American Legacies Organization, Inc.

by Ursula Furi-Perry

The letter came as a surprise. It originated in Hungary, and that could only mean Mama sent it. Yet the loopy letters on the outer envelope looked nothing like her handwriting. Perplexed, I opened it---only to be confronted by a gray and grim death certificate.

She had been sick, my step-grandfather wrote. She died in her sleep, peacefully and most likely quickly. She didn't suffer any more than the usual nausea and aches that came with her kidney failure.

Franklin D. Roosevelt was born in Hyde Park, New York on January 30, 1882, the son of James Roosevelt and Sara Delano Roosevelt. His parents and private tutors provided him with almost all his formative education. He attended Groton (1896-1900), a prestigious preparatory school in Massachusetts, and received a BA degree in history from Harvard in only three years (1900-03). Roosevelt next studied law at New York's Columbia University. When he passed the bar examination in 1907, he left school without taking a degree.

WWII Trivia

1. The first German serviceman killed in WW II was killed by the Japanese (China, 1937); the first American serviceman killed was killed by the Russians (Finland 1940), the highest ranking American killed was Lt. Gen. Lesley McNair, killed by the US Army Air Corps.

2. The youngest US serviceman was 12-year-old Calvin Graham, USN. He was wounded and given a Dishonorable Discharge for lying about his age. (His benefits were later restored by act of Congress.)

Nanny’s Chocolate Cake

Emma Wike nee Feaster

1907-1974

Fredricksburg, PA

Sift these ingredients together.

1 ½ C flour

1 ¼ C sugar

1 tsp. soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp. salt

½ C cocoa

Melt together & mix with above ingredients.

2 eggs

½ C shortening

1 C hot water

Grease & flour oblong pan and pour mixed ingredients into pan.

Bake @ 350 for 30 minutes.

Submitted by her son

William H. Wike

Grandma's Kitchen

Cleaning Tips from the
Ole’ Days that Really Work
By: Dr. Zoe L. Simmons

Every new month that passes by, a new commercial with a new cleaning chemical agent comes out. Before you know it, you’re spending several hundred dollars just to clean your home. What happened to the good ole’ days of just simple cleaning remedies?

BY MSGT.- retired, HOWARD A. (DOC) ELLIS

MORENO VALLEY, CA., USA:

By Betsy Gilbert

Too bad Mark Twain isn’t around today. If he were, chances are he would have added Margaret Brooks to Huck, Tom, Jim and Becky’s gang and moved them off the Mighty Mississippi. Her life along the Missouri River certainly qualifies her for honorary membership in their adventurous club.

How many retired school teachers have spent a decade as a cook and the only woman on a towboat? Not alot, one wagers. But Brooks did, and counts those ten years among the most interesting and rewarding in her rich life.

By Laura Jean Bhadra

There are no manuals on how to be a mother. The majority of new moms have quick access to the most natural teacher, their own moms via phone calls, emails, or a short drive. However, for those of us whose mothers are dead or otherwise unavailable, we must turn to other mom-like influences, parenting classes, or the memories of how our mothers parented us. This last is what I find myself reflecting and relying upon time after time as I face the challenges and joys of raising my own family.

If a Tree can Grow in Brooklyn,

a Bush can Grow in the Bronx

By Pearl Hoffman

My maternal grandparents immigrated from Russia to America in 1893. When my grandfather was interviewed at Ellis Island, the first question he was asked was his name.

July 4th family picnic

July 4th is an exciting time in Gettysburg. We have the famous reinactors in town in full costume. The women dress in those full gowns. I really do not see how they walk in the dresses. They are very long and they have the big hats and hair wrapped in a net which helps keep their long hair from blowing.