Velda

I've never been much for genealogy research and family tree compilation, but lately a few things have occurred to me about my ancestors.  

I've always been annoyed when a newspaper article states Name Comma Age, as if the "Comma Age" says everything about a person.  But, it really does say a lot.  When we look at what we did at a certain age, it can soften judgements of one another, by asking "what would I have said at that age?".  Gary A. Guetzlaff, 21 was quite a different person from Gary A. Guetzlaff, 72. 

And so, I started collecting data on an Excel, finding every relative in sight, and using FindAGrave.com and other sources to turn up names and dates of long-lost relatives, Then the data is collected into a master time line.  

And then there was my cousin, Bob Pagel, who with his wife Sue dug up some old photos and information about the family.  Couldn't have proceeded without that.  And the photos are priceless. 

An example of what I'm working on is my grandpa's first marriage.  

Velda Hunsicker

Velda was born in Hortonville, Wisconsin. Hortonville was a booming town at the time.  Population of Hortonville had doubled in the ten years leading up to Velda's birth.   Her father was 28, and her mother was 24.  Velda was the second child; her sister was 2 years old at the time. 

In another part of Hortonville, Lionel Kuhn was born when Velda was four.  Since the Hunsickers and the Kuhns both belonged to the same church (Bethlehem Lutheran), one could almost assume that Velda and Lionel grew up together. 

When Velda was 8, her father, 36, died, leaving Clara, his wife, a widow at the age of 32.

Velda was 25 when she married Lionel, who was 21. Velda's mother was 49 at the time. 

After only 8 years of marriage, Velda was hospitalized for surgery on August 24, 1929. Various reports say it was childbirth-related.   Eight days later, she died at the age of 33.  Her husband Lionel was 29 years old.      

Velda's funeral took place at the Bethlehem Lutheran Church, and she was buried at the Lutheran Cemetery in Hortonville.

 

Lionel and Velda wedding in 1921

Lionel Kuhn and Velda Hunsicker, 1921

Velda Hunsicker and Lionel Kuhn, 1921

Photos courtesy of Bob and Sue Pagel.

King of Glory service

https://youtu.be/8WKUIdJf9vg

https://youtu.be/8WKUIdJf9vg

THANKSGIVING ON KK

Back in 1995, the Music on KK weekly concert series began an annual tradition:  The Music on KK Thanksgiving Show.   We featured various traditional, secular, sacred, and some just plain fun music and readings appropriate for the Thanksgiving season.  At the time, merchants were all trying to out-shout one another, and move their Black Friday shopping event first to Thursday, then to Wednesday, and finally to meaninglessness.  Thanksgiving was left behind as shoppers stampeded to the shopping centers, so our Thanksgiving show was for the rest of you. 

And, now we have the "cancel-everything and hide at home" era.  Well, we made this 12-minute mini-variety show as a way of saying "Hello, in there!  Happy Thanksgiving".

Thanks to Joyce, Fred, and Tiara for all their devoted hard work.  And thanks to Norm Lorenz for his priceless production advice. And thank you to all of our listeners - that's you!

Play Music on the Porch Day

... so the Bay View Compass has always been a reliable guide on the goings-on in the imaginary village of Bay View,  Wisconsin.  And in the August 2020 issue, the front page featured an article about Play Music on Your Porch Day.  This August 29, 2020 event involved playing music on your front porch instead of the other things people are doing nowadays, so it sounded like a good idea to me.  We had music, and we sort of had a porch out in front of the studio, and we gave it a go. 

With the help of Joyce (my wife), and Tiara Lukiesh, (one of my piano students), we put together a fun one-hour program of music, a little of everything - Beethoven, Baby Boomer favorites, Beatles, jazz, tangos, polkas and of course some of our favorite Basement Music. The video below is a sampling of our experience.  We had fun, got lots of good honks and thumbs up from passing cars, and even some villagers standing around having fun with us. The people on the Harleys couldn't hear us, but their contributions added a certain Milwaukee authenticity to the proceedings. Enjoy!

Na Na Na Na-Na-Na-Na

This song reminds me of all the late summers of days past.  Memories where the sun is always shining.  Coming of age in the turbulent late 1960s, my most vivid memory of this song is a sun-filled Saturday afternoon, our church youth group was meeting recreationally at a nearby Wisconsin state park.  We gathered into groups of about five or six, and crammed into the cars of the youth leaders.  Looking back, I later realized that these "adult role models" we looked on as leaders were actually only two or three years older than us.  So, we all had a lot in common.  I remember careening down country roads with all the windows open, and I'm pretty sure we were a bit above the speed limit.  And cranked up on the most powerful car radio I had ever heard, were the Beatles, singing "Hey Jude".   Na Na Na Na-Na-Na-Na, Na-Na-Na-Na  Hey Jude! 

Meanwhile back here  in the 21st Century, fifty-some years later, the Beatles remain as a primary musical influence of young people.  It was a most pleasant surprise to discover that one of my piano students had not only become familiar with the Beatles heritage, but had also been playing saxophone since high school.  How fortuitous!  Thanks, Tiara! And Joyce, my beloved wife, who just loves the Beatles (this is either an exaggeration or a dog-gone lie.) took up the tambourine to give us that 1960s vibe.  Far Out!

Clearing Skies and Drying Eyes

Here's a song from 1971 written in all sincerity by Bruce Johnson, who was simply weary of the "New Normal" of the late sixties. You know, the endless violent protests for peace, the militant and violent and  unreasonably demanding mobs, the destruction of patriotic symbols and institutions. You know . . . the New Normal of 1970.

I dutifully follow all the demands of the current New Fascists, who are oh so attentive to my "needs". "You NEED to put on your face mask"  "You NEED to use the drive-in bank, because the lobby is only open by appointment"  "Wear a mask"  "Don't wear a mask"  "You need to wait outside" "Religious meetings are cancelled" "All fun is cancelled" "We're all in this together, but we hate you for your wrong opinions".

So, with Bruce Johnson, and with anyone else who has had enough:  Let's escape for a few momentse to a world much more simple, a world of joy and love.  I'm sure that the millennials will still be here, to see to our "Needs" when we get back.

Dies Lied ist mein Leben (piazzola)

Here's a haunting tango from Argentinian composer Astor Piazzola. The tango is still  an essential part of Argentina life, both as a dance, and an imbuement of reverence.

"There's a saying that tango is a 'sad thought danced.' But that's only part of it. It's touching the sadness in you, the pain, yes--but also the joy, the humor, the everything life has. It's touching everything.”― Jennifer Vandever

This video started out as a chord exercise in one of our piano lessons, but Miss T did so well on it, I couldn't resist the possibility of performing it on accordion with her on piano.  Appreciate her help and cooperation in making this video possible.  Can you believe she's been studying piano for less than a year?