Fields are away this week the painting is being done.

Well, what do you think about the defeat of the little Kennedy boy’s legislation? If he can learn from anything I think it is time for him to take a hint. I think the Dri strike in Canada possibly had some effect on the way the voting went.

While Mark, Shirley & Becky were here Bob & Lea stopped for a little while on Saturday. Sunday afternoon Virginia (Zell) Gale and her family came. I don’t know when Mark’s will be back. We couldn’t figure out a date while they were

[page 2] here. Shirley is going to visit her family for a week after she quits work August 1. She will stop here for a little while. We are planning to go to Chicago September 1 for a week’s vacation. We thought we would go up and see the Mackinac bridge one day. I hope you plan to be home all the time when you get back from summer school, until you return to school in September. We are counting on leaving you here to look after things while we are away. And of course you have to be here to help me during Arvella’s vacation.

The work on the building is at a standstill. Mr. K. says the windows haven’t come and that he can’t do anything more until he gets them.

Dad has been so very busy, I will be glad when he can get away for a vacation. Dr. Brady is gone from Morocco and the people in Morocco have no hopes of getting another Dr. That just makes more work on Dad all the time.

Marge Cheek had to have an emergency operation Monday evening. Appendicitis and complications. I was at the hospital Tuesday but didn’t try to see her because she wasn’t able to have company.

I have to write to John and do a few other things today – I will be traveling tomorrow so won’t get much done at home.

Love Mother

Mackinac bridge (Image by Jeffness Wikipedia Creative Commons license)

©2016 copyright owned and transcribed by Deborah Sweeney
Post originally found: https://genealogylady.net/2016/10/21/mackinac-bridge/

News from John

1 Reply

Letter transcription:

[Memorial Hall I.U. – handwritten by David]
Tues. July 3 1962

Dear David –

I had a therapy treatment yesterday and will get another Thurs. Since the 4^th is a holiday won’t go tomorrow. Marge Janssen is going to drive for me Thurs. Joan drove yesterday. The Fields are in the process of moving today and will finish tomorrow. The Bowers moved yesterday.

Rec’d a letter from John this a.m. He hasn’t been getting any fresh news from U.S. – says all the papers there are full of news of New Guinea and he was wondering about the stock market. He said he hadn’t been able to get any U.S. news magazines recently. This letter had been mailed from Singapore by a friend so he was able to say a few things he wouldn’t have said otherwise. He is afraid letters mailed from there (Malang) might be censored.

We have had lots of rain in the past two days and the atmosphere is very oppressive today. Makes my arm ache. I am trying to get myself into the mood to take therapy. Sometimes I have to force myself.

[page 2] I rather expect Mark & Shirley to come for the week-end.

Love Mother

P.S. a pair of gray pants came back from cleaner. Do you want me to send them? Let me know.

©2016 copyright owned and transcribed by Deborah Sweeney
Post originally found: https://genealogylady.net/2016/10/18/news-from-john/

Building Projects

1 Reply

Letter transcription:

[Wright 533 – handwritten by David]
Kentland, Indiana, March 12, 1962

Dear David:

We are still enjoying (?) unusual March weather, or maybe I should say usual. I think most of the population around here is ready for spring. Mark and Shirley and Becky came for the week-end. They certainly will be glad to see warm, sunny weather. I told them I thought Becky looked a little pale, but why shouldn’t she. She hasn’t been out in the sunshine for such a long time. She was feeling pretty good, but had a little cold. They still have her on a fat free diet because of her bowel condition. I mashed potatoes for her with just a little skimmed milk. Made some plain Jello and had skimmed milk for her to drink. She could have some broiled steak, which she seemed to enjoy and some unseasoned lima beans. I suppose if they could never feed her anything else, she would think her diet was good. They haven’t been giving her any eggs or orange juice. She did have some cereal for her breakfast. It doesn’t seem to slow her down any and she put on a good show for us. Mark and Shirley both were getting over severe colds. I wanted them to leave Becky here. Mark said they would talk it over and maybe some other time. They didn’t make any date as to when they will be coming back. However, they have decided it is too much to go to both places for a week-end and after this they will go one place one week-end and the other the next time they make a trip this way. Mark is learning how to do the book work (Just in case I need help along that line). He isn’t too happy with his new job. He is going to try to get something else thru the placement bureau of Northwestern. I wanted them to come for Easter so you could see Becky, but no promise.

Lea and Bob were here for dinner Saturday, but went home early in the afternoon. They had spent Friday night with Lea’s folks at Ade.

You received another dividend check from GM for $2.00 which I will deposit to your account. You know John bought some Rexall stock when he was home last summer. He has been receiving dividends from them right along (not very high rate, but at least something), but today he received a right – he gets to buy one share – he has 75/100 fractional interest in one share. I have to mail the card back ordering the share to be bought.

I went to a meeting at the hospital at noon – regular monthly meeting of the Ex Comm of the Auxiliary – and the road is in terrible condition – as are all the streets and highways around here. We can hardly get to the office for the mud. The snow is about gone from around here, but we are having rain and some snow mixed in with it today, so we will have mud for a while. We finally got rid of the ice on our driveway (without having David chip it off).

Julie was in church yesterday: I asked her if she had seen you recently. I also happened to see Nancy Holley about two weeks ago.

Dad is still building things in the house. I think it will be some time before he needs to work in the yard – however if we knew we weren’t going to have another freeze, it would be a good time to roll the yard. He has the lawn mower all fixed I think. He has finished all the shelves and is ready to start building the cabinet around the washing machine. We want to begin work on the office as soon as possible, but that can’t be started until we have warmer weather. I am getting anxious to get this place (I am at office now) done over. The linoleum in the waiting room had cracked too much that it will have to be taken off. I am afraid when we get started we will find a lot of things to be done. Aren’t you glad you won’t be here? I know it will be a mess for a while, but it will be worth it.

I haven’t seen Mrs. Myers since the day I took her to the hospital and then took her out to the house, but last week, I had a round of bowel infection. I was sick all night Wed. nite and stayed in bed all Thurs., so didn’t circulate around too much for a day or so.

Love Mother

Musical Advice

3 Replies

Letter transcription:

February 26, 1962

Dear David:

I’ll try to answer some of your questions, but you must understand that I am not the ultimate authority in matters of this sort. (1) I remember reading some reviews of Walter’s last recordings of the Beethoven symphonies (two or three years ago) to the effect that the interpretations were rather too mellow and leisurely for Beethoven. Walter, who died recently, was of course a very old man when he made these recordings and that, it was implied in the review, had something to do with it. I’m sure Toscanini’s recordings have more snap and vigor. He seemed to be able to extract everything there was in a piece of music and get it out where people could hear it, and his sense of what you might call dramatic pacing was wonderful. The trouble with the Toscanini recordings is of course that because of their dates they are acoustically obsolete. But if you don’t have Hi-fi equipment anyway I suppose that doesn’t make too much difference. If you are really interested in records, you can often read reviews of recent recordings in such magazines as the New Yorker, the Sat. Review, The Atlantic, Harper’s, etc. (I wouldn’t trust the recording reviews in Time and Newsweek.) Of course reviewers often don’t agree among themselves not only when it’s a matter of records, but in all other fields of the arts as well. So it comes down to the fact that you have to choose what you like. (2) I’ve noticed a tendency on the part of the RCA Victor people to spread the music as thin as possible. Whereas some other recording company may put a symphony or a concerto on one side of a record, for some reason it takes RCA two sides. (It’s not because the other companies are cutting the music or playing it faster or anything like that). (3) Aaron Copland is O.K. You may find some of his things pretty rough going if you’re not accustomed to modern music, but I think you would like some of his ballet music: Appalachian Spring, Rodeo, Billy the Kid, El Salon Mexico. As far as modern music is concerned, I think you should try to get used to it; it is immensely enjoyable after you get to know it. The trick is just to listen to a piece of music enough times so that it begins to sound familiar. This may take 10 or 15 times, but in the end it will be worth it. Start with the Rite of Spring (Le Sacre du Printemps) by Igor Stravinsky. Stravinsky has probably conducted it himself on records (I forget whether RCA or Columbia). Le Sacre incidentally is hardly “modern” music, since it was composed about 50 years ago, but to many people it would still sound rather queer. If you will pardon my putting it this way, I think Orff is orfull – boring, trivial, and repetitions. As for Saint-Saens: if all of his music just vanished from the world tomorrow, I don’t think anybody would notice much, and even fewer people would care.

The Tewa and Hopi still live close together. That’s a rather complicated situation, and I must say, the way your sociology book has of describing it sounds rather amateurish. If you have to take a social science, why mess around with sociology. Take anthropology.

If you have any further questions on music or records, I will try to answer them. For a start in “modern” music, try Stravinsky, Bartok, Hindemeth (sp?), Berg, Webbern, Schoenberg. You should actually work up to these with Ravel and Debussy.

John

John Glenn

2 Replies

Letter transcription:

[Wright 533 – handwritten by David]
Kentland, Indiana
2-27-62

Dear David:

I just finished a letter to John. Packed a box which I mailed to him yesterday with a few little items like tooth paste, brush, etc.

I have been watching the proceedings on TV about John Glenn. Last Tuesday down town looked deserted. The stores said they didn’t have many customers, so many people were home watching TV. I watched the parade in Cap C. last Friday and the one in Washington yesterday. I was very well impressed with Glenn’s appearance before the joint session yesterday.

We are still having winter weather. Had a blizzard Friday which piled more snow on our driveway. That driveway still has ice and snow from weeks ago. I will be glad to see spring. We saw Nancy Holley Sunday while we were having a snack at the Nu-Joy. We had bridge club Sunday night at Battons, but I was having an infection in my left ear and didn’t feel like doing any cooking Sunday, so we went to the Nu-Joy for a sandwich at noon. I spent the afternoon in bed, not that I was particularly ill, but not feeling top notch, and wanted to be ready to go to the party Sunday night. I attended Bible Study class from 7 to 8 before going to the party.

We attended a meeting of the Cancer Society at the home of Mrs. Bob Yochem last night. Dad is on the board and I was asked out of courtesy. I took my knitting along and got a lot done on Becky’s coat. I didn’t sit in on the meeting, but Mrs. Yochem said she didn’t want me to have to sit home alone.

I have a very cute picture of Becky. We took several when they were here Feb. 4. I liked it so well I had an 8×10 made and put it in the office. When I get another copy made of the small one, I will send you one. They plan to come for this week-end, so will get some more. I had the batteries in the flash attachment changed, so got some very good pictures the last time.

Did you take the examination for advanced ROTC yet? You haven’t mentioned it. I was thinking you would have taken it by this time. Since you got such a good grade (Mark said that was better than he ever made in military) you will probably pass.

Dad is going to install an inner com. system from our bedroom to the front door, so we won’t have to go to the door at night. We may have a station in the kitchen also, but to begin with it will be from bedroom to front door.

Just had a telephone call which lasted too long so must cut this so I can get to town, and pick up the mail.

Love Mother

Additional Links:

John Glenn orbited the earth on February 20, 1962. For NASA’s biography of Glenn, click here.
For an example of one of the newspaper spreads about Glenn, read this excerpt from the Los Angeles Times here.
In the local news, read about the efforts of the Newton County Cancer Society in the spring of 1962. Part 1 and Part 2.