CHAPTER 13

Retirement

In July of 1970, Burr retired from Andes and Roberts after 18 years of work there. That August, we picked up Jim at Steven's Point and went east and north to Canada and then took a little train to James Bay, Ontario. We stopped at Ottawa and Perce on Gaspe and on to Maine where we attended the reunion of the church at Winniaugueamack. We saw Niagara Falls and visited the areas in lower Ontario where my father and mother had been born and raised.

Later that summer, Barbara went with us to Helena to visit Hiel who was in the hospital. He died shortly after. We went on up into Canada to Spy Hill and stopped at Andes, Montana on our way home.

June 1971 found us again in "Mini", headed for Alaska. We drove thru western Canada and Yukon and in Alaska, as far north as Fairbanks. We came home by way of the Inland Passage to Prince Rupert, B.C., thru Jasper and Banff National Parks. The trip took seven weeks.

In spring of 1972, we were in Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado, at National Parks and monuments. In the fall we went east to Washington D.C. and drove the Blue Ridge. We visited Williamsburg and came home thru the smokey Mountains.

In November, we bought a mobile home--having sold the farm to T.J. Stack--and had it set near Barbara's house. We moved some things but did not leave Pittsville until after Christmas.

Thru 1973, we were busy getting settled in the new mobile home and getting a yard and garden established. Burr served as pastor of the Harrisonville Congregation and for nearly a year, we attended church there.

In February of 1974, Dick and Patty were told that a baby girl, born on December 31, was available for adoption from Viet Nam. She came by plane to Kansas City on June 5th and was named Sara Beth.

We went with Elsie and Wendell Townsend to Estes Park, Colorado for the Andes family reunion. Eight of the children of Sam and Florence Andes with part of their families were there. A week was spent in a mountain lodge.

In January 1975, we went on a ReLaDaSa tour for two weeks. We flew to Mexico City and took the bus to Merida to fly home. We visited many of the ancient ruins and beautiful sights. Stele and Verda Bryant and Charles Hield were good guides to understanding what we saw. That summer we made our second trip to Alaska in "Mini", going over as many different routes as possible from our first trip. This time we flew from Fairbanks to Barrow, an indian village on the Arctic ocean--A great trip that took us from home for eight weeks.

A real surprise party was arranged by our children and grandchildren for my birthday on January 8, 1977, when I reached seventy. In spite of snow and cold, they came for pot luck and brought a gift of seventy dollars in two dollar bills. In the spring, we made our second trip to Florida by way of New Orleans. We visited Marion and Lottie with Dick and De (Marion's daughter) and did some sight seeing. Later, we went fishing with Adolph and Dorothy Roberts and friends to Minnesota.

Dick and Patty were separated in February and in the fall, were divorced. Dick moved to Independence and Patty stayed at the house in Lee's Summit until the final papers were completed

In October, we took the Amtrak train to New York City for a five-day tour of the city with Connie Mayo and enjoyed it very much.

At Christmas that year, the children gave us a gift of a bank draft drawn on the Bank of the Missouri River for a two-week vacation in Hawaii.

On March 17, 1978, Dick and Theresa Kobe were married. Shortly after, the family gathered for our golden wedding Anniversary which was the 25th. All the children and their spouses were with us to have pictures made and to have dinner in Warrensburg. The next day, Easter Sunday, we all went to Clinton for church. Barbara and Hale McCord, the pastor, had arranged to have Jack sing following the sermon as it had been done fifty years ago. At the close of the service, we were ushered out with the ministers to find a lovely reception table with cake, punch, guest book and all. Then home to Barbara's for dinner and picture-taking by Jean Cox. It was truly a wonderful day. I even received a diamond ring and Burr received a wedding band that we could not afford fifty years ago.

That fall, Shirley Witt went with us to as far west as Zion National Park, stopping at parks and points of interest going and coming back. We were gone for two weeks, traveling in the "Mini".

We reserved our Hawaii trip until the spring of 1977 when the ReLaDaSa tour was going there. We flew from Independence to Los Angeles and on to Honolulu. We spent one week there and another week visiting three other islands. While in Honolulu, we visited with Tssuano Miyamoto and his wife Leila whom we had known in Puyallup, Washington. We flew back to Los Angeles where we spent a week with Bill and Alyce Cavanaugh and went to see Milla and Hunter Ferguson in Vista, California. We spent another week with Claire and Dorothy Gouldsrnith on the high desert at Ora Grande.

On January 6, 1979, Adam Joseph Bronson had been born, ten weeks premature and was closely watched for several weeks before being taken hone. He has since grown into a lively little boy.

In September, we made another trip to Canada, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. The fall foliage was very beautiful.

April 1980 found us on Grand Cayman Island. We stayed in Wilmer and Alma Andes's big beach house. Thirteen family and friends made the trip--some for one week and the rest of us for two weeks. We met with the Saints there two Sundays, did a lot of swimming and sight seeing, and had a grand time.

On September 28, Jessica Rae Bronson was born a little premature. She is now an active little girl.

Again in 1981, we went with ReLaDaSa on a fall foliage tour thru eastern Canada and U.S.A. with Stele and Verda Bryant. This time, we got into the big cities we had missed before--like Montreal, Portland, Maine, Boston, New York City, and Philadelphia. It was a two-week trip, and very interesting, but tiring.

Thru the fourteen years that Jack, Carol and family have lived in Wisconsin, we have made quite a few trips there. Two different years, we spent a week with them at their church reunion, made a trip or two to Whitewater and several more to Mukwonago where they now live.

I am sure our children and grandchildren who read this, will remember many things that I have forgotten or that have just escaped my mind as I have been writing this.

Our church has been very important to us and we have served in many capacities. Burr was ordained an elder before we left the Ozarks. In 1948, he was ordained a high priest and has served for many years on the stake High Council. He served as pastor of Holden for several years. He also served at Harrisonville. As his wife, I have been involved. He also has served as Church School Director, Teacher, Bishops Agent, and Youth Leader.

I have helped with piano and organ since our first branch was organized in Puyallup. I also taught children and adult classes in church school, directed Children's Department, was Church School and Vacation Church School Director, and Women's Department Leader, and was Book Steward at Holden for over fifteen years. We have both served a number of times as delegates to World Conference. We took the family to reunions whenever possible and sent them to Youth Camps when we could. I belonged to the Extension Club at Pittsville and was president for a number of years. I was also Leader or project Leader for several years for 4-H.

Some other names and events that have been missed, need to be mentioned here.

Of the eleven grandchildren, five have married: Kathy Hutchinson to Bobby Gene Loyd, Beverly Hutchinson to Robert Paxton, Mark Hutchinson to Sandy D'Angelo, Jim Bronson to Marianne Janick, and Debra Cox to Tim Johnson. The great grandchildren are: Dwight and Luke Loyd, Kimberly and Michael Paxton, and Benjamin Johnson. This brings our family to number thirty-one, and when all of us get together, it is a happy, interesting group that we are proud of and love very much.

Now, near the end of 1982, I look back over seventy-five years of a busy and interesting life. It has been a great time in history to have been alive. I have seen a few hard times but many more of joy and satisfaction. I feel myself to have been greatly blessed.

I now look forward to many more years with my dear husband and wonderful family.

May God bless you all,

Margaret (Peg) Bronson