Update from Grand Rapids

This week brought an unusual confluence of events. 

First up was a fast-moving storm that came through late Thursday night; high winds and  a tornado warning mixed with the emergency siren going off had lots of us scrambling into our basements. Fortunately, no tornado was actually sighted but the ferocity of the 60 or so seconds of incredible winds left lots of us in this part of Michigan without power. 

That evening we joined several of our neighbors outside to review local damage damage and we were amazed at how many large branches had been ripped down. One tree at the entrance to Eaglecrest Drive actually ripped up and fell over on the power line but the line itself remained intact.

While we were pretty unscathed a trip around nearby neighborhoods -- in search of a charging station -- revealed the extent of the storm's damaging winds. Several houses had trees down on the, power lines torn down, and as seemingly endless variety of detritus littering streets, laws and even rooftops.

The power finally came back on at little after 1pm Saturday.

The second and by far  more pleasing event was a Van Halsema cousin get together out at the old Overview house, now the Great Lakes House, on Lake Michigan.  Susie and I picked up her mom about 3pm and met up with cousins Laurie and Jen and the five of us drove out to the get together. 

The drive took only about an hour or so.  For me, an only child (more or less) it was grand to see so many cousins renewing their bonds of family relationships, recalling with obvious fondness times spent growing up together and visits to Overview, all the while catching up on the details of all their various extended families.

One person was responsible for setting all this motion, Dick Van Halsema. It was his idea and he spent no small amount of time coordinating the arrangements and providing drinks and food, with some assistance from a few cousins. 

And to top it all off the day, 25 August, happened to be the 50th wedding anniversary of Jack and Wilma DeKorne. And Bernice got to see and catch up with so many of her nieces and nephews, most of whom she had not seen for far too many years.   

It was a truly special day. . . Plans were laid to repeat the event on August 24, 2024.

l-r: Helen Sterk, Laurie Ten Have Chapman, Dick Van Halsema, Dave DeKorne

Jack and Wilma

Barbara Jean DeKorne

Laurie Dick, Dave Clark Van Halsema, Jen Galloway

Tess Lindholm, her daughter-in-law Laurel, Susie

ruins of the original Overview cottage

113 steps to the beach

Dave and Jen

Jen and Susie

Saying good-bye to Betsy Van Halsema DeKorne

Betsy Van Halsema DeKorne

What can I say? To know her was to love her. It was really that simple.  Tell Uncle Jack we miss him and his tales of derring-do!

1929  l-r: Willemina, Betsy, Dick, Gerard, Bernice

Sept 1944 Nellie and 5 daughters standing under oak tree back yard 219 Myrtle: L-R Bernice, Betsy, Nellie, Helen, Willemina, Marian

Sept 1944 Bernice (left) and Betsy on ferry  to NYC, starting out for Calvin College (Betsy senior, Bernice freshman)

Sept 1944 Bernice and Betsy at Grand Central Station NYC

July 2001 Overview, MI  three Van Halsema sisters, Betsy, Bernice and Marian

Van Halsema Sisters

Love knows neither time nor space -- Bernice VandenBerg and her older sister Betsy DeKorne:

Van Halsema Reunion in Michigan - group photos

Below is a series of group photos overlooking Clear Bottom Lake (and yes, the bottom is clear). You can access high-resolution copies on Flickr at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevesoper/9443781182/

just about everybody

Gerard Van Halsema family

Marian Van Halsema-John Ten Have family

Betsy Van Halsema-Jack Dekorne family

Frank Van Halsema and daughter Mieke (we miss you Cathy!)

Wilhelmina Van Halsem-Jim Quackenbush family
l-r:Ruth Quackenbush, Mark Quackenbush and his wife Robin

Helen Van Halsema-Don Vandepolder family

Dick Van Halsema family

l-r: Thea Van Halsema, Frank, Fran, John Ten Have, Betsy Dekorne, Bernice Vanden Berg, Marian Ten Have and Helen Vandepolder

August in Providence

Van Halsema sisters Betsey, Bernice and Marian

July of 2008 is now a historical fact; although for us in Providence and for many others as well, the month was hot, steamy, sticky and muggy. I know, an odd selection of words used to condition a particularly unpleasant condition of relatively high humidity. Still, it works for us believe me. 

This past week and indeed much of the month has come to a curiously pleasant conclusion. The hot and humid weather aside, work has gone well for both of us and Susie is winding down while gearing up, prepping things for the week we will be gone to Colorado. (More of that later.) Lots of long days for the baking ninja but she's generally in her element: flour and butter, cream and dough stuff in general.

As for me, the Johnson & Wales website continues to take shape right before my eyes; it's pretty exciting been a part, even a small part, in the evolution of a web presence as broad and deep as JWU's will be. The effect of the new site is of course unknown, but from what little I've seen so far it's going to be enormous and substantial.

So as one month ended and another began, we were witnesses to at a coupe of twists to the coming of August.

Earlier in the week Susan's Aunt Betsey and Uncle Jack D. from Michigan called us to say they were going to be in our neighborhood and wondered if we could get together for dinner. We said of course!

To see any of Susie's aunts or uncles is always a special treat. And Jack and Betsey literally define the concept of a "cute couple." And they do it so naturally, without even trying. Aunt Betsey is one of the kindest people I have ever known -- and is rivaled only by her sisters and in particular the one whose daughter I married almost 25 years ago (which we will be spending in Colorado -- see I told you I'd get back to that).

And Uncle Jack -- that's him up there -- well, he has spent much of his adult years shuttling back and forth between the furniture business and making his own travel videos. You can't go wrong with a movie from Jack D., they are fascinating and remind me of the old travelogues one would see at the library years ago. And he tells the best stories. . . .

So we planned to meet in Providence -- and Aunt Betsey contacted her brother Frank in Boston so he and his wife Cathy were also going to join us.

What a pair those two are -- Frank will sit listening intently to each and every conversation and then pop in with an appropriate observation, or more often than not a joke, which is usually followed by his breaking out in the one of the most incredible laughs and grins, from eye-to-ear as they say. And Cathy -- she is one of the wittiest and funniest people I have ever had the good fortune to come across.

And rounding out the evening was a real treat, particularly for Susie: her cousin Jack Jr. and his wife Wilma were also joining us. Susie gets to see her cousins so infrequently -- so many of them are scattered in every direction, and they all seem to have such fond memories of each other growing up. And Jack is another one famous for the wall-to-wall smiles (you can see it for yourself down below). His wife W. is so full of life and her eyes become intently animated when she talks, which is usually with her hands, almost as if she were signing. Incredible.

We met the group at Broadway Bistro for an early dinner -- everyone had some driving to do that evening, except for us of course. What a grand time it was too. Great food and lively conversation -- as always with those guys. The time flew by -- and we were sad to see them drive off, particularly when we noticed they were going in the wrong direction to get on I-95 south. . . .

And this was just the beginning of a pretty grand weekend. Stay tuned!