Thursday, May 18, 2017
Julius (Juke) Bartels - Part 3
Part 3
I entered the world on October 2, 1953. At that time, my dad was 34 years old and already responsible for caring for my mother, 4 sisters and 3 brothers. A daunting task upon my reflection, but I am guessing he did not think of it in that way at all. That was his life. He loved us and worked night and day to provide for us. But he was tired a lot and could take a nap anywhere.
My earliest memory of my dad is when I was probably 4 years old. He was milking one the cows and I was standing behind him watching. He was not using all of the teats of the utter and I ask him if he every squirted the little one in the back. He proceeded to use it, but instead of directing the milk into the pail, he shot the milk at me, some hitting me in the face. We both laughed and he continued with his work.
My dad had a great laugh, a rather robust one. I can still hear his laugh, and the sound of his voice, hidden somewhere in my brain. I wish I had a recording of his voice, but sadly I do not. One keen memory I have of my dad's voice is when he would call the cows back to the barn at the end of the day. His strong baritone voice called out "coo-boss" (that is what my young ears heard anyway). Looking up the dutch word for cow I see that it is "koebeest" ) Anyway, it was amazing to me as a kid that he would bellow this out a couple of times and sure enough, the cows would start making their way from wherever they were in the pasture back to the barn for feeding and/or milking.
Being one of 10 children that grew up in the house meant that one on one times with dad were very rare. A very memorable time for one of these occasions was a blustery winter day when just dad and I went ice fishing. I am guessing I was only 6 or 7 years old. It was one of those crystal clear colder than cold winter days. Dad cut the hole in the ice and we hovered over it and waited. I don't think we lasted long as I got rather cold and we caught nothing. I recall him talking and me listening as we waited. I do not recall the topics he talked about, but the time alone with him was special. It is the one and only time I ever went ice fishing. I don't think dad ever went again either.
Dad was a physically strong man. A life of farming and working at the Western Foundry in Holland seriously toned his muscles. He would pick up a burlap bag full of feed in each hand and swing one at a time over each shoulder. I don't know how much they weighed, probably 80 to 100 pounds each. It was impressive to me and as a lad and I wanted to be that strong some day, but that never happened. For some reason my muscles did not get all that toned sitting behind a desk.
To be continued...................................
Thursday, March 2, 2017
Julius (Juke) Bartels - Part 1
Julius (Juke) Bartels - my dad (Introduction)
I have thought about my father much more often in the last 6 years than I did, let's say, in the previous 20 years. The primary reason for this is when I turned 57 years old in October of 2010, I became the same age my father was when he died. The fact that this was all the days that he was given here on earth made a big impact on me. I started to reflect on my dad's life much more often that year and since. So, I thought I'd try to capture some facts, thoughts and memories regarding him.
First, some background facts about my dad prior to my arrival here on earth:
He was born on June 24, 1919. His father Charles had been recently discharged from the army following the WWI Armistice. The family lived in Muskegon for the first 2 years of his life and then moved to West Olive, Michigan. Julius graduated from the 8th grade in 1932 which was the end of his formal education as a young man. He is standing on the right in back row of his graduation photo.
I do not know all that much about the years between 1932 and when he married my mother in 1940. I understand that as a young man and the oldest son on a farm during this depression era, he would have been working hard to help the family make it through that difficult time. However, when he was almost 17 years old he was hired as a farm hand at a farm in Overisel (about 15 miles from home). His duties there included milking the cows twice a day as well as other farm chores. This was in exchange for room and board and meager wages.
I know that in his teen years, he also had time to learn how to play the guitar. He was in some type of band that wore very snazzy apparel.
Although he kept a guitar around the house for most of his life I never heard him play it. I believe my sister Joyce has this stringed instrument now. I also have a photo of about 100 youth, all holding some type of musical instrument, in a large meeting room with dad standing in the back row with his guitar. He must have enjoyed playing, but my thought today is that with the demands on his time to provide for 10 kids, playing guitar is something he just did not have time for.
My dad met my mom at a Christian Endeavor meeting (the youth group of the day) at Ottawa Reformed church. This was a quiet and proper place to meet. However, based on the stories shared by my Uncle Dave Vander Kooi (see previous blog post regarding this interview) my dad also had a bit of a wild side. This is also confirmed by comments my mother made in her latter years in life. As teens, dad was a good friend of mom's brothers Egbert and Dave. At first her opinion was that she would never date him, but obviously that viewpoint changed with time. By 1958, at just 38 years old, my dad had fathered 11 children.
I cannot help but marvel at dad's hair at this point in his life. The "first date" photo, the head shot below and the family photo all demonstrate what I mean..... I am jealous. I wish I had even a small portion of that thick hair today.
Not long after their marriage, they moved from a house with indoor plumbing to the farmhouse that I grew up in. The "new" house had no indoor plumbing, and would not for several more years, just a few years before I was born. Dad worked at Western Foundry in Holland during the day and toiled on the farm the rest of the day and often into the night. As I sit here on the couch tonight and I think about how long and hard he work, I am awed by his perseverance.
To be continued.................................
I have thought about my father much more often in the last 6 years than I did, let's say, in the previous 20 years. The primary reason for this is when I turned 57 years old in October of 2010, I became the same age my father was when he died. The fact that this was all the days that he was given here on earth made a big impact on me. I started to reflect on my dad's life much more often that year and since. So, I thought I'd try to capture some facts, thoughts and memories regarding him.
First, some background facts about my dad prior to my arrival here on earth:
He was born on June 24, 1919. His father Charles had been recently discharged from the army following the WWI Armistice. The family lived in Muskegon for the first 2 years of his life and then moved to West Olive, Michigan. Julius graduated from the 8th grade in 1932 which was the end of his formal education as a young man. He is standing on the right in back row of his graduation photo.
I do not know all that much about the years between 1932 and when he married my mother in 1940. I understand that as a young man and the oldest son on a farm during this depression era, he would have been working hard to help the family make it through that difficult time. However, when he was almost 17 years old he was hired as a farm hand at a farm in Overisel (about 15 miles from home). His duties there included milking the cows twice a day as well as other farm chores. This was in exchange for room and board and meager wages.
I know that in his teen years, he also had time to learn how to play the guitar. He was in some type of band that wore very snazzy apparel.
 |
| About 1935 |
 |
| About 1936 |
My dad met my mom at a Christian Endeavor meeting (the youth group of the day) at Ottawa Reformed church. This was a quiet and proper place to meet. However, based on the stories shared by my Uncle Dave Vander Kooi (see previous blog post regarding this interview) my dad also had a bit of a wild side. This is also confirmed by comments my mother made in her latter years in life. As teens, dad was a good friend of mom's brothers Egbert and Dave. At first her opinion was that she would never date him, but obviously that viewpoint changed with time. By 1958, at just 38 years old, my dad had fathered 11 children.
 |
| First date photo |
I cannot help but marvel at dad's hair at this point in his life. The "first date" photo, the head shot below and the family photo all demonstrate what I mean..... I am jealous. I wish I had even a small portion of that thick hair today.
 |
| Left to right: Tony, Bell, Roger, Kay and Juke |
To be continued.................................
Thursday, February 2, 2017
Egbertje J. Vander Kooi - my great grandmother
I have the honor of having two of my great grandmothers live to be 100 years old. That is rather special since the average life of a woman for that generation was about 65 years. Both of these woman lived as widows for about 35 years following the death of their husbands.
On my fathers side of the family, it was Klaasje (Clara) Troost Bartels. She immigrated to the US from the Netherlands as a youth and married John Bartels. I knew her as a child and youth. In fact, I was 21 when she passed away in 1974. I wrote about her life in previous blogs.
The other great grandmother that live to be 100 is on my mother's side of the family, her name was Egbertje J. Bloemsma Vander Kooi. Although she died in 1958, 5 years after I was born, I never met her as she remained in the Netherlands her entire life. Egbertje gave birth to 13 children. Yes, 13, Wow! Her second child Johannes (my grandpa Vander Kooi) immigrated to the US in 1903 when he was 21 years old. I learned from older relatives that he only traveled back to the Netherlands two times to visit his mother during the rest of his life. The story about one of the trips is included in the blog related to an interview I conducted with my Uncle Dave Vander Kooi. In addition to Johannes, 3 other of her children immigrated overseas, one to the USA and two to Canada. It would have been difficulty to see your children leave, more or less permanently from your life.
Based on research that some of my relatives that still live in the Netherlands completed, I have learned a little about my great grandma's last years. It appears she was quite a woman. A few newspaper articles about her 100th birthday and her death tell us a little about this dutch woman and matriarch.
From a newspaper article in the "Leewarder Courant" dated October 10, 1957:
"Grandma Eibertje celebrates her 100th birthday"
In honor of the 100th birthday of Mrs. E. Vander Kooi-Bloesma, Grandma Eibertje, the flag was placed on the Tower of Dronrijp. Also, many inhabitants of the Village had placed a flag at their homes. Many came to congratulate grandma and she cheerfully accepted all of the best wishes. Mayor D. Torensma addressed the centenarian on behalf of the village government of Menaldumadeel and presented her with an envelope and its contents. The commissioner for the King of Friesland, Mr H. P. Linthorst Homan, was unable to be there due to official business, but he sent best wishes in writing. In the evening, both the local music bands and the Christian Choral group honored Grandma Eibertje.
There was an additional newspaper article published the next day in the Franeker News:entitled "Enormous interest for 100 year old Grandma Eibertje"
Some additional information from that article includes the following:
No one on Tuesday needed to doubt whether there was sufficient interest for the centennial observance of Grandma Eibertje. It was not only because of the large number of flags waving in the village, but also the red, white and blue flag was waving at the "Old White" in the autumn sunshine. [non-translation note of my relative; "The Old White" is the Reformed Church in Dronrijp that Grandma Eibertje and some of her family attended - it is a large white building used to celebrate the occasion] It was filled to the rafters. She was filled with joy celebrating with her family and a table was filled with fruit, flowers, telegrams, letters and gifts. The mayor made a short speech and said Eibertje was "an example of vitality".
Other facts learned from research and obituaries includes:
At the age of 20, she married my great grandfather, Jentje Douwe Vanderbilt Kooi, on August 8, 1878. This was not her first marriage as she was previously married on July 15, 1877, but her first husband died 2 1/2 months later on August 4, 1877. I will need to research as to how he died.
She almost always wore a traditional dutch Frisian headpiece. This usually had gold ornaments on each side. She is wearing one of these headpieces in every photo I have of her.
One obituary states that she passed away unexpectedly on February 27, 1958. "She was having her morning tea with her daughter and suddenly became ill and succumbed to a stroke that she did not survive". The article goes on to reflect on her recent 100th Birthday celebration stating "In our thoughts we look back to her beaming face when fellow villagers, family and friends presented her with their gifts and congratulations. How energetic she was".
She was hardly ever ill and was remarkably alert for 100; she could walk well and knit up a storm.
I wish I had met this woman who was loved by so many.
On my fathers side of the family, it was Klaasje (Clara) Troost Bartels. She immigrated to the US from the Netherlands as a youth and married John Bartels. I knew her as a child and youth. In fact, I was 21 when she passed away in 1974. I wrote about her life in previous blogs.
The other great grandmother that live to be 100 is on my mother's side of the family, her name was Egbertje J. Bloemsma Vander Kooi. Although she died in 1958, 5 years after I was born, I never met her as she remained in the Netherlands her entire life. Egbertje gave birth to 13 children. Yes, 13, Wow! Her second child Johannes (my grandpa Vander Kooi) immigrated to the US in 1903 when he was 21 years old. I learned from older relatives that he only traveled back to the Netherlands two times to visit his mother during the rest of his life. The story about one of the trips is included in the blog related to an interview I conducted with my Uncle Dave Vander Kooi. In addition to Johannes, 3 other of her children immigrated overseas, one to the USA and two to Canada. It would have been difficulty to see your children leave, more or less permanently from your life.
Based on research that some of my relatives that still live in the Netherlands completed, I have learned a little about my great grandma's last years. It appears she was quite a woman. A few newspaper articles about her 100th birthday and her death tell us a little about this dutch woman and matriarch.
From a newspaper article in the "Leewarder Courant" dated October 10, 1957:
"Grandma Eibertje celebrates her 100th birthday"
In honor of the 100th birthday of Mrs. E. Vander Kooi-Bloesma, Grandma Eibertje, the flag was placed on the Tower of Dronrijp. Also, many inhabitants of the Village had placed a flag at their homes. Many came to congratulate grandma and she cheerfully accepted all of the best wishes. Mayor D. Torensma addressed the centenarian on behalf of the village government of Menaldumadeel and presented her with an envelope and its contents. The commissioner for the King of Friesland, Mr H. P. Linthorst Homan, was unable to be there due to official business, but he sent best wishes in writing. In the evening, both the local music bands and the Christian Choral group honored Grandma Eibertje.
There was an additional newspaper article published the next day in the Franeker News:entitled "Enormous interest for 100 year old Grandma Eibertje"
Some additional information from that article includes the following:
No one on Tuesday needed to doubt whether there was sufficient interest for the centennial observance of Grandma Eibertje. It was not only because of the large number of flags waving in the village, but also the red, white and blue flag was waving at the "Old White" in the autumn sunshine. [non-translation note of my relative; "The Old White" is the Reformed Church in Dronrijp that Grandma Eibertje and some of her family attended - it is a large white building used to celebrate the occasion] It was filled to the rafters. She was filled with joy celebrating with her family and a table was filled with fruit, flowers, telegrams, letters and gifts. The mayor made a short speech and said Eibertje was "an example of vitality".
Other facts learned from research and obituaries includes:
At the age of 20, she married my great grandfather, Jentje Douwe Vanderbilt Kooi, on August 8, 1878. This was not her first marriage as she was previously married on July 15, 1877, but her first husband died 2 1/2 months later on August 4, 1877. I will need to research as to how he died.
She almost always wore a traditional dutch Frisian headpiece. This usually had gold ornaments on each side. She is wearing one of these headpieces in every photo I have of her.
One obituary states that she passed away unexpectedly on February 27, 1958. "She was having her morning tea with her daughter and suddenly became ill and succumbed to a stroke that she did not survive". The article goes on to reflect on her recent 100th Birthday celebration stating "In our thoughts we look back to her beaming face when fellow villagers, family and friends presented her with their gifts and congratulations. How energetic she was".
She was hardly ever ill and was remarkably alert for 100; she could walk well and knit up a storm.
I wish I had met this woman who was loved by so many.
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