Happy To Be a Wife and Mom: January 2011

I could not blog on a blog about being a wife and mother with out first blogging about my own mom. And one of the blogs I would like to write about, I can not until I tell you about until I first tell you her story....
so here it is...

Rosella Milliman

FORWARD:

ThiS is about my mother-Rosie. Her name is Rosella, her actual birth name? We really are not sure, but after much research thru the years I believe it is Stella Stirlisky. Mom says that is it. I don’t really know for sure, as she was a foster child, and her foster parents gave her a new name-Rosella.

Mom was born in 1927, or so we believe. She had to have been around 4-5 years old when she went to the orphanage, based on her memory (meaning what and how much she could remember) or so we believe.

The following is the story in her words that she has told me throughout the last 40+ years….

Rosella Veon (milliman)

“My dad was abusive. He use to beat me and burn me.

One day I got on a bus with my sister. I was at my sister’s friends house. I wanted to run away because my dad beat me. The parents of my sister’s friend fed me. They said they had to send me back home. I told them my dad will beat me or burn me. They still sent me home. That night I said “daddy, you know what I did today? I went to school with my sister.”

Rosella Veon (Milliman) while living with her foster family...

"He sat me on the wood stove, he burned me. He was drunk.

I remember there were a lot of children and my mom was holding a baby. They came and took us all and sent us the orphanage in Mishawaka. I have never seen my brothers or sisters again.

It was cold when they took us from our home, and we were very poor, so they wrapped us in the newspapers to keep us warm.”

Back row: Left to right-first two girls, unknown, third girl is Rosella Veon (milliman)
Middle row-unknown
Fron row-unknown

“It was Christmas time. A family came to the orphanage to look for a child to take home for the holidays. I was sitting on the steps when they went into the orphanage. They asked about the little girl on the steps. They took that little girl, it was me. They took me home for the holidays.

They decided to keep me and raised me as a foster child. The woman, my new mom, her name was Mable Veon. The man, my new dad, his name was Harvey Veon. My new name was Rosella Veon, and my ‘new’ birth date was to be February 14^th.

They gave me a good home. They raised other kids too. Other foster kids who were abused in some way by their real parents. My new mom did not believe in abuse. If you needed to be disciplined, she would paddle you, but not abuse you.”

Rosella Veon

“My foster brothers use to pick on me, but I didn’t let them beat me up. I was a tough little girl.

My new dad would tell me “don’t let them bug you kid.”

The boys would try to watch us when we went to the outhouse. They made a peek hole and once when I was sitting there, I heard them giggle so I told my mom and they got into trouble.

One time I played with my dad’s axe, and I cut my toe. I tried to hide it because I didn’t want to get into trouble, but my mom saw it so she cleaned it up and put a bandage on it.

In the winter we would play out on the ice on little Chaplin Lake. I fell in once, through the ice and Don, my foster brother got me out. We use to ice skate on the lake in the winter, and in the summer we would swim at the lake.”

Rosella at graduation

Rosella

“I graduated May 1^st, 1940 from Kosriusko County elementary school in Indiana. I was now ready for high school. I did graduate also from high school.

I worked at the John Deer tractor place for John Jackson.”

David Milliman

“I met a young man, David, from Burr Oak Michigan.”

Left-David Milliman Right-Our Great Grandma Milliman (Davids Grandmother)

Note: from Ireena- Dad was living with his grandmother, Sarah Jane (Pierson) Milliman, who raised him and his sister after their youngest sibling, a brother died at around age 3 months.

A Young David Milliman

His mother was Violet Mae (Bixler) Milliman, his dad- Forrest Lyman Milliman. After Violets death, one week later young Clifford died at age 3 months. They said that his mom died from complications of childbirth, and unknown reason for the little brother. Her family could not afford an autopsy, but it is listed as a cut on her neck also- That same week dad’s father, Forrest left the area, leaving his two children in the care of his mother, Sarah. Some of us who have done some research, believe he might have had ties with the mafia. But as of yet, we are unable to verify that.

Left to right-unknown, unknown, and our great grandmother Milliman

Back row-Left to right, David, all the rest except for the oldest woman in the front row- are unknown
the woman in the front with glasses is Our Great Grandmother (Davids grandmother)

Gram-pa Forrest would return now and then, through the years, but never for a very long period. Mom use to tell me how he would come back to visit; bring a gift for mom and dad but not us children. That would upset mom, so she told him not to come back unless he also accepted us children.

“We dated for a while, my mother believed in a long courtship.”

Rosella in front of Davids car... taken when they were dating/

“We liked to go to dances, square dancing
was one of our favorites."

Rosella

"Sometimes we would go to the movies."

Rosella

"He was a good man, but he did like his cigars, he would smoke them sometimes. But he was a good man.”

Wedding day, Rosella and David

“We were married in1952 at North Winona church of the Brethern in Warsaw Indiana.”

David on the honeymoon...

Rosella feeding a sheep shortly after she was married

Rosella and David, with oldest child Franklin (back) Teresa (between Rosella and David)
and Ireena (being held by David)

"We started our family, our first was a boy, Frank born January 21^st, 1953. Our second was a girl, Teresa, I lost

the next baby after falling down the stairs, then our next

child was a girl, Ireena born June 18^th, 1962.

Our next two children were also girls, Lana, and then Barbara. We also raised a number of foster children”

David -the farmer...

Note: mom once told me over 50 foster children we with us, some just days, and others stayed for years.

The farm home we use to live at on Round Lake road, this is where we lived during
the Palm Sunday Tornado's also....

“We farmed a while at a farm in Bronson Michigan, off of Round Lake road, we called: Ol' Doc Hedgcocks farm."

the signs by the old brick home we called
Ol Doc hedgecocks Farm that Rosie and David farmed....

Left to Right-Forrest Milliman, Our Grampa, and Great Grand ma Milliman, Dad's
Grandmother
and Dad (David) holding Frank his oldest son.

"Later we moved to Middle Colon Road

I also use to grow strawberries and would sell them to the Tastee Freeze restaurant in Colon to make a little extra money. I baked bread and cinnamon rolls and sold those to bring in extra income for our family. Once a month I would cater a meal for the Rotary Club in Burr Oak.”

Note from Ireena: We were poor. We gardened -raising a lot of our own food, canning and freezing it for winter. We saved our seeds (back when that is how you did things with your plants) so I have the skills that many people have no idea about -as to how to properly pick out seeds, and save them. When mom would cook for the rotary club once a month, it would mean that we would have left overs. I think that the men from this group knew that, and always ordered a lot of food. They paid mom for doing this- huge amounts of food. We loved the left over’s from this meal!
Another way that we had meat was fishing. Mom would often take one of us along to fish, in the spring, summer, fall and in the winter on the ice to fish. Each person along, allowed her another pole in the water and 25 more fish to bring home. That fed us. That and pancakes, eggs, bread in milk, cream of wheat, oatmeal, home made bread, (white), and greasy hamburgers....fried and when done cooking, was swimming in grease. Each sunday we would have either a roast beef or chicken. I did not realize how poor we were until I was much older...

One of many Glad fields

“I worked in the glad farms, in the Burr Oak and Bronson area, Michigan"

Rosie in front of the M & M grill in Colon

“I worked , at the M & M Grill in Colon Michigan."

Rosie in front of the Laundry mat

"I also worked at the laundry matt in colon Michigan"

Rosie in front of the Colon school

"...and finally for the Colon Public Schools."

Burr Oak Grange hall

Note from Ireena: Mom was involved for many years with the

Burr oak Grange

and was often a leader of the Junior grange. She was a

leader for the 4-H club in burr Oak Michigan, and was a

leader for the Colon Michigan Girl Scouts. One of the fun

things I remember doing is when we would go to Burr Oak to

the grocery store-called 'bob millers', and I would sometimes

get a treat from him. The store was a small store, with two

isles about 10 feet long each. Just a little country store, with

good fresh meat. Not too much in it, because everyone

raised their own food-or most everyone did. No super

markets...

The Drug Store window as it appears in 2010, the store is no longer open.

Note: Then we would make a stop up at the drug store where Bob root--the pharmacist, would let us try to blow our straw cover up on the shelf up by the ceiling, and we would get a treat if we got it to a certain spot up there. We would have a green river or other, ice cream treat…fun for us. The drug store had a lot of items in it. Then down the street was a store usually called the 5 and dime...each town had one, and they would have everything else that the other two did not have. You also had a feed mill, hardware (which had all of those hard to find things) a post office, gas station and sometimes a lumber yard in each small town.

Rosie

“I use to knit, crochet and sew. I would make animals for

the police and fire departments to give out to children that

were in accidents or having problems. I

usually made about 1000 a year"

Rosie's hands

"Since my stroke, I don’t remember how to knit and crochet, and my hands don’t work right now.”

Rosie years ago showing off a fish she got while one of
her many fishing trips to the channel close to the house...

“I enjoyed mushroom hunting and fishing. I liked to fish in

the summer off of the channel in Colon and also ice fish in

the winter."

Rosie eating her favorite meal in the M & M grill

"Now I enjoy going to church each week, and going out to lunch with my kids. I enjoy eating a toasted cheese sandwich with tomatoes on it, and a dill pickle on the side at the M & M grill. "

Rosie sitting by the road, in a chair that she enjoyed going out to sit
in and watch the cars go by on a summer day...

“I have watched a lot of kids grow up in the town of Colon.”

David Milliman with his 'John Deer"

“I was married to a good man, and when he died, I was very sad. But I am not alone, I have all of my family all around me and I have GOD.”

Rosie liked to remove her teeth then
smile and wink at us like this above!

Right to Left, and also in order of our age:
Frank, Teresa, Ireena, Lana and Barb
At Lana's wedding...

“I pray every day for all of my family.”

Rosie going into the house after sitting outside under the
tree watching the traffic for a while...

Thank you for reading...

Note: From Ireena, all of these things were told to me by my mother or my father.
I do not remember Grampa, just a vague memory, but I do remember Great Grandma (his mother) well. I was afraid of her. She was very old to me, and did not move around much, and wanted us to stay in one spot to play. If we acted up, she would reach out with her cane or a stick and swat us. I think she did that because she could not move very well in the end. I really do not think that she was mean, I think it was just a child's memory and thoughts....as I do not have any memory of her being rough or hateful in anyway.

Dad did not like to talk about his father much, but did. The death of his mother--the things re ported above, were told to me by him, and also some research that I did and articles and county documents that I have acquired. I do believe that my fathers father, played a role in his wifes -my dads mother --death. I also believe that he played a role in the baby brothers death.

the truth will be know someday...

Saturday, January 22, 2011

PLAY DOUGH

Sunday, January 16, 2011

MY MOM

Introductions!

Family