On the second day after the invasion, the family dared to move all of their household goods and livestock to a farm which they had recently purchased. They had to move everything, including 10 cows, across fields since their use of the roads was still prohibited. The house on that property turned out to be a Godsend as a safe haven for Dutch refugees as no German soldier cared to check it out at the end of a long, dark, muddy lane for fear of a surprise ambush from “the enemy.” While living there, the deRooses were given orders by the Germans what crops (heavy in potatoes) they could or could not plant, and the Germans claimed most of the potatoes for their own use at harvest time.

During the winter of 1944-1945, many city people were starving and often came looking for a farm that might give them food. During the summer, city kids who didn’t get enough to eat would come and stay with the deRooses. The family attended a small Dutch church. In the spring of 1943, some of the farmers, fed up with their oppressors started a rebellion. The Germans came to their farms, took captive 18 of the men, two of whom attended the same church as the deRooses, killed them and buried them in a mass grave. During this time, an underground was started to harbor refugees from the Germans. They armed themselves for possible confrontation and were sometimes successful in setting Dutch prisoners free. People from the underground often stayed with the deRoos family.

After the war ended, Sandra’s mom stayed on the farm for the next eight years. Her oldest son helped her keep things running. Mom herself milked 12 cows. About that time they learned that Canada, friendly toward the Dutch and feeling they could help liberate them from the Germans, had invited the Dutch to immigrate to help with the Canadian fall sugar beet harvest. Dutch immigrants had to commit by contract to remain at least three years in Canada with decent wages and housing provided. Holland is a small country and was soon overcrowded by 20,000 returning refugees. The offer from Canada attracted the Sandra’s oldest brother. The rest of this close-knit family decided they would all go with him to Canada, unable to bear the thought of his being alone. Preparation for the journey included selling all that they owned, including their livestock, and staying with friends until their departure. Unfortunately, they were delayed when one of the sisters contracted pneumonia, and passage for the family was denied until x-rays proved she no longer had the disease.

On their ship, there were only 12 Dutch passengers; all others were German. They had been told the crossing would take eight days, but it actually took 12. On November 3, 1952, they landed at Halifax and were taken by train to their destination in Alberta. Their employer was a Ukrainian who spoke no English. Neither did the deRoos family. Sandra’s mother, who was then 51, learned to communicate with the boss and other workers. The house they were promised turned out to be little more than a shack with no inside doors. They hung curtains where doors should have been to acquire a degree of privacy. Work in the fields was strenuous and back-breaking. The beets, which were huge, had been turned up to the surface by a machine, but each one had to be lifted up to one’s knee so that any foliage could be whacked off with a curved knife. The beets had been planted in long rows that took two hours in one direction and two hours back on the opposite side to harvest.

When the harvest season was over, they were free to get other temporary jobs or take lessons if they chose. Sandra had worked hard to learn English and used that time to study social work and later took a course in hospice. She also became a licensed practical nurse. In 1956, she married Fred Fokkema, whom she had met at their Dutch church. They moved to Ontario and remained there for three years. During two years of that same period all of her siblings had also married. Later moves took Fred and Sandra to Edmonton, then Calgary and eventually in the spring of 1959 to Auburn, Washington, to be located near friends from a former church. They bought a two and a half acre plot, and Fred built their house by himself. In 1988, he was tragically killed by an electrocution accident at their home. Sandra remained there until 2005 when she saw an ad for an “Open House” invitation to see the plans for a new retirement home called Wesley Homes Lea Hill. She had been searching for a place for a friend, Margaret Wynstra, to live. After seeing the blueprints for the apartments and hearing the plans for the future, she signed up for herself. Margaret signed up later, and they both moved in on opening day in May of 2007.

By Betty Sperline, Wesley Homes Lea Hill resident

A Kitchen Oil Fire

Why does a grease fire do this? Water is heavier than oil and sinks to the bottom. It instantly becomes superheated, and the explosive force of the steam blows the burning oil up and out. On an open field, this plume became a thirty-foot-high fireball that resembles a nuclear blast. Inside the confines of a kitchen, the fireball hits the ceiling and fills the entire room.

At the Fire Fighting Training school, they demonstrate these results with a deep-fat fryer set on a fire field. An instructor dons a fire suit and uses an 8 oz. cup at the end of a 10 foot pole to toss water onto a grease fire.

Also, do not throw sugar or flour on a grease fire. One cup can create the explosive force of two sticks of dynamite.

GiveBIG is a one-day, online charitable giving event to inspire people to give generously to nonprofit organizations who make our region a healthier and more vital place to live. Each donation made on May 2nd will receive a pro-rated portion of the matching funds (or “stretch”) pool.

Find out more about GiveBIG.

Although I was born on Easter Sunday, Easter was not celebrated very extensively when I was a child. Family legend has it that Dad had a hard time keeping his mind on the sermon he was preaching that morning — he kept seeing his wife and new baby in their hospital room instead of the church around him.

Someone told me that because I was born on Easter I would have an Easter birthday every 11 years. I did when I was eleven but never again. Something was wrong with my informant’s calculations. Nevertheless, every year I look at March in my new calendar, just in case.

We have a set of snapshots, taken when my brother Bob and I were little (he about three and I about six) of us with our parents and Grandpa Gleason in the front yard of our ranch house. I suspect they were taken on Easter, as we are all dressed up.

We always had an Easter egg hunt, possibly before we went to town to church.  Mother must have dyed the eggs after we went to bed and put them out before we got up in the morning. After the initial hunt, Bob and I took turns, during the rest of the day, hiding them from each other and finding them all over again. Our front lawn was rarely mowed, and the shaggy grass made perfect nests. Dad raised rabbits, and the neighbors raised chickens and we knew damn well that rabbits didn’t lay eggs.

By the time we were school age we did the dyeing of the eggs on the Saturday before Easter. I think our parents still put them out for us to find. I learned how to make stuffed hard-boiled eggs at a young age. Only eggs that had become badly cracked and dirty from much re-hiding were discarded. Mother also taught us how to blow eggs; they were fragile, but they lasted longer than cooked ones.

I can’t remember much about Easter during our years in Spokane. We usually were invited to dinner out at one of the near-by Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) camps, where Dad — in his role as district chaplain — conducted a very simple, non-denominational Easter service.

During my college years at WSC [Washington State College, now Washington State University (WSU)] I had a roommate named Shoupy who was very active in a campus youth group. They organized an Easter sunrise service every year, on the east-facing grassy slope behind Agony Hall, the music building. March sunrises in the Palouse country tend to be rather chilly and sometimes frosty affairs, and the Easter services were not very well attended. I went to support Shoupy and fill out the crowd, but even warmly dressed, I found it a bit of an endurance contest.

When our three girls were little, my husband Joe and I also dyed and hid Easter eggs. We had a big yard with lots of good places for hiding eggs. Our daughters soon took over the job of egg dyeing, usually with packaged dyes from the grocery store, but later we experimented with home-made dyes from onion peels, spinach, grape juice, etc. Sometimes we tied the eggs in rags with interestingly shaped leaves, to imprint a design on them.

I have pictures of the girls in their best dresses, as they hunted for Easter eggs. Kids grow so fast that I made a new set of spring dresses every year and sometimes one for myself. One year my mother-in-law beat me to it and bought them dresses all around. She usually came for dinner on Easter.

At present, we have no little kids to hunt Easter eggs, but my oldest daughter still dyes a few to use for table decorations when she has the family to dinner.

The Wesley Homes Lea Hill residents are seeking donations of fabric, so this is a great opportunity to go shopping or reduce your fabric stash. They will also need folks to cut fabric, sew, iron, etc. For those who don’t sew, you can purchase a pre-made pillowcase and drop it off.

The Create a Smile project is sponsored by the Auburn Valley YMCA. See below for more details and pillowcase information.

Jane Shafer

Jane Shafer is a former president of local and state League of Women Voters and is an active member of the Washington State Historical Society for over 20 years. At age 78, Jane staffs the information desk at the History Museum in Tacoma, WA, on Saturday afternoons. In her spare time, she is documenting the history of her family.

“I am starting by writing the story of my husband and me,” she said.  She will record stories of her early childhood memories in Alaska, her father’s adventures building the first Narrows Bridge and her family roots in Washington State and Idaho.

One of Jane’s more memorable experiences as president of the League of Women Voters was in 1980 when the League lobbied the state to form a commission for redistricting. “Redistricting is supposed to be done every 10 years,” explained Jane, “but it didn’t always happen.”

Her position as League president required her to speak on the topic of redistricting to various groups and testify before committees at the state legislature.  “It turned out to be an extremely hot issue,” recalled Jane.

When the commission’s first redistricting plan was done, Jane managed to get an early copy.  “As I was in the lobby reading the plan, people were trying to buy it from me,” she said.

An accomplished speaker and subject expert, Jane last took the stage at an event commemorating March Women’s History Month in 2009.  She was asked to present an hour-long speech, titled “Why I Vote”, before an audience of men and women correction facility workers.

Jane has been a resident of Wesley Homes Des Moines since 2004. “I came here because I had so many family members here,” she said. “My great uncle was one of the first wave of people to move into the Gardens Building. My mother lived here from ’73 to ’86.  And my husband’s cousin, the minister who married us, still lives here.”

Jane has always been a person you could count on to get things done. We owe much to women like Jane, who demonstrate the tenacity, courage and resiliency of women.

For more information on the history of women’s voting rights in WA State, attend Did women really get the right to vote in Washington State? This entertaining and lively presentation by noted author and historian Kit Bakke is sponsored by Southwest King School Retirees’ Association on Tuesday, May 1st at 10:00 a.m. at Wesley Homes Des Moines.

Nixie Van Selus

Nixie Van Selus devoted her time and energy for over 30 years to helping teenage parents in Auburn stay in school and learn how to take care of their children.

In the early ‘90s, Nixie received a call from the principal of Off-campus High School (now known as West Auburn High School) imploring Nixie to volunteer in the classroom of Irene “Pixie” Reiten, an educator selected to head up a new program to teach teenage parents how to take care of their children.

“The principal said to me, ‘We need someone to be a mother figure to these kids raising kids’,” said Nixie, “and so I did, for 30 plus years.”

“Many of these girls had babies out of wedlock and were struggling with their grades trying to make something of their lives,” said Nixie.

As a volunteer, Nixie worked alongside Reiten. There was an onsite day-care that provided an environment of supervised, hands-on training on how to care for young children, including proper nutrition.

“The parents were expected to go into the day-care and devote an hour or so to their own child and to help in the care of all the young children there. And so they were learning how to handle the babies,” she said.

When asked about the teenage parents, Nixie explained, “At first it was just girls, mostly unwed mothers between the ages of 14 and 17, but then we started getting boys in the class, too: fathers and some married couples.

“The program was started with just a few girls, maybe 10, who were having trouble in the regular school system. They might drop out, or did drop out, and they were given a second chance to attend this off-campus school to work at their own level and graduate,” said Nixie.

“Most of them didn’t have any home life at all; they were from dysfunctional families,” recalled Nixie. “So at Christmas, I started inviting them to my house for a Christmas party (because most of them had never been to a Christmas party).

“We’ve had as many as 50 kids in our home for these parties. We’d serve food (lasagna was their favorite), we’d have presents for the kids and they’d always take packages of cookies home with them.  It was a real fun thing.”

Nixie gave these teenage parents hope and help when the odds were against them.

“Thirty-six years later when Pixie retired, so did I,” said Nixie.

Nixie is a resident of Wesley Homes Lea Hill. She and her husband moved in when it first opened. “Living up here is like living in a different world; everybody is friendly and cares for one another,” says Nixie. “It’s wonderful here.”

Women like Nixie bring to mind the Van Buren Benny song “Heart”: You’ve gotta have heart – Miles ‘n miles of heart.

–Ilene Little

Downsizing to Simplicity: Right-size your life one step at a time

Whether you are planning a move or you just need to de-clutter, this entertaining presentation will help you begin the process of discarding, giving away or selling those extra belongings. Presented by Eric Rovner, Easy Transitions by Benevia. Be sure to RSVP to receive your gift certificate for a free downsizing consultation!

Wesley Homes Des Moines – The Terrace Auditorium
Thursday, March 8, 2012, 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
RSVP to 206-824-5000
Wesley Homes Lea Hill – Eby Lodge Assembly Hall
Friday, March 23, 2012, 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
RSVP to 253-876-6000

Preview your new home at the Village Home Open House on Tuesday and Wednesday, April 24 and 25 from 1:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m. at Lea Hill in Auburn. This is a great time to take a leisurely stroll through available accommodations and familiarize yourself with your new neighborhood.

Did you know that in the 21st century, more retirements will fail for non-financial reasons than will fail because of inadequate finances? Explore the non-financial side of Retirement Planning with Kathryn Garnett, Conference Director of Lay Speaking Ministries for the United Methodist Church. Kathryn will help you retire from work — not life — at Living Life with Meaning and Purpose on Thursday, April 26th from 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. at Wesley Homes Des Moines in The Terrace Auditorium. Call 206-824-5000 to RSVP.

Noted author and historian Kit Bakke details the history of women’s voting rights in WA State during Did women really get the right to vote in Washington State? This entertaining and lively presentation is sponsored by Southwest King School Retirees’ Association on Tuesday, May 1st at 10:00 a.m. at Wesley Homes Des Moines in The Terrace Auditorium. Everyone is welcome!

Health can be fun and informative! Attend the Wesley Homes Health Fair on Wednesday, May 16th from 9:00 a.m. – noon at Wesley Homes Des Moines. Experience the humor of 92-year-old comedian Georgie Bright Kunkel. Get information from guest speakers on holistic health, caring for the caregiver, choosing the right Medicare plan and what to do when your body gets the blues. Plus enjoy a cooking demonstration using healthy ingredients. Check out our April eWesley for more details about guest speakers and exhibits. No RSVP required.

At Wesley Homes’ Lunch and Learn, you’ll enjoy a tasty meal and view this month’s featured accommodations. Join us on Thursday, March 15th at Des Moines or Friday, March 16th at Lea Hill. Space is limited, so reserve your seat today! RSVP to 206-824-5000 for Des Moines and 253-876-6000 for Lea Hill.

“We both had one-of-a-kind sculptures from the same artist in our homes, so right off the bat we had something in common,” said Millard.

Martha and Millard met 4-1/2 years ago when they both became founding residents of Wesley Homes Lea Hill. They lived across from each other in Village Homes. Though they were friendly, neither had much contact with the other until they were both on the Wesley Homes Lea Hill Resident Council together.

“There was a party that needed to be planned, so I volunteered Millard to be the party chair,” said Martha. At the time, Millard was in Alaska and had quite the surprise when he returned!

After that, they’d walk to breakfast together as neighbors. Millard began asking Martha out to dinner, but she kept telling him no. This became a weekly ritual until Martha finally said yes. “I got tired of telling him no,” she laughed. On their first date, “He talked all night! I couldn’t get a word in.”

Millard’s intelligence [he holds doctorate, master’s and bachelor’s degrees], personality and sense of humor won Martha over.

They knew they had to tell their friends and neighbors about their relationship and invited them over for dinner. “They said they already knew because Millard started dressing better, and his hair was combed,” said Martha.

When Millard’s daughter was about to get married, the couple realized they would have to take an overnight trip. The question of whether or not they should get married was simplified by Bud, Millard’s oldest son. Before their spouses passed away, both Martha and Millard had taken care of their spouses during illnesses. Once Bud posed the question, “Are you ready to take care of each other?” the couple knew their answer: yes!

They were married in April 2009 in Renton, WA, with 450 people attending their reception at Wesley Homes Lea Hill. “It was wonderful to see everyone dressed up. We always see them in their everyday clothes,” said Martha.

And how would their families blend? Millard has five children, but Martha has none. “She told me ‘Don’t smother me with your kids’ and I told her ‘Don’t isolate me from my kids.’ Now she thinks more of my kids than I do!” said Millard.

“We’ve found a happy balance,” agreed Martha.

That happy balance includes blending their active lives. They are deeply involved in Wesley Homes Lea Hill activities. Martha is now head of the Resident Council, and the couple support Wesley Homes Foundation’s fundraising. Martha, a NASBLA Boating Educator Award winner for Washington State, takes Millard on fishing trips to local lakes. Millard has gotten Martha involved in the Boeing Bluebills, a volunteer organization close to his heart.

Millard recalled his second date with Martha, a lunch at Salty’s in Redondo. “My kids called me 12 times, but I didn’t answer,” he said. His sole attention was on his lady love.