Remembering Mission

I have a history of Arlo and this is part of it: On April 2, 1981 he went to Denver for his first heart by-pass operation after accepting a call to serve a mission with Gatha. He needed to prepare himself physically to go. After 2 more operations and time to recuperate he was ready to go.

Heavenly Father called them to serve in the Holbrook, Arizona Mission. They were to report on September 29, 1982, to the Mission Training Center in Provo, Utah.
While serving their Heavenly Father for twelve months, Gatha and Arlo were able to grow spiritually, see the power of the Priesthood and the Spirit of the Lord in action. They developed a love for the Lamanites (Indians). Their love for each other grew very much during these times. They had fun times too. The Indian children loved to rub his bald head. He said at one time, “If you want your head shined go on a mission.” Another time he locked Gatha in the bathroom, turned on the hot water in the kitchen while Gatha was showering, giving her a cold shower. He had a good sense of humor.

I remember the time the kids and I went to pick up Arlo and Gatha in Zuni, New Mexico from their mission. It was a special time for us. We were able to see the trailer and the church in Zuni. We were able to go to a special meeting at the mission home where they cut Grandpa's necktie and a lock of Grandma's hair at the end of their mission. I also remember when Don and I took Arlo and Gatha to the mission home and able to attend a meeting there to say 'good-bye'. I knew after that meeting that is was a special place for them to be. The spirit was really strong. When I took Danette to the mission home I knew from this time that she was going to be in a special place.

The ol' man

Arlo Vance hunted deer and rabbit

For him it was a severe habit.

He shot them dead and chopped their head

The skin was stripped down to the meat red

And Gatha had to cook it

Beaus

Gatha was young as was Arlo,
But her heart she did follow.
She was wed at seventeen.
They had times very lean.
Look now at the generations grow!

Honeymoon Hotel

This is many years after the event, but this is a picture of the cabin next to the Conjos River just below the Dunn family cabin. This structure is now gone, but this is where Arlo and Gatha spent their honeymoon.



Dad told us about the night they spent in the cabin and the noises they heard during the night. He claimed that it sounded like a woman screaming. In the morning there were cougar tracks on and around the cabin.

Hands tell us so much

I loved to study my father's hands. They were unlike any other hands I have ever seen. They were covered with freckles and they were cracked from the work he did and most of the times they were stained. The grease and oil from the garage was ground into the cracks of his skin and for many years, they were stained yellow from his tobacco usage. I feared those hands when I misbehaved as a child, but as I matured, I was fascinated by his ability to turn a wrench in the most awkward of places. He loved to work wood and in his later years, he often stood in sawdust as his hands fashioned frames and toys from the wood.

This last year, Betty and I have had a rare opportunity. We have been learning to talk to a dear friend, Mattie, who is hearing impaired. Her hands gracefully move as she forms the words and thoughts she wants to convey. She has been patient with us as she has helped us learn how to form words, and phrases and sentences. We have learned to say simple prayers and express affection.

In church, we watch as the talks and hymns are interpreted from vocal expressions to graceful poetic manual ballet. We can't understand it all, but slowly we are beginning to learn. We don't have to understand every word to appreciate sign language. We do understand enough to get the general idea.

Another pair of hands that I love to watch are my sweetheart's. They are beautiful to me. I see her use her hands as she creates beautiful cards for friends on special occasions. I watch as she does the many things around our home and am grateful for the things she does. Her hands are dainty, but are beginning to show signs of aging. Her wedding rings no longer fit comfortably over her arthritic knuckles, and they don't open jars as easily as once they did. Her hands tell me that she loves me by the things that she does.

What I do with my hands also relays a message to those I love. I make a living for our family with my hands and there are times that they ache from over use, yet I feel a need to continue to use them to express the feelings of my heart. I love my family and find that I can use my hands to tell them so. I can also use my hands help Betty with her household chores, or I can while my time away putzing around on the Internet. I need to be careful about how I use my hands and how I use my time.

I went through my pictures looking images of people's hands. I believe that the ones that said the most to me were the one of Larry and Jeanette's hands when they were married, and this one. These are the hands of my Mother and my Father. Their hands in this photo symbolize unity and love and caring. I pray that I can keep my hands busy, keep them clean, and keep them ready to serve my family for the rest of my days. I hope that my hands will tell my loved ones the things that I would want them to say.

Our Last Year in Romeo

We moved into the Paul weddington house. It was on the northeast corner of the block that Shirley Sorenson lived in. We lived there until two months after I was married. This letter was written when Dad was moving from that house that is explained in the letter. The only house that I lived in, in the town of Romeo, is the house that I just described. That is where we lived when Nona and Moine and Arlo and I dated. We were together most of the time as we courted.

One day when we lived there, someone came into my class room at school and said "Gatha, your house is on fire". I jumped over a desk and ran as fast as I could to the house and Barbara had ironed a dress to wear to school and left the iron on. It burned a hole in the ironing boar and was starting to burn the floor. We got there in time to put the fire out.

There was always something going on. Life was not easy without a mom. When I have heard people complain about their moms I would say, "I'll trade you places.

Good ol' Grandpa

I just wanted to tell those who are posting pictures of Grandpa, "Thank you." I miss seeing his face. It is wonderful to stare at those pictures and remember him. I have posted a few comments on Larry's santa and Kent's most recent one about my memories about Grandpa. One special experience I had when I was on my mission was: I had met a lady who had talked about how she talked to her Grandpa beyond the veil, he had visited her a few times. This sparked a desire to see Grandpa, so one day in one of my prayers for the night I asked Heavenly Father to tell Grandpa Vance that I was thinking of him. I did it one or two more times, then I had a dream. I saw Grandpa, it had been sooo long! He didn't talk to me but I felt his love. It was a special experience. I just want all of you to know I sure loved Grandpa, I wish my children could have gotten to know him, they would have loved his jokes. I still tell my children when they tell me they are thirsty out where there is no drink in sight, "I'll spit in your mouth for you." So continued to post pictures and tell me about my wonderful Grandpa.!

Santa

I remember when I was young that my father had a bright red beard and that Boyd Pagett had a dark beard. Dad worked for Boyd at Conejos County Gas and Oil. That bright red beard faded a bit as the years progressed. He shaved the beard for several years.



And then later he decided that the beard would come back. It seems that everything drifted from the top of his head to the bottom.



Arlo did enjoy acting the part of Santa. The children of the area would come into Conejos County Gas and Oil and whisper to each other and point at Arlo. They were discussing whether he was the "real" Santa.



It was natural for the younger generation to hop on pop. He did enjoy children on his lap. He loved to have them come and say that he was Santa.

Family Photos (ca. 1956)

Thanks to Bonnie Lynn Olsen for sharing this image.

Establishing a Home

When Arlo and I got married, we didn't have a home. For a time we were here and there. We lived in a little 3 room house of Isabel's. Then we moved in with Grandma Vance. We live in a room of Charles and June Vance. That is where we lived when Dad died and Doris Faye came to live with us.

Then he got a job with Ed Guymon and we lived there until Don, Kent and Bonnie were born. Arlo quit his job with Ed and we moved in with Grandma Vance again for a season. We then moved to a farm between Sanford and Bountiful. Arlo worked for a Gyling. We lived there for one year.

The next year we moved to the house North West of Romeo. That is where Larry was born. That year there were a lot of things. Donnie had rheumatic fever, Arlo had a bad disc in his back and was in the hospital in Grand Junction for about a month, then was moved to Denver where he had back surgery.

While he was in the hospital, I moved us to manassa. We lived in Lucille Jackson's house, a block West of Grandma Dunn. We lived there until we bought our first home of our own. That was the one across the street from Maggie Weston.

From there we bought the house on 3rd street. That was our final home. We lived there until after Arlo died and I moved to Mesa. Things were never the same after that. There didn't seem to be a gathering place for all of us again. Eventho I own a home now, it doesn't seem to be a gathering place as I would like it to be.

Our Wedding

Arlo and I were married on the 30th of March 1946 in Grandma and Grandpa Dunn's home. We were married in the same spot that my Mom and Dad were married. Arlo had said he didn't want too many at our wedding. I didn't invite Nona and forever after I was sorry that I didn't. She was a very special friend. Grandma Dunn made arrangements for music and food and it was a very special occasion. Grandma Vance was the only one Arlo invited and He should have invited his sister, Isabel.

It was just after the end of World War II and stockings were almost unheard of because nylon was not available for private use. Aunt Ruth worked for a clothing store and was able to get me a pair of nylons. The boys threw wheat, (not rice) at us and got it on the running board of the car, (the model A), and I slipped on it and tore my nylons.

We spent our honeymoon at the little cabin at the bottom of the hill below our present cabin. We rode horses to the top of the mountain through Fox Creek Canyon. That is where Arlo and the hunting crew often camped to hunt deer. We heard the horses sound upset in the night and Arlo said that there were tracks of a mountain lion around the cabin. I still love to go to the river, which runs by the cabin at the bottom of the hill, where our cabin is.

Courting and Marriage

Nona , my good friend was dating Moine Provost, he and Arlo came to the school when it was just out and asked Nona and me to go for a ride. That was the first time I went with him and we went together often after that. I was a senior in high school. We dated for three months and were married on the 30th of March 1946. I went to school 2 months after we were married, so I could graduate. Arlo had just gotten out of the army the first time we dated. He didn't have a regular job. He drove a truck for Uncle Lute Vance part of the time.

Daddy's Shoulders

As Betty and I were coming home from the grocery store, we saw a family walking down the sidewalk. They were laughing and the father had a giggling burden on his shoulders. That took me back to my own childhood.

Most of the memories of my Dad were memories of a stern, demanding man, but there was one time that it was really different for me. Donnie was the one who usually got to go on hunting and fishing trips. One time, I was invited. I imagine that I was about ten years old. When we got to the camp and were beginning to set up, we realized that I left my sleeping bag home. We were in the mountains in winter and it was too cold for me to sleep without bedding. That night, Dad and I shared a sleeping bag. I was warm but I am sure it wasn't the most comfortable night for my Dad.

The next morning, we were off. There was a soft blanket of snow on the ground. It was beautiful to look at, but it wasn't so beautiful when we had to walk in it. I never did like the cold. We were hunting in the neighborhood of the old Vance homestead, near the family cabin on the Conejos River. Dad wanted to hunt on the south side of the river and that meant crossing the icy blue river by wading across. Dad scooped me up on his shoulders and carried me across. I can only imagine how cold his feet must have been, but mine were warm and dry.

Once on the other side of the river, we headed into one of the canyons that jutted up into the mountains. We came to the ruins of an old log cabin. In the corner of the floor of the cabin, you could see where a mountain lion had curled up to sleep. Dad signalled to me to be quiet. That was a hard thing for me to do, but I was able to this time.

We followed the tracks down the side of the canyon and across a small creek. They took us into the timber and changed direction. Still we followed quietly and steadily. Once again the path took a turn out of the darkness of the timber in into the light. Down the hillside we went until we and we crossed the creek again. It wasn't long until we were back at the ruins of the old cabin. I was a little confused as to who was hunted and who was hunting.

My little ten year old body was tired and I was hungry. We headed back to camp following our own footsteps in the snow. Back at the river bank, Dad hoisted me once again to his shoulders. The swift frigid water was shallow and we quickly crossed. It was so good to get back to the camp and the warmth of the campfire.

There were not lot of words exchanged that day. Hunting was serious business to Dad. Although few words were exchanged, I learned volumes. I learned to love and respect nature. I learned that wild life is to be respected. I learned that my Dad loved me and was willing to care for me.

Family

It is such a special thing to come to Mom's and get to catch up on the latest additions to the blog.
Perhaps the greatest blessing in my life is my family......immediate and extended. Mom is my star!!! She is one of the greatest examples of Christlike love. She has always displayed a love for others. I remember her and Aunt Elma getting up at a very early hour and going to Blanch Sego's home which was about a block away from our house and spent many hours pulling her weeds and put them in the front of her house to burn. I remember Blanch calling Mom and showing anything but gratitude for their kind act, I told her that I wouldn't spend my time doing things for someone that did not appreciate it. Her response to me was that they didn't do it for praise or appreciation and that there was no end to the good that we could do if we were not concerned about who got the credit. She always could see the good in me even though I felt that there was none.

My best friend, Ramona McGinnis said that Mom was the best person that she had ever met and that she was a great source inspiration to her. Mom taught her to sew, cook and many other skills that I was personally not interested in at that time.

Dad had a big heart, I remember that at Christmas he always bought a gift for the widows that were in our home town; it may have been a box of chocolate covered cherries or a small glass dish, but he had a gentle side. He was a real practical joker, he could dish it out , but he didn't like others to do it to him. He taped my eye lids shut when I was sleeping, painted my face with charcoal when I was asleep and when I sat by him at a meal time he was always hitting my elbow as I took a bite. He had an amazing ability to get close to animals and had them well trained. He would put candy sticks in his shirt pockets and they would find them and eat them. The pony would get his cap by the bill and take it off. His animals loved him. H e also had m well trained, when he came in the house I would take off his shoes, get his paper and retrieve a drink for him.

Donnie, Kent and Larry, do you remember him taking us out to go sledding on the snow packed roads in the winter in the deep hood of an old car. I also remember ice skating on the Conejos River. Dad went in front of us with a scoop shovel and would clear off the ice and probably check if the ice was solid enough to hold us.

Donnie was always so well liked by the people in the valley and I was so proud to have him be my older brother. My children and grandchildren all love him and Gloria so much because thy make them feel like they are each one their favorite.

Kent was one of my best friends and I thought he was truly the best brother in the world. Remember skating at the town pond? We would skate together to "Put You Little Foot", and we would turn and skate the other direction. I thought we were good enough to be part of the"Ice Capades". We played duet at Adam State College, our contribution was "Glow Little Glow Worms". We both took music lessons from Lena Sowards.

Larry was the "Brains " of our family. For some unknown reason, he got my share also. Maybe I traded him for his charm...that is a joke of course.

I adore all of my nieces and nephews and one of my greatest motivating factors is to be eternally linked to each and every one of my family.

I love my children and grandchildren and Emery is my greatest blessing.

Gloria, Betty and Jeantte are the sisters that I wished for from my youth.

-- Bonnie

0ur Family- continued

When we lived in Romeo, where Larry was born, Donnie had rheumatic fever and had St Vitus Dance which caused him to have great tremors. He couldn't hold a spoon. He had a priesthood blessing and was instantly healed of the st vitus dance.

While we lived there Arlo had a pinched nerve in his spine and was in terrible pain. Richard, Arlo's brother and his wife Roxanne and Gerald Lynn came to visit us there. Larry and Gerald Lynn were both blessed at church. When Richard and family left, they took Arlo to Grand Junction to the veterans hospital and left him there. He was there in traction for about a month and then they moved him to Denver, where he had surgery on his back. He was home in about 2 weeks.

While he was in Grand Junction, I moved us to Manassa. In Romeo he had worked for Thales Smith. and the house was no longer available to us. Arlo wasn't very happy about that, but he learned to love Manassa.

Donnie recovered from the rheumatic fever and was active all of his life.

In Romeo is where we lived when the snake bit Kent. Nona and Audrey were at our house when that happened. Calvin must have been with you boys. You were playing in an irrigation ditch which ran through that property. I did't know what kind of snake it was that bit him. We took him to the doctor and he said if it had been a rattle snake it would be swollen. He didn't seem to have any after efects of it.

Our Family vacations

The one thing that we enjoyed together with Arlo being there was time spent in the mountains. When Kent was less than a month old we went to the mountains and camped out. We slept in sleeping bags and cooked on the camp fire. I don't remember the place that we camped but I do remember being in the mountains. We spent a lot of time camping out and then later spent time at the cabin. The cabin proved to be a great investment for us. I still like to go there. Our reunion there was great. We have owned it for many years.

One time Barbara, LaRue, Doris Faye and I took all of our children in one car and went to Los Alamos, to visit Keith and Erma. That wouldn't be possible today because of seat belt laws.

One time we took the VW pickup and went to Pueblo to visit Nona. The car broke down and we had to find a ride home.

When Bonnie Lynn had to go to Denver for a check up at the hospital, I took all of you children and we went several times. We went to the movie in a round theater, "It's a Mad Mad World". All of us laughed so hard we cried. Sometimes we went to a resturant where there was a toy train running around the room, near the ceiling. Can any one remember other things that we did?

Some of our family activities

One thing we did more than anything else, is camping and later going to the cabin. We had some wonderful times. Because Arlo loved fishing and hunting so much, those are some of the things that we did. One year, LaRue and Harold had gone to the temple and on their way back, Harold's mom came with them. We went to the mountains and camped for several days. We picked raspberries and built teepees. Those were fun times

Our Family

I have wanted to add more but have had a hard time getting on the post. After Marcy was added to our family, we got Danette, She has been a great joy to me. then Cory, he was our first grandson. Andrea and Robert and Shandi and Emery J, came along, Arlo, Craig, Brian, Julie, Monica, Anita, John Henry, Debra, and Eric, When we got Betty, we got Brenda and Ed. This is all of the grandchildren that belong to Arlo and Me. My grandchildren are my pearls. I love every one of them.

The House on 3rd Street

When we were getting ready to move into the neighborhood on 3rd Street, across from the Pagett residence, we had a bit of cleaning to perform before we could occupy the house. The floors were covered in dust and dirt, windows were broken, there was a large teddybear hanging from a rope in the living room. The house was vacant for some time before Arlo and Gatha arranged to buy the house on time.

I reflect in how industrious my father was in improving the house. He installed plumbing in the house with things he acquired at auctions. He was still working for Boyd Pagett at CCG&O, and had access to some of the tools he used there. He installed a heating stove that used kerosene. He repaired parts of the foundation with flat rocks. He put perlite against the foundation for insulation.

The attic was full of junk. Yes it was junk.

The yard was unimproved, no sidewalks. Dad put in a bridge to allow him to drive into the yard. Dad drove the delivery truck for CCG&O. He used the truck to deliver kerosene to the house and fill the barrels that stood outside the living room window. Sometimes we were required (mostly Kent and Donnie) to lug 10 gallons of kerosene home in 5-gallon cans and then put it in the barrels with a 90 degree funnel. The funnel had a lip that hooked inside the barrel bung and a frame that kept it upright. We had to lift the cans up over our heads and pour the smelly kerosene into the funnel. As the kerosene left the can it sometimes glugged and splashed. With practice it was possible to put some kerosene in the barrels without getting soaked in kerosene.

The apple tree on the south side of the house was where dad tied Thunder. Thunder was dad's hunting dog. The garden was built around the tree and was a family project (mostly mom). We never went hungry. I still like my green vegetables.

Guess who this is......

This is an interesting photo. Who can tell me who you are seeing here?

Click on the image and you'll see a larger image of the photos, and check out the slide show to the right. Thank you, Larry for your hours of scanning old photographs.

Now that you know who it is, tell us something about them. You can either do it as a comment to this post, or you can create a post of your own.