Hello Everyone, June 2001
Please consider this our “Late June—Early July” letter. We’re sending this letter a little early because WE HAVE NEWS AND INFORMATION OF VITAL IMPORTANCE for those of you who will find it necessary to make motel reservations. St. Paul’s High School has scheduled Parent Orientation for the same weekend our Celebration is to take place. Emma, the site of the Country Club where our gathering is scheduled to take place, is only about 3 miles from Concordia. Both you and the parents delivering students to St. Paul’s will be trying to stay in the same motels. Make your reservations now—most of them have liberal cancellation privileges.
Jane is becoming a little fidgety; please send her your money for the meals. She is picking up the check, but she doesn’t really want to pay for your meal. I would like to emphasize that she also has a liberal cancellation policy. Send her your check now, and if for some reason you and your family will be unable to attend, and if you have the information to her by July 20, 2001, she will refund your money. You can’t beat that with a stick. Sooo, lets make her feel better: send her some money. Remember, the cost is $8.50 per person for anyone more than eight years old; age 3 to 8 = $4.25; children 2 and under = free. These prices include tax. Meals purchased after July 20th will cost $9.95 plus tax. If you plan to attend, send her some money now.
Jane also needs to know how many will be playing golf. Remember the greens fees are a low $14.00 per person. She needs the numbers and the money by no later than July 14th. Also she needs to know how many will be planning on swimming. The fee to swim is $3.00, however that will not need to be paid until the day of the Celebration in case inclement weather prevents the use of the swimming pool.
Have you checked the family web site lately? Did you see all the items that will be sold to the highest bidder? We have our own logo now—isn’t that great? I hope that somehow Jane will be able to place that logo at the top of this letter. I’ll let you in on a little secret: I sit here at my house in Gladstone, Mo., and write the letter and transmit the letter via e-mail to her house in Raymore, Mo. Being a person who is bordering on “old age”, this just blows my mind.
Some of you have indicated a desire to visit the farm where Grandpa Jacob and Grandma Margaretha lived when they were raising their family. This is the same house in which Jane and I (and the rest of our siblings) spent some of our formative years. The current owner has up-graded much of the poorer ground by terracing it and has removed most of the fences so that it can be used as cropland. The original house burned sometime during the mid-nineteen hundreds. Since the farm is mostly used as cropland he had no need for the other buildings. Ravages of time have taken its toll. Insects and high winds have pretty much demolished them.
Unless you grew up there and have a nostalgic interest, there is really not much to see. The current owner said that he has to strictly enforce a “no visitor” policy because of his liability and the fact that there has been some vandalism and he leases the land to hunters in the area. Please join us in respecting his right to privacy.
Look at the attached Business Meeting Agenda. Give each of the items some thought so that you will be prepared to offer your comments during the meeting that will be held shortly after the meal. Also, decide how much the items being offered for sale will be worth to you. How would you like to have that old document bearing the original signature of Grandpa J. hanging on your wall—what a conversation piece? If you don’t have a computer, it’s worth the effort to find one and look at it.
Jane and I started about 19 months ago (Joyce joined us later) with the intent to revive the family. We hope that we have sparked some interest in at least some of you. Joyce wishes to continue—Jane and I have sort of run out of words. Item #6 on the meeting agenda is very important. Jane is overworked and I think I can contribute in other ways. It has been a pleasure helping to bring you together; but the real thanks should go to Jane and Joyce for their enduring efforts. So now it’s time for me to sign off. I’ll see you at the celebration.
Cousin Dick Bredehoeft
Now for the family news:
First of all, Dick and I were saddened by the death of the husband of our cousin, Elberta “Bert” Lorenz. Roy, known to all of his family and friends as “Bud”, passed away from cancer on April 17th. We want to extend our sympathies to Bert, and sons Rodney, Doug, and Greg and their families. Bert is the daughter of Nora Schroeder and granddaughter of Jacob and Margaretha.
I want to say a Big Congratulations to all the Bredehoeft descendants who are graduating this year. Some of you will or have graduated from High School and may go to college or to other life choices. Some of you will or have graduated from college with Bachelor’s Degrees or Master’s Degrees. Some of you will have finished other educational choices and will go on to other stages of education or life. To all of you WELL DONE!
Lance Flandermeyer, Gary and Barbara’s son, has just moved to Orlando, FL to attend Full Sail, a media/entertainment school. He is going into the digital media field.
Liesl, daughter of Merle Flandermeyer went with her High School Band to London and Paris! That is pretty special for a teenager.
And we have some new babies!! Benjamin Peter Bredehoeft arrived on April 30, 2001. He is the son of Steven and Monica Bredehoeft, grandson of Edward, from the tribe of Paul and joins his older sister, Hannah.
Tad Alan Deatherage arrived on May 15, 2001. He is the son of Alan and Nancy Deatherage, grandson of Ruth Deatherage from the tribe of Ralph.
Congratulations to the parents. If there are other new descendants please let me know so that I can add them to the family tree information.
Congratulations also to Jeff and Cheryl Bredehoeft who were married on April 20, 2001. If there are other newlyweds please let me know about that also.
I hope to have a chart type family tree ready to display at the Celebration.
Feier Familie Bredehöft – Bredehoeft Family Celebration -- 2001
Here are some of the auction items that will be available for your bidding.
The first is a very important item. It is:
INTENT TO BECOME CITIZEN—8 ¼ X 14 inch original document that is mounted on dark blue museum mat board and housed in a pewter colored frame under glass, which will screen out ultraviolet rays. It bears the original signature of Grandpa Jacob – the only such known signature in existence. The frame’s outside dimensions are 17 ½ x 21 ½ inches. Dick Bredehoeft, his grandson, has donated this item. His request is that this museum piece never be hung in direct sunlight or brightly lit room. This item is ready to hang.
DOLL CRADLE—The donor, who wishes to remain anonymous, handcrafted this cradle using clear pine lumber and gave it a walnut finish. This is an item your little one will treasure for years to come, and one which certainly will become a family heirloom. Buy now and give it to her at Christmas time. Just a thought!
SHELVES—These shelves, measuring 4 x 20 inches, were constructed using genuine American walnut. They have been finished with three coats of hand-rubbed tung oil and two coats of wax. This finish should last for years. The backs of these shelves have keyhole slots that make for easy hanging. Use this shelf (or both of them) to display your favorite pictures or mementos.
WOOD INLAY PLAQUES—These are handcrafted of many small pieces of different kinds of wood by Burnell Focks, husband of Vernal Steinkuehler Focks. These are ready to hang along with your other collectibles.
Remember the more items there are at the silent auction, the more fun it will be. Items need not be handcrafted items only. If you have a business and wish to donate a piece of merchandise, that would be a good auction item. All proceeds go into the Bredehoeft Family Treasury for subsequent Celebrations.
As Dick said at the beginning of this letter, it is important to make your lodging reservations quickly. Hopefully we will flood the area with Bredehoeft descendants from all over the country.
Thanks to Keith Bredehoeft who told us about another RV park which is at the intersection of Interstate 70 and Highway 13 at the Higginsville Junction. That address is 19912 Old Highway 40, Higginsville, MO 64037; phone number is (660) 584-2869.
Joyce has gotten wonderful response to the request for recipes. She has heard from many of the family. Some of them have been kind enough to make copies of their grandparent’s recipe books in the original handwriting and sent them for inclusion in the first ever TRIBES OF BREDEHOEFT COOK BOOK.
This will be something that you will want to purchase at the Celebration. Or you can place orders for more to be sent to you after the Celebration. Hey, Moms, wouldn’t this make a great Christmas gift for your sons and daughters, sons-in-law, daughters-in-law, or grandchildren. All profits from these cook books will go to the Bredehoeft Family Treasury.
Joyce is making name tags for all the attendees. She will print these up in advance from the list of those who have registered. As we stated previously in one of our letters, if you can not spend the whole day with us because of other commitments or for health reasons, and if you can not be there to eat with us but can spend sometime either before or after the meal, please do come. Joyce would like for all those who have not registered, but who will be coming for just a part of the day, to please send in your registration either by mail or via the web site so that she can get the name tags printed in advance. She is going to be making a really nice name tag that you can keep as a memento of the Celebration. Just indicate on your registration that you will be unable to stay or be there for the dinner. I think she has some fears that she will be spending more time making last minute name tags when she would like to be meeting all of the family.
PROPOSED PROGRAM OF EVENTS
The committee will be there by 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, August 11, 2001.
You may spend the morning playing golf, swimming, or just getting to know each other.
There will be a family tree chart to look at and many pictures to see. (Some of the family are bringing family photo albums. I would encourage all of you to bring in your photos, including any pictures you may have of your grandparents.)
There will be maps available if you would like to make a visit to the beautiful little cemetery at Flora Community where Grandpa Jacob and Grandma Margaretha are buried.
Bidding on the auction items will begin in the morning. The silent auction will end at 2:00 p.m.
You will have time to look over the other items on the craft tables and make purchases.
The buffet dinner will be served from 11:00 until 1:00, after which the Family Business Meeting will begin at 1:30.
Awards and prizes will be given at various times during the day.
The rest of the day can be spent visiting, swimming, and just relaxing.
Sharon Dittmer has volunteered to make a Digital Video of the Celebration, so be sure to gather your fellow tribe members at some point so that she can get some good family pictures.
See you at the Celebration.
Cousin Jane Schroer
BUSINESS MEETING AGENDA
Feier Familie Bredehöft – Bredehoeft Family Celebration
2001
1. Do you wish to continue these celebrations? How often? You will probably be able to answer these questions better by the time the meeting comes to order. Give it some thought after having read some of the other items on the agenda.
2. Jane Schroer and Joyce Kuhl have underwritten all the costs, thus far, of promoting the celebration. It is unknown whether our fund raising endeavors will sustain the cost of keeping it going. How would you like to fund future celebrations if silent auctions, cookbook sales, etc. do not keep pace with the costs? How do you feel about a membership fee?
3. The cost of paper and postage, and the cost of the web site are, by far, the two most expensive items the new committee members will have to contend with. We could eliminate the postage and paper costs, as well as the labor involved in preparing the mailings if we could communicate entirely through the electronic media – e-mail and the web site. Question: can each tribe appoint a communications handler? He or she would be responsible for forwarding all electronic mail received from the committee to all families in his tribe. Sounds good to me—will it work?
4. The cost of the web site is something Joyce will continue to pay for, she says. I personally feel the cost should be borne by the family fund. Her feelings right now are that she will consider it a gift to the family.
5. We think that quite a number of us living in Central Missouri would not mind traveling to some other location for our next celebration. What place would be acceptable? Any place where we find a fairly large concentration of families. They also should be families who are interested in continuing a tradition of this nature. You may wish to check the web site’s page “Who’s Coming” to help you make a decision on this matter.
6. Think about your nominations for new committee members. Joyce and Jane have given it their all these two past years—both physically and financially. Joyce has volunteered to continue as web servant. Jane will continue maintenance of family statistics as such since she has this information in her Family Tree software on her computer. (This would require that the family continue to provide information about births, deaths, and marriages so that she could keep it up to date.) Jane’s other commitments in the field of real estate, and the condition of my health make it impossible for us to continue as committee members. Possibly this should be handled in a local tribe caucus.