52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Week 52

Week 52:

The theme for Week 52 is “Memorable.” Who is memorable in your family? Who do you want to make sure isn’t forgotten? 

The end... I don't like endings. I can hardly believe this is my last blog post in this series. It's been a long and interesting 52 weeks. Special thanks to Samantha Dorm for inspiring me to embark on the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks journey.

Who do you want to make sure isn’t forgotten? My grandfather, Clair Edwin Gross. He was my best friend in the entire world. I only had him for 14 years, but he made the biggest impact of anyone I've ever known. I truly believe he was my person.

Clair Edwin Gross 

Born: 17 July 1929 Newberry, York, Pennsylvania

Died: 21 March 2009 The Carolyn Croxton Slane Residence, Harrisburg, Dauphin, Pennsylvania

Maternal grandfather 

Pap was kind and honest. He was probably the nicest person I've ever met, and everyone who knew him loved him. 

He was an accomplished baseball player, bowler, skater (ice skater and roller skater), could play cards with the best of them, and was an amazing golfer. 

Pap was a Korean War veteran. He was deployed to Germany to train the infantry and thankfully was never sent to Korea or saw action. After this career in the military, he worked at the Army Depot in New Cumberland, from which he retired. 

He was an amazing grandfather. He spent every evening at our house, eating dinner with us, helping us with homework, and teaching us to play pinochle. He took me to the Red Land Community Library to get my first library card and check out Kazan and Baree: Son of Kazan by James Oliver Curwood (his favorite books from grade school. He took us to play miniature golf at The Frosty Putter and took me to play the back 9 at Valley Green Golf Course for my ninth birthday. 

He came to every one of my softball and volleyball games, coaching from the sidelines. He came to every violin recital. 

We spent countless hours on his front porch swing, laughing and watching the world go by. He had thousands of jokes memorized and could tell the best stories. 

He would take me with him to Hollerbush's Garage and buy me hard pretzels and Coke from glass bottles while he and his friends would shoot the shit. 

One of my favorite memories is the fact that he would call our house every single night at 9 PM to say good night and that he loved me. 

Basically, every good childhood memory that I have is connected to my pap. The day I came home from school and was told that he had cancer turned my entire life upside down. He had pancreatic cancer and died a few short months after being diagnosed. 

Pap was one of a kind and I'll never meet another man like him. I'm incredibly blessed to have known him and to have been loved by him. I now have a tattoo with his signature on my bicep. I sleep on my side and usually lie my head on my arm. My head lies right over his signature. 

Who do you want to make sure isn’t forgotten? That was the easiest question I've answered in the entire 52 weeks. A perfect way to finish this journey. 


My pap is the little boy front and center 


Pap as a little boy, approx 3 years old 





Throwing snowballs in Germany 

At home with his nephew 









First day of kindergarten

Posing with his parents and sisters. His parents bought that swing on the day he was born. I know have it on my porch. 

If you look closely, he's waving from the swing






His signature and "love pappy" in his handwriting 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Reintroducing Jeremiah Miley Spahr, Sr

Image
Reintroducing Jeremiah Miley Spahr, Sr. For years, I've been searching for a photograph of Jeremiah and haven't been able to find one until today!  Looking through a drawer full of pictures, I found a photograph of Jeremiah amongst pictures of his daughter, Amanda.  Jeremiah Miley Spahr Sr 19 Jul 1840 – 26 Nov 1926 3rd great-grandfather Jeremiah Miley Spahr was born on July 19, 1840, in Warrington Township . Jeremiah Miley Spahr joined the military on September 19, 1861, in York, Pennsylvania, when he was 21 years old. Unfortunately, after the Third Battle of Winchester, Jeremiah's story takes a dark turn. https://a.co/d/40ArEsU https://yorkblog.com/cannonball/a-murder-in-warrington-townshi/ ARREST ON THE CHARGE OF MURDER. On Friday last, Jeremiah Spahr, Henry Spahr, Levi Reirer, Lewis Spaht, and Lewis Rester, of Warrington Township, York County, were arrested and brought to this Borough, charghed with killing a certain colored man whose name is unknown, but who came into t...
Read more

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Week 39

Image
Week 39: The theme for Week 39 is “Disappeared.” All of us have someone on our family tree who seems to have just disappeared. This is a good week to write about them. (Who knows – maybe writing about them will help you spot some gaps in your research and give you ideas on new places to look!) Martin Stanley Taylor Born: 24 Jul 1874 • Newberry, York, Pennsylvania, USA Death: ?? Arizona??  2nd great-grandfather Martin Stanley Taylor, my 2nd great-grandfather is the brick wall that I can't seem to break through. I know when and where he was born. I know that he abandoned my 2nd great-grandmother and their daughter. I know he moved to Ohio, remarried, and then settled in Arizona. I know that he outlived his second wife... but that is where the trail ends.  He disappears completely off the records.  I can't find a death certificate or a grave listing.  His first wife, Minnie, is buried at Paddletown Cemetery in Newberry Township. His second wife, Anna, is buried in her f...
Read more

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Week 6

Image
  Week 6: The theme for Week 6 is “Surprise.” What ancestor dealt with a surprising thing in their life? Any stories of surprise birthday parties? How about the most surprising thing you’ve found or something in a surprising place? I am the creator of the Facebook group, Preserving the History of Newberrytown. My family has ties to Newberrytown dating back to the 1700s, which was way before it was even called Newberrytown. My grandparents knew everyone. My parents knew everyone. I grew up knowing everyone. The joke was always, "Be careful who you date because you might be related!". A few years ago I attended a presentation at the Red Land Community Library. Scott Mingus, renowned Civil War author, was giving a talk on murder mysteries, based on his book Marauders & Murderers: Civil War Mysteries of York County, Pa.  Scott started recounting the story of  Jeremiah Miley Spahr , a soldier from Company H of the 87th Pennsylvania who had walked back to his home following...
Read more