Albert LaVallie’s passing posted by Susan Malaterre Johnson (69):
Hi Gary and All, Just to let you know that Albert Lavallie passed away today. Susan Johnson
Susan, We are so sorry to hear of Albert’s Passing. Can you fill us in with a bit of Albert’s history and who he is related to? Thanks, Gary
From Bonnie Awalt Houle (56):
Dear Gary,
Merry Christmas to you and your loved ones, may the Good Lord Bless and Keep you.
I remember Christmas in Dunseith when I was a kid, one memory that comes to mind is the Christmas Tree that was decorated in the center of main street. It was where the Bank, Stone Garage, Movie Theater and LaCroix’s Liquor store guarding the tree on each corner. The Tree was HUGE. The community business men contributed so a Santa could pass out bags of candy to every child. One year as it was my turn to get my bag of candy Santa reached down and picked me up placing me on his lap. I was really scared until he started to laugh and I said, “You aren’t Santa, you are Mr. Hiatt!” That ended my belief in Santa. Walter Hiatt had such a great chuckle, but he tried to convince me that it was Santa, but I knew his laugh. Every year something new was added to the Christmas celebration. For a small town they had marvelous Christmas’s. One year Arnold Lilleby had a free matinee for all the children. Another year Santa came in on a hay rack pulled by a team of horses.
MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE AND KEEP THOSE MEMORIES COMING!
Bonnie Awalt Houle 1956
Reply from Gary Metcalfe (57):
| Hey Bonnie, those were some great pictures of the cheerleaders, the title Dunseith’s Finest has already been claimed, but definitely the FUNNEST was the class of 1957. We were small classes so you took some of our ’58 class under your wing, Mickey and I were hillbilly’s you know. First day of school in the big city, I was informed about initiation. My wearing apparel would include 3″ heels and I would pull Lois Hiatt from school out to Dale’s in a little red wagon. I broke a heel midway, I think Lois let me off the hook the last 100 yards or so. Well said Bonnie, it leaves a void when someone like Bruce or Lois or Mickey passes on. Bruce was always around for the excitement. Lois was there that day some of us skipped school and Dad’s poor old ’50 Chevy was checking out how steep the banks were on the north side of Lake Schute or was it Shootie? If you transcend a steep hill horizontally, the rear wheel comes off the ground, so we set Lois up on the rear fender to balance. Whew!
Lois was also there on an endeavor to lighten up the Lutheran church Wednesday night Luther League. Pastor Anfinrude came out to old #5 with a couple of kids from town. We were all ready to go north on the old dump ground road, ’48 Ford, Buick hood, 60′ rope. Gary Cota’s long suit was fancy driver at all times. I think it was the sparks flying when we would hit an approach. I kind of think they went back to bobbing for apples.
Dick Johnson For a couple of years I had used the Legions 303 Bristish for deer hunting season. this year I really wanted to go and their were no guns left. I think it might have been my dad that said Earl Myer is not going hunting this year. For the ones that knew him, Earl was a pretty serious appearing guy. I remember being kind of intimidated to ask Earl for the loaner, so he brings out his old 25-35 with a long hex barrell and several coyote notches carved in it. Earl said, “why don’t I sell you that gun?” I asked, “How much?” He said, “$15.00.” Then I asked where I could get ammunition and he came out with 2 boxes of shells, at no extra charge. Later I sold that really neat gun to Carmen Myers. Gary Metcalfe |
Message from Bev Morinville Azure (72):
| Gary and all, first I would like to wish everyone a MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A VERY HAPPY AND HEALTHY NEW YEAR, and now I would like to let everyone know my sister Debbie is now home she still needs 24/7 care but she is coming along slowly. Colette and Diane thank you so much for going out and seeing her you have been true and loyal friends to my sister since you were kids and I know she loves you both very much. Thank you again for caring.
GOD BLESS YOU …………BEV |
Reply from Diane Larson Sjol (70):
Hello everyone,
I have been so busy with the end of the semester and working a little
at the hospital. I was in the mall today and ran into two former
patients whose babies I had the pleasure of assisting into the
world…One was 9 years old and the twins were 8 years old…time does
certainly fly! It is bitter cold here but not as windy today as it
was yesterday. Old man winter hit us hard but the snow is a beautiful
sight. It was so pretty on Friday when I worked at the
hospital..looking out the window you felt as if you were in a snow
globe with glitter all around….then outside to get in my car and
forget it!!!! It was miserable….so I will just stay inside where it
is toasty warm and look at my pretty Christmas tree, wrap presents,
write my cards and bake a little.
I don’t know what I did to deserve all the praise cousin Bill Hosmer
gave me, but thank you very much. It is often hard for us to realize
how different healthcare systems are around the world. I went to
Reynosa Mexico as a senior nursing student with a group from United
Campus Ministries at MSU in Minot, and we went to assess and choose 50
children for a nutritional program. Other non nursing students from
the college held a bible school for the kids…we were there for 10
days living in a Presbyterian compound run by a young American
man….to get to the point,,, we ended up assessing 80 kids and took
them all…we dug ditches and put in a purified water system…painted
their building..assessed these kids with a stethoscope and a box of
gloves…gave them tshirts for diapers, etc. we were humbled and
learned alot from them….Because they were so poor and couldn’t
afford a birth certificate when they were born, they do not exist in
the eyes of the Mexican government so they were pretty much left on
their own. The kids played on an old garbage dump and they lived in
anything they could use to construct a shelter….but they were very
cheerful people and very proud of their kids. We want to take care of
everyone but we can’t …sometimes we do just do what we can and show
kindness and compassion….We didn’t go down there to show them
anything or tell them we were right and they were doing things
wrong…we just went to help and lend a hand and ended up gaining so
much more than we gave….
So this holiday season, be a little kinder, smile more …..don’t be
impatient when someone is taking too long paying for their groceries
or driving too slow….that is just God’s way of telling us to take a
deep breath and enjoy the moment. On that note, I want to wish you
all a very blessed Christmas and holiday season…..Diane Sjol
Reply from Sybil Johnson:
Thanks Dick, for more of an insight into the Johnson family. Hans and Pa surely were men, that one could look up to. I wish I would have known your grandfather.
Dick, do you know the story about the 44-40 rifle that Augie has? It’s the Winchester/”One of a Thousand”. Its just another part of the Johnson and Kelly families.
Merry Christmas to everyone and stay warm up there in North Dakota, for I personally know about those winters. Sybil Johnson
Reply from Dick Johnson (68):
Gary and Friends,
Thanks to Mr. Bob Lykins, might I say the old ‘Sidehill Gouger’, for his
very informative story. He will know what the moniker is and so should
most who were his students at DHS! I only wish I could follow in his
travels to the different battlefields he wrote of seeing. My father in
law was at Iwo Jima during the US invasion. He was a sailor on a
destroyer escort, a smaller warship than the battleships. He said they
went in closer to the shore to fire on Mt. Suribachi, while the
battleships fired over their heads. All this was going on while the
Japanese were firing at them from the bunkers on the mountain. He said
they would fire the battery on one side of the ship and constantly turn
in circles as they were getting ready to fire the other side. I have a
documentary film that has an ariel picture of the battle, taken from a
recon plane several thousand feet up, and in it you can see the wake
circles in the ocean from the destroyer escorts that were inboard of the
rest. He said he was as worried about a dud shell from one of our own
big ships dropping on them than the Japs hitting them. The big warships
fired guns that were as big as 15″ diameter explosive shells. He said
when the Japanese made a direct hit on a landing craft it literally
vaporized. To this day he has no use for a Japanese car or TV or
anything else they have! He says they ruined the best four years of his
life and he doesn’t think he needs to help them out now!
My grandmother’s brother, Paul Strietzel, Jr. was one of the poor guys
that had to hit the beach at Guadalcanal. He survived to tell about it,
but about 1600 didn’t. The Japanese lost about 25,000 from battle,
starvation, and disease on Guadalcanal. They would not surrender and
would fight to the last man. They followed a doctrine called Bushito
(sp) which said the greatest honor was to die for the emperor. One of
our generals said, “Help them out”!
Bob’s mention of Gen. MacArthur reminded me of my old buddy, Carroll
Carlson, who used to call him ‘Dugout Doug’. He said MacArthur never
liked to be too close to the battle and was only filmed ‘returning’
after it was secured and all chance of a fight was over! I apologize if
my figures and memories are off as I’m trying to do this from memory and
it has been quite a while since I studied any of this. The first person
accounts are their own stories as told to me, so correct or not, this is
how they saw it. Who am I to say differently? Thanks to Bob Lykins and Gary!
Dick
Posted by Gary Stokes:
The 16″ guns pictured on the Battleships below could fire a 2,700 lb shell filled with TNT, with precise accuracy, nearly 29 miles. Each of the four Battleships of this class were outfitted with nine of these 16″ guns.
The end of WWII – 9/2/1945
On board the USS Missouri (BB-63)
Allied sailors and officers watch General of the Army Douglas MacArthur sign documents during the surrender ceremony aboard Missouri on 2 September 1945. The unconditional surrender of the Japanese to the Allies officially ended the Second World War.
Missouri arrived in Seattle on 15 September 1954. Three days later she enteredPuget Sound Naval Shipyard where she was decommissioned on 26 February 1955, entering the Bremerton group, Pacific Reserve Fleet.
The USS Missouri was moored in Bremerton, WA from 1954 until 1984 when she was again recommissioned. While in Bremerton, hundreds of thousands of folks visited her each year. I left Dunseith at the age of 19, moving to Bremerton. I worked at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard for 37 years, before retiring and moving to the Philippines, in December 2003. I was on the decks of the Missouri, many times, when she was in Bremerton. She is now again decommissioned and moored in Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard along with the USS Arizona pictured below. Gary