CHAPTER 10

Central Missouri

We bought a farm south of Whiteman Air Force Base--south of Knob Noster--but did not move until the next February (1944). Mother and Dad Bronson stayed the winter with Aunt Florence Andes in Warrensburg. Barbara, now a freshman, stayed with the Nelsons until school was out. Claire Gouldsmith flew down to bring her to our new place. Dad and Mother B. came to live with us until dad found a small house to move into our yard for them.

That April, I attended my first World (General) Conference and stayed with Claire and Margaret.

In December my father died at Puyallup. The body was cremated and the ashes were sent to me as mother's had been. War time and crowded trains and buses plus the coming birth of our 4th child made a trip to the west unwise. We had tried to get Dad to come to Missouri many times but he had refused. He was nearly 84 when he died.

In the early spring of 1945, Burr did some finishing work on Ada's house in Independence. Claudine and the three girls were there. Harold had gone to Seattle, She was not happy there, so Burr brought then to our place. Haroline and Denece went to school with Jack and Joan at Flordonia. Bonnie was a pre-schooler. Claudine was very disturbed and unsettled and things were a bit trying until Harold came home and the Morical family went back to Independence. That was just a week before I went to stay with Aunt Florence. War time and bad roads made a home delivery impossible.

Dick (Richard Burr) was born April 20th. Jack finished 8th grade that spring. Barbara had been going to Leeton High School. No one had told us that the school bus could not come past our place on account of mud roads. She rode a horse as far as the Forrest Sterling home and stabled it there and took the bus from there. Now Barbara as a junior and Jack, a freshman, drove a horse and cart to the Sterling's and continued to ride the bus to Leeton. During the winter of 1946, we sold the farm and in March moved to a farm north of Warrensburg. Barbara stayed with the Swisher family until school was out, coming home week-ends.

Jack enrolled in College High and Joan at Walker. That fall Barbara and Jack both enrolled at College High. Barbara graduated valedictorian of her class and won a scholarship to Warrensburg College. She had also been in the Senior Class Play and had her art work used as cover of program for the school concert.

She was given her engagement ring from L.G. Hutchinson the night of her graduation. She went to summer school and started teaching a country school that fall. She and L.G. were married on November 26, 1947 in the Market Street Church in Warrensburg. The R.L.D.S. were in the process of buying the building and this was the first time the congregation had used the church.

Before we left the Ozarks, Burr had been ordained an elder and had served the little congregation in the Bell community as pastor until we moved away. Now under the Stake President, Ward Hougas, Burr was ordained a High Priest and placed on the High Council.

In August 1948, I went with Claire when he took Dad and Mother Bronson to visit Hile and Helen in Helena, Montana. We flew from the Independence airport in Claire's small plane, taking about eight hours. From there, we flew to Spy Hill. They flew home but I stayed with Aunt Addie Carter and with John and Ella Clarke for a two-week visit with relatives. It was the first time I had been back since we left in 1922. I came home by train to Winnipeg and by bus to Warrensburg.