Family
Normally, on this first day of Summer, I would be thinking about the days coming up, the precious few days when I finally get to feel the warmth that doesn’t come from being wrapped in a blanket or wearing a coat. Yes, Summer can be sweltering, and I can find myself wishing for a little cooler temperature, but I don’t want it to be much cooler. I am a summer person. I like heat. I like wearing shorts and sandals, rather than sweaters and coats.
This year is a rather odd year…not that we haven’t had years of unusual weather…and no, I don’t buy into the whole global warming, climate change, or whatever they are calling it these days. Weather had natural patterns that have existed since time began, and this is nothing new. Nevertheless, when we have one of those years of an unusually cold Spring, and unusually harsh Winter, and somehow a fairly normal Fall, I find myself waiting for normalcy, impatiently!!
This has been one of those years, and I’m ready for the end of Spring. Our Winter was harsh, with lots of snow and this Spring has been full of thunderstorms and pouring rain…to the point of flash flooding and lots of warnings for lightning, hail, tornadoes, and floods. Those things aren’t all that unusual, with the possible exception of the floods, but the thing I really noticed was the cold temperatures. Normally as we approach the end of June, I am wearing shorts and t-shirts when I go out for my early morning walk. This year, however, I have been wearing pants and a jacket to keep me warm. Of course, by the time I am almost finished, I’m warm enough to go without a jacket…except for the clouds. Clouds just keep things cooler.
As I was walking these past few mornings, I thought about just how much cooler it had been this Spring, and I hoped that as the Summer arrived, it would finally begin to warm up. I also thought about another Summer about 20 years ago or so. The Spring had been cold that year too, and Summer hadn’t improved much. In fact, it was the coldest Summer I had ever remembered. Infact, it was as if Summer never arrived that year. That makes for the feeling of a long cold Winter, even though there were some warm days. The good thing about the colder rainy weather, however, was that the grass, and several other things grew better that they had in years. I guess that’s a plus, but if you don’t mind, I’ll take the warmer weather, with the leaves on the trees and the deer by the trail. Those things make my whole day.
As the United States was being settled, a number of wars were fought between the Native Americans and the White Man. So much anger and so many hard feelings had passed between the two groups that it seemed like peace could never be achieved. Finally, in an attempt to convince local Native Americans to make peace with the United States, the Jesuit missionary Pierre-Jean De Smet met with the Sioux leader Sitting Bull in what is present-day Montana. He saw an urgent need to make peace and decided to go for it.
De Smet was a native of Belgium, who came to the United States in 1821 at the age of 20. Once in the states, he became a novice of the Jesuit order in Maryland. De Smet was ordained in Saint Louis, and as a priest, decided to be a missionary to the Native Americans of the Far West. It was an ambitious goal, but in 1838, he was sent to evangelize the Potawatomi villages near present-day Council Bluffs, Iowa. De Smet met a delegation of Flathead Indians there. The Indians had come east looking for a “black robe” whom they hoped might be able to aid their tribe. Of course, a “black robe” would be a priest, and since De Smet was indeed a priest, they had found what they were looking for. De Smet worked with the Flathead Indians several times during the 1840s in present-day western Montana. While there, he established a mission and actually secured a peace treaty with the Blackfeet, who had previously been the irreconcilable enemy of the Flathead.
His hard work earned De Smet a reputation as a white man who could be trusted to negotiate disputes between Native Americans and the US government, which was not something that very many people could boast. The disputes between the Indians and the US government became fairly commonplace in the West during the 1860s. The Plains Indians, like the Sioux and Cheyenne resisted the growing flood of white settlers invading their territories and killing their game animals. As the conflicts continued, the US government began to demand 
that all the Plains Indians be relocated to reservations, another source of contention. The leaders in the American government and military had hoped that the relocation could be achieved through negotiations, but in the absence of a peaceful relocation, they were perfectly willing to use violence to force the local Native Americans to comply. It was futile to fight the change, but anyone can see why the Native Americans would try. They didn’t want to be forced to stay in just one area and to be told what they could and could not do…and in reality, the reservations have not proven to be the best thing for either side. Nevertheless, that is where we are today, and in many ways, the situation hasn’t improved much, except there aren’t Indian wars, so I guess that is a good thing. The disputes are handled differently now, but the feeling of a nation inside a nation is one that really isn’t perfect. Still, the Indian Nation does exist inside the United States, and they do have jurisdiction in their own territory, and I don’t suppose the feeling of separation will ever change.
I always greet Father’s Day with mixed emotions. I don’t have my dad, Allen Spencer or my father-in-law, Walt Schulenberg with me anymore, so there is always a little bit of sadness too, because I miss them both so much. They were both so important to me…they still are, but now they are in Heaven, and in my future. Nevertheless, on this and every day, I think of them lovingly, because they were so influential in my life. God blessed me, my husband, and siblings with two of the greatest dads ever. Both were gentle souls, soft spoken and kind, and both were hard workers. Sometimes, the similarities surprised me, but I always knew that I was loved and valued.
When I met and married my husband, Bob Schulenberg, God gave me a perfect soulmate. Bob took after his dad is so many ways, not the least of which, was his work ethic. They had spent countless hours together working on cars and other projects around his dad and mom’s place. They probably spent just as much time 
working on our stuff too. Bob was a “girl-dad” and a very good one. Our girls had him wrapped around their little pinky, and he was just fine with that. He was like his dad in so many ways, and that soft heartedness followed him into fatherhood. The girls could have gotten away with just about anything, because like his dad, Bob was a softie.
Now our girls are both married to wonderful men, Kevin Petersen and Travis Royce, and we consider ourselves very blessed to have both of these wonderful sons-in-law in our lives too. It is so great to be able to give your daughter in marriage, knowing that the man she is marrying is going to treat her well, provide for her, and take care of her. The years have brought many changes into our girls’ lives, and their husbands have been beside 
them all the way. they have given us a beautiful granddaughter, and three handsome grandsons, who have all blessed our lives greatly. And now, two of our grandsons are dads too. Chris (Karen) Petersen and Josh (Athena Salazar, soon to be Petersen) Petersen. The next generation of babies have brought us a great granddaughter, Cambree Petersen, two grandsons, Caysen Petersen and Justin Petersen, and two more grandsons on the way. Life is good!! Happy Fathers’ Day to all of the dads in my life, and to all of the other dads out there. Have a wonderful day and know that you are loved and appreciated very much!!
While flight remains one of the safest forms of travel, there is always the possibility of a malfunction that can have devastating effects. In the case of United Airlines Flight 624, a Douglas DC-6 airliner, registration NC37506, was a scheduled passenger flight from San Diego, California to New York City. Very likely, these passengers had taken this exact same flight a number of times, and possibly on this exact same plane. Nevertheless, this flight was about to be very different…and that difference was going to have devastating effects on the plane and on the outcome of this flight.
Flight 624 took off from Lindbergh Field, in what appeared to be a normal flight. The flight made its first scheduled stop at Los Angeles Airport, followed by a normal scheduled stop at Chicago Municipal Airport. Everything was normal for both stops. In fact, the 
whole flight proceeded normally until they began their descent into New York’s LaGuardia Airport. They began their descent over Pennsylvania, and suddenly, they had a warning alarm telling them of a fire in the cargo hold. The crew responded to what was later determined to be a false signal of a fire in the front cargo hold by releasing CO2. Proper operating procedure called for opening the cabin pressure relief valves prior to discharging the CO2 bottles, to allow for venting of the CO2 gas buildup in the cabin and cockpit. There was no evidence found of the crew opening the relief valves. Either they forgot or it malfunctioned (which didn’t appear to be the case). As a result, the released CO2 gas seeped back into the cockpit from the front cargo hold and apparently 
partially incapacitated the flight crew. It would be like being in a closed-up garage and leaving your car running. The decision-making process of the crew became compromised. As things got worse, the crew put the aircraft into an emergency descent, miscalculating their altitude, and as the plane descended lower than it should have, it hit a high-voltage power line and burst into flames. The plane then smashed through the trees of a wooded hillside about five miles from Mount Carmel, Pennsylvania, a small town 135 miles from Philadelphia, at 1:41pm EDT on June 17, 1948. When the four-engined, propeller-driven airplane crashed, it resulted in the deaths of all four crew members and 39 passengers on board.
During World War II, and through the Vietnam War, the United States government was facing a situation with the US dollar that was different from prior years. It’s not something we really think about much, but it had to do with the fact that the countries the US Military was in were unsure of how their money was going to play out if they were one of the countries that fell. The dollar was stable, so they were happy to take payment in the US dollar over their own currency. In fact, the local civilians often accepted payment in dollars for less than the accepted conversion rates, meaning that they lost money in the deal. Dollars became more favorable to hold, which further inflated the local currencies, defeating plans to stabilize local economies. On top of that, troops were being paid in dollars, which they could 
convert in unlimited amounts to the local currency with merchants at the floating (black market) conversion rate, which was much more than the government fixed conversion rate. It was rather a great money-making proposition, but really wasn’t ethical. This conversion rate imbalance allowed the servicemen to profit from the more favorable exchange rate.
While anyone could understand how people would want to make money if they can, it was really going to be damaging to the local economy in the end. The MPCs were designed to stop the unfair conversion rate of currency. The scrip (MOCs) was changed out periodically, to avoid hoarding. Once they came out with a new version of scrip, the prior version became worthless. Another way they were supposed to eliminate the problem was that MPCs were only allowed to be used by military personnel in military facilities and approved locations. As a safeguard, if the MPCs 
were converted to local currency, they were not allowed to be reconverted to MPCs, so the plan was useless. US MPCs were in use from 1946-1973 and were used in all overseas military locations.
I was actually watching an episode of MASH this morning about this very thing. The men were buying up the old scrip from people who couldn’t get to the exchange. Of course, they bought it for less than its value, planning to cash in when they turned it in for its face value. The solution for that problem was that the military personnel were restricted to the base on C-Days…currency exchange days. I don’t know how much of the fraudulent exchanges were stopped in this way, but it might have stopped some.
My little grandnephew, Jace Swan has been having an exciting year this year. After being an only child for all of his life, he finally got a baby brother eleven months ago, and he couldn’t be happier. Jace is such a big help to his parents, Sierah Martin and Riley Birky. And he life’s his brother, Ryder Birky to infinity and beyond. Jace has been helping to teach Ryder things, like walking, which Ryder has mastered, with the help of his brother and the motivation to follow his brother around, haha!!
Jace graduated from pre-school a few days ago, and now he is 
having his last summer as a pre-school kid, because Kindergarten is on the horizon for him. He is such a smart boy, and I know that her will be an amazing student. He’s so smart, and I know he will do great in Kindergarten…and beyond. And since he knows how to “teach” his brother things, I know he will be great at learning his school lessons too.
Jace is such a sweet boy. Everyone loves him and he loves people too. Jace loves playing outside and playing video 
games…what kid doesn’t these days, but that doesn’t consume all of his time, because he just loves his little brother. Jace loves to swing with Ryder, make him laugh. They are just simply best buddies!! Much has changed for Jace, and he is totally enjoying all the new and exciting aspects of his life. Today is Jace’s 5th birthday Happy birthday Jace!! Have a great day!! We love you!!
After working for the City of Casper since high school, my grandnephew, James Renville decided that it was time for a change. So, he went to work for Red-D-Arc Welderentals. I didn’t know what kind of a company this was, but suspected that it had to do with welding. So, I looked it up and found out that Red-D-Arc Welderentals is an Airgas company that rents and leases welders, welding positioners, welding-related equipment, and electric power generators…anywhere in the world. This past May marked Jamrs’ first full year on the job. James loves what he does and is very good at it. His job is to go out and talk with people and make sales. Not everyone is cut out to be a sales representative, so the fact that James is so good at it speaks volumes. I don’t think it’s a job I would be very good at. Nevertheless, for James it was a definite step up.
This past year has found James having the time of his life in his new life. He and Manuela have been working on 
setting up their new place, They celebrated their first year of marriage, and will soon celebrate their second year. His beauty (Manuela) introduced him to his first Latin concert (Yankee Daddy) in Denver, and James introduced Manuela to her first US Soccer match between James’ all-time favorite team Chelsea FC (England) vs Club America (Mexico) in Las Vegas. They both got to experienced their first college football game at University of Wyoming with Jemez bonus dad, Dave Chase (James’ mom, Toni Chase tells me she was so glad to miss that game). James and Manuela also took several little weekend trips around Wyoming, Colorado, and Montana.
While all that has made for a great year, the big trip is coming up in a few days when they travel to Colombia where James will meet his new family and get to celebrate not only his birthday, but his new mother-in-law, Consuelo Ortiz Montoya’s birthday (which happens to be on the same day as his) and his new sister-in-law, Sara Marin’s birthday which is June 14 (just 1 day before). They are going to have a blast! It will be a great beginning to his next year. There is nothing be little “concern” however. While James is very excited to meet his new family, he really wants to 
be able to speak in some way with Manuela’s parents. James doesn’t speak Spanish and her parents don’t speak English, so that will be interesting. James could speak through Manuela, but it isn’t how he wants this to go.
When James isn’t working or spending time with his bride,he still finds time to rollerblade and play pool with his dad, Jim Renville. Also, he and Manuela still make time to hang out with his mom and bonus dad at least once a week. He was also been dog-sitter for his dad’s and mom’s dogs, taking care of his little “fur” siblings. Today is James’ birthday. Happy birthday James!! Have a great day!! We love you!!
My little great grandnephew, Max Herr is such a fun kid. He is quick to smile and laugh, and he is the light of his parents’ lives!! Katy and Dylan Herr rejoice every day because Max is a dream come true and a blessing beyond measure. For the rest of us, watching him as he grows up had been truly a pleasure. I love that little boy’s smile. It lights up his whole face. And Max is quick to smile. In fact, he is almost never not smiling. He might be serious on the inside, but his face is always “sporting a smile.”
Max is a total Spiderman fan, and the plan is to have a Spiderman birthday party for him. It’s so fun what you start to see your child’s personality coming out in the things the like and don’t like. For Max, that means all things boy!! And it means all things his daddy likes. Dylan likes to golf, so Max is ready to go with him and learn the ropes. Max loves 4-wheelers, golf carts, lawn mowers, and monster trucks. My 
guess is the fancier the better, but then isn’t that the way of monster trucks? They have to have bright colors, and a great theme, and you can’t fool a true monster truck fan, like Max and his daddy. Max loves the outdoors, and playing in the snow, and his daddy is quick to help him build stuff and have fun in the snow. Unfortunately for Max, sometimes his daddy has to work. It seems totally unfair, but that’s how it is. Sometimes Max and his mommy stop down to Daddy’s store, and he gets to see what his daddy does all day. Max will most likely work with his daddy at the store someday, so he might as well learn the ropes.
Of course, Max loves his mommy too, very much. She may not do guy things all the time, but she makes good stuff to eat and there is the whole “making sure Spiderman is on TV” when Max wants to watch, so a guy has to love that. We all know that a good mommy knows what their kids like, and Max has been blessed with a really great mommy!! 
Katy has wanted to be a mommy for as long as she can remember, and now that she is, she is loving every minute of it. While Max’s daddy is his mentor, for sure, his mommy is his biggest fan. She loves every change that comes along, and every new accomplishment he makes. Yes, Max is living the good life, and who wouldn’t always be sporting a smile when you have the greatest life ever? Today is Max’s 3rd birthday. Happy birthday Max!! Have a great day!! We love you!!
My nephew, Garrett Stevens has been a welder for a long time now. He currently works at EMIT Technologies, but he has been selected to take the certified welding inspector (CWI) test. The CWI is an extremely challenging test with only a 30% pass rate on the first attempt. Right got now Garrett is in classes to prepare him for the test, and he will be taking the test in August. When Garrett passes the CWI, he will be able to work more in quality control. This is such a great thing for Garrett, as it will help him move his career forward in the direction he wants to go. Garrett is a natural at welding. He learned his career easily, and is always striving to improve himself. He is never satisfied with the status quo, choosing excellence instead.
Garrett has chosen excellence in all areas of his life. He has always made his parents, Alena and Mike Stevens so 
proud. Garrett was their only son, and he is his dad’s son for sure. They love doing things together, even though they don’t get much time to do that these days, now that Garret and his family live in Sheridan, and the rest of his family lives in Casper. Nevertheless, whenever they can, Garrett and his dad get a little fishing in, even doing some ice fishing recently.
Garrett is a hands-on dad who likes to spend quality time with the two daughters, Elliott and Maya, that he and his wife, Kayla have. Kayla tells me that he is great girls dad, which isn’t too far out of his wheelhouse, since Garrett grew up the only boy of his parents’ three children. That meant that Garrett, while all boy, still understood little girls. He and his sisters, Michelle Miller and Lacey Stevens have always been close.
Recently, Garrett and Kayla bought a trampoline and he doesn’t hesitate to jump around and be silly with the girls. Kayla thinks it takes him right back to his childhood since he has such fond memories from the trampoline his parents got for him and his sisters. They had so much fun playing on that trampoline. Now he is making new memories with his girls, and they are loving it. It’s not just the trampoline that Garrett plays on with his girls. The go swimming, to the park, the bouncy game place in town, and running around in their own living room or their yard. The girls will have so many wonderful memories and games to pass down to their own kids someday. Today is Garrett’s birthday. Happy birthday Garrett!! Have a great day!! We love you!!
I often wonder, when thinking about couples and how they met, what might have happened if their families hadn’t moved to the state where they eventually met their spouse. Would they somehow have met in another way, like college, mutual acquaintances, or a random trip to the same city. It’s hard to say, I suppose, and the reality is that they may never have met at all. Thankfully, for my husband, Bob Schulenberg’s grandparents (and for me), his grandparents did end up in the same small town, and they did meet and married, producing Bob’s mom, Joann (Knox) Schulenberg, who gave birth to my husband. I say thankfully, of course, because if that hadn’t happened, I wouldn’t be married to my wonderful husband all these years.
Grandpa, Robert Knox was born in Prosser, Washington, where his two brothers, Melburn Coe Knox and Joy Allen Knox, but on February 4, 1917, Joy Allen died 13 days after he was born on Jan 22, 1917, and by the time their next son, Richard Franklin “Frank” came along on February 4, 1920, the family was living in Rosebud, Montana. The birth of their Rainbow Baby, ironically on the same day as the death of their older son, must have been a little bit bittersweet. It seems like if the move was to get away from the memory of their loss, it actually ended up following them to the new place. All that aside, the family eventually moved to Rosebud, Montana.
Meanwhile, Grandma, Nettie (Noyes) Knox was born in Clyde Park, Montana, which was three hours and fifteen minutes from Rosebud, but the family would eventually move to Rosebud, Montana, which is, of course, where she met her future husband, Robert “Bob” Knox. They were married on June 14, 1928, in Miles City, Montana, 
and as they say, the rest is history. While they lost their first child, a son named William Edgar Knox, at birth, they went on to have three daughters, Joann Schulenberg, Linda Cole, and Margee Kountz. They were married 57 years, until Grandpa went to heaven on December 17, 1985. Grandma lived until July 29, 1990, and then she joined him in Heaven. Today would have been their 95th anniversary. While there are no marriages in Heaven, I know Grandma and Grandpa are enjoying themselves as friends very much. Have a happy day, Grandma and Grandpa. We love and miss you very much.
