George and Laura with lil Juddy - don't know where the 49ers stuff came from ...
Carol - far right with Ken's wife Mary middle and Paul's sis Jean left.
There are Goldschmidts buried in the Earlville (pronounced Irville by locals) Cemetery. That's what the Goldsmiths were named back when they came to this country - good German stock. Then WW1 happened, and it wasn't popular to be German. Wieners became hot dogs, and many things German were Americanized.
So Goldschmidt became Goldsmith. Not Jewish Goldsmith - evidently there are a lot of Jewish folks with that name. So I was introduced at my cousin's wedding in San Francisco as Leslie Goldsmith "not Jewish". I guess that was important since David and Lisa were married at a beautiful Catholic Church.
Anyways back to the Goldsmiths. You can't swing a cat in Delaware County without hitting a Goldsmith. Most are Paul's immediate relatives. Paul's dad George had 11 brothers and sisters. His mom Laura Nefzger Goldsmith had four? Paul has 2 sets of double cousins - George's sister and brother married Laura's brother and sister. Jim and Bertha had 9 kids just like Geo and Laura. Double cousins! Paul's fam isn't super close to the cousins - guess we have enough to keep track of with the immediate fam!
We (Jud, Odie, Paul and I) traveled to Earlville Friday for the traditional fam get-together. We used to do this at George and Laura's home - in the basement. But they got up there in years and in 2000 they moved into an assisted living facility in Manchester. So we started renting the Eville mealsite. It's worked out pretty well. We have lots of goodies and this year went with sloppy joes.
Moki the Wonder Dog used to always go. Everyone loved him and viceversa. So much so that now Dorie has had 3 Westies. Odie got to go this year - I was nervous having her around little kids and other pets but she was great around them. So was Jud - at least he left them alone...
Who attended? All the sibs made it, except Connie of course - Paul's sister, next oldest from him, who passed away in 2007 after battling breast cancer for years. Connie never married, and was so good to all the 23 nieces and nephews - passing on her 401k to them.
Carol - the Matriarch. Carol is 18 years older than Paul - on her way out the door when Paul was born. Off to nursing school. She met Irvin "Hap" Meyer when she was a nurse in Dubuque and their first child, Joseph was born with water on the brain and lived only a few days. The church ladies whisked in and removed all vestiges of baby - what they did back then, pretending it never happened. When our Patrick was born and died in 1991, Carol went through grieving with us - the grief she'd never been allowed back then. She had son Tom a year after Joseph, then Terry and daughter Barb who just turned 40.
Irv got early onset Alzheimer's - fading away before he was even 50, in a nursing home for a few years so Carol was a widow of a living man. And so young! He died suddenly - in the mid 90's. Carol had been trying to get on with her life. She completed her BSN at Dubuque University - we attended her graduation. Her kids grew up and are all married and successful.
Carol began to bike, and went on RAGBRAI with Paul's sis Jean, hubby Dave, Paul and (no not me...I don't do biking in crowds) Steve our buddy here. A doc Carol worked with in Dubuque set up an overnight during the route in Northwood, Iowa at his widowed father's place. True love bloomed in short order and Carol married Bud Kragenbrink in 1996? Not sure on that year. She sold the farm and moved to Northwood. She and Bud bought a 2nd home in Park Rapids, MN on a lake. Bud's 5 kids and Carol's 3 got along great!
Bud and Carol lived happily for some 10 years - he was a wonderful, kind man who owned a construction firm. Since he was getting up there - early 70's he talked to trying to sell the biz, but it never happened. Bud and Carol started building their dream condo in Northwood. Then, just after Christmas in 2006, I was home after Dad died, before the funeral. A little confused on the timing - it was a busy exhausted time. I got out of the shower, I was home from Atlantic to get clothes for the funeral. Paul told me he'd just gotten a call - Bud and dropped dead during the night. Heart. How much can one woman take? Paul left for Bud's funeral right after Dad's.
Carol found out - after the funeral, the creditors swept in, informing Carol that Bud was swimming in debt. They had kept their money separate, but lived in fine style. Much to Carol's surprise it was all a shell game - Bud had paid for one job with the next and owed on everything. The bank was okay with it as long as he was still in business. The stress must have taken its toll on him. Bud's kids and Carol's kids were very supportive and with their help, she has gotten through it. One tough cookie!
Carol let the dream condo go, and eventually sold the Northwood place (relief). She lives way up north in the Park Rapids home all by herself. She winters in Northwood, house sitting for some friends who really go south for the winter. Jud and Paul visited her this summer - fishing and boating - had a great time.
Carol is a strong person - fun to be around and interesting. I admire her strength and perseverance. I like to hear her stories of growing up Goldsmith - so different from baby Paul's version. They're all pretty close-mouthed about their childhood, unlike my sissies and myself. Stoic Germans. She is the glue of the family. Love you Carol.
So Goldschmidt became Goldsmith. Not Jewish Goldsmith - evidently there are a lot of Jewish folks with that name. So I was introduced at my cousin's wedding in San Francisco as Leslie Goldsmith "not Jewish". I guess that was important since David and Lisa were married at a beautiful Catholic Church.
Anyways back to the Goldsmiths. You can't swing a cat in Delaware County without hitting a Goldsmith. Most are Paul's immediate relatives. Paul's dad George had 11 brothers and sisters. His mom Laura Nefzger Goldsmith had four? Paul has 2 sets of double cousins - George's sister and brother married Laura's brother and sister. Jim and Bertha had 9 kids just like Geo and Laura. Double cousins! Paul's fam isn't super close to the cousins - guess we have enough to keep track of with the immediate fam!
We (Jud, Odie, Paul and I) traveled to Earlville Friday for the traditional fam get-together. We used to do this at George and Laura's home - in the basement. But they got up there in years and in 2000 they moved into an assisted living facility in Manchester. So we started renting the Eville mealsite. It's worked out pretty well. We have lots of goodies and this year went with sloppy joes.
Moki the Wonder Dog used to always go. Everyone loved him and viceversa. So much so that now Dorie has had 3 Westies. Odie got to go this year - I was nervous having her around little kids and other pets but she was great around them. So was Jud - at least he left them alone...
Who attended? All the sibs made it, except Connie of course - Paul's sister, next oldest from him, who passed away in 2007 after battling breast cancer for years. Connie never married, and was so good to all the 23 nieces and nephews - passing on her 401k to them.
Carol - the Matriarch. Carol is 18 years older than Paul - on her way out the door when Paul was born. Off to nursing school. She met Irvin "Hap" Meyer when she was a nurse in Dubuque and their first child, Joseph was born with water on the brain and lived only a few days. The church ladies whisked in and removed all vestiges of baby - what they did back then, pretending it never happened. When our Patrick was born and died in 1991, Carol went through grieving with us - the grief she'd never been allowed back then. She had son Tom a year after Joseph, then Terry and daughter Barb who just turned 40.
Irv got early onset Alzheimer's - fading away before he was even 50, in a nursing home for a few years so Carol was a widow of a living man. And so young! He died suddenly - in the mid 90's. Carol had been trying to get on with her life. She completed her BSN at Dubuque University - we attended her graduation. Her kids grew up and are all married and successful.
Carol began to bike, and went on RAGBRAI with Paul's sis Jean, hubby Dave, Paul and (no not me...I don't do biking in crowds) Steve our buddy here. A doc Carol worked with in Dubuque set up an overnight during the route in Northwood, Iowa at his widowed father's place. True love bloomed in short order and Carol married Bud Kragenbrink in 1996? Not sure on that year. She sold the farm and moved to Northwood. She and Bud bought a 2nd home in Park Rapids, MN on a lake. Bud's 5 kids and Carol's 3 got along great!
Bud and Carol lived happily for some 10 years - he was a wonderful, kind man who owned a construction firm. Since he was getting up there - early 70's he talked to trying to sell the biz, but it never happened. Bud and Carol started building their dream condo in Northwood. Then, just after Christmas in 2006, I was home after Dad died, before the funeral. A little confused on the timing - it was a busy exhausted time. I got out of the shower, I was home from Atlantic to get clothes for the funeral. Paul told me he'd just gotten a call - Bud and dropped dead during the night. Heart. How much can one woman take? Paul left for Bud's funeral right after Dad's.
Carol found out - after the funeral, the creditors swept in, informing Carol that Bud was swimming in debt. They had kept their money separate, but lived in fine style. Much to Carol's surprise it was all a shell game - Bud had paid for one job with the next and owed on everything. The bank was okay with it as long as he was still in business. The stress must have taken its toll on him. Bud's kids and Carol's kids were very supportive and with their help, she has gotten through it. One tough cookie!
Carol let the dream condo go, and eventually sold the Northwood place (relief). She lives way up north in the Park Rapids home all by herself. She winters in Northwood, house sitting for some friends who really go south for the winter. Jud and Paul visited her this summer - fishing and boating - had a great time.
Carol is a strong person - fun to be around and interesting. I admire her strength and perseverance. I like to hear her stories of growing up Goldsmith - so different from baby Paul's version. They're all pretty close-mouthed about their childhood, unlike my sissies and myself. Stoic Germans. She is the glue of the family. Love you Carol.
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