Youngtown: Fragrant blooms special after unseasonable freeze
By MARGARET IRELAND
Youngtown correspondent
(620) 382-2713
I'm sitting here at my kitchen table Monday morning with a bouquet of lilacs in a vase in front of me. I love the fragrance of lilacs. There aren't many blossoms this year due to the late freeze, but I enjoy what I have. Back in 1954, Ken and I took a trip with Marie and Frank Ireland through the northern states up to the Great Lakes. While driving, we came upon a field hedged with lilacs and, with no air conditioning, our windows were down. I shall never forget the fragrance of all those blossoms.
Shirley and David Bowers had a supper party Monday night honoring Roy Hett's 90th birthday. Other guests were Rose Olive Hett, Cy and L.Dena Goertz, and Eleanor and Ray Davidson. The group played Skipbo following supper.
Kristine Bateman came home again this weekend and helped Jeannine with the mowing. With the rain we had this past week, our lawns do need to be mowed.
Diana Jost stopped Thursday evening to visit her parents, Cy and L.Dena Goertz.
Vicki Smolik and Kathy and Paul Swan attended Morgan Makovec's spring concert Tuesday evening at the elementary school in Marion.
Edmund Steiner and Vicki Smolik attended the Knights of Columbus breakfast in the Pilsen church basement Sunday following Mass. They were supper guests that evening of Paul and Kathy Swan to celebrate Becky Makovec's birthday. Additional guests were Tim Makovec, Morgan and Tyler, Justin and Katrina Griffin, Kandace and Kassidy, and Jerry and Faye Makovec.
David and Shirley Bowers joined Kelly and Joshua Bunnel Sunday morning for church in Welda. They were invited guests for dinner in Colony, and a reception which followed at the community building, honoring the 50th wedding anniversary of Randy Bunnel's parents, Alfred and Charlotte Bunnel.
Bessie Bass and her nephew and wife, Dr. and Mrs. Vern Smith, came last Monday to visited Dorothy Hayen. They wanted to know all about the homestead story Dorothy had told the family about the first of March.
Virginia Downing made a pie of fresh rhubarb from her garden Saturday and bought it to Dorothy and John. Dorothy dearly loves rhubarb pie and shared it Sunday afternoon with Marilyn Geis and Virginia Downing. Dorothy reports a beautiful spiraea bush at her door which had gotten just enough rain Sunday to be really beautiful this Monday morning.
Our recent rain has made the pastures very green and a lot of cattle have been moved to them this past two weeks.
Howard and Beth Collett and Keith and Anne Collett, Hank, Maggie, and Zack were in Manhattan Friday for the final concert of the K-State Singers. Kate Erickson, daughter of Rick and Collette Erickson, is a part of this group for the second year.
Ray and Rita Kraus left last Friday to go to the home of Brian and Megan Trego in Muscatine, Iowa, where they had dinner and toured the Tregos' beautiful home. They visited with the grandkids, Bradley and Nathalie Trego, also. They drove to the home of Alice and Allen Trego in Hampshire, Ill., Saturday and spent the weekend there. The Allen Tregos also have a new home they enjoyed seeing. All went to church Sunday, then drove to Batozia, Ill., to the home of Scott and Kim Salgati, Zachary and Nicholas for dinner. They spent the rest of the weekend with Alice and Allen and returned home on Tuesday.
Stephen Bowers was a server at the junior-senior banquet Saturday evening at Eastmoor. He and Rhonny attended the prom and after prom party. Mary Beth served as a parent-sponsor at the after prom and arrived home at 5:30 a.m. Sunday. After an hour's sleep, she still got to church services Sunday morning.
Rosalene and Charles Stinchcomb, Blaine Stinchcomb, and Bonnie Zimmerman drove to Salina Sunday and met Susie and Dick Mueller, Dr. Charlie and Barb Stinchcomb, and B.J. Stinchcomb and girlfriend for dinner and visiting.
Roy and Rose Olive Hett served cake and ice cram to Glenn and Pam Hett, Samantha and Kyle Wednesday evening in honor of Roy's 90th birthday.
Alvina Hoffman's 94th birthday is Tuesday. She plans to eat her birthday dinner at the Marion Senior Center.
Rosalie and Leonard Klassen went to Wichita last weekend. They attended the performance Saturday night of the 350-voice Mennonite men's choir at Central Community Church. The men sing to raise money for hungry children.
Rosalie Klassen attended a layette shower for her niece Sarita Blosser and her 7-month-old son, Roy Henry, Sunday night at the home of Rachel Friesen in Hillsboro. Roy Henry weighed 1 1/2 pounds when he was born, but now is around 10 pounds. It's great what can be done now for these tiny babies. The Klassens had supper in Hillsboro Sunday night with LaVern and Joyce Funk.
I had Sunday dinner with Joe and Marj Johnson, Ethan and Emily. Joe has built me a computer and gave me a short lesson on it now that it is ready to come to my home. I worked on a computer the last five years I worked at the post office, but 15 years ago things were simpler. For one thing, there wasn't that "mouse." I just had a keyboard. I'm going to need lots more instruction before I'll be able to use it to write my Monday news. The Johnson family assures me I'll be able to learn to use it. We don't learn as easily at 75 as we did at 60 — I hope I can master it so the nice people at the Marion County Record won't have to decipher my longhand any more.
