MOM’S MEMOIRS – IRENE LOUISE (NEE KUCKKAN) MUELLER
(Continued)

Mom’s Autobiography – Chapter 35 – In Book, Page 84

Steve Go-Carting, Abiding Savior’s Balcony Opened, Church Fellowship Outings, Winter Texan Day in Progreso, Mexico, Pastor Bolda Installed, We Moved out of Parsonage, Our Trip Back to Wisconsin, Precious Moments Chapel, Visited Mark Twain’s Boyhood Home, The Wedding of Ann Margaret Seifert and David Glen Wilson, Juvenile Diabetes, Steph’s Diabetes Diary, Walking for the Cure, Lecturing for Cure, Effects of Diabetes, Summer in Wisconsin, Pioneer Park, Waupun, Merrill, Camp Phillip

On February 11, 1996, Steve drove a Miniature Replica Indy-style car, number 9, for the Monitor, the newspaper for which he worked, in The Arthritis Foundation 1996 Mini Grand Prix race in downtown McAllen, Texas. The realistic mini cars feature high-styled fiberglass bodies and are equipped with five-horsepower Briggs and Stratton gasoline engines. Top speeds are approximately 22 miles per hour. In the last eight years, the Mini Grand Prix raised over $8 million for the Arthritis Foundation. It was an exciting and fun-filled race, and we took many pictures and even a video of Steve driving the car. It reminded us of when he had a go-cart when he was a child, and sped along in the parking lot of Coventry School in Crystal Lake, while I held my breath.

But, the never-ending work for our dear Lord went on. I will never forget when the Builders for Christ, many of them Winter Texans, cut a hole in the storage wall above the entry of the church on February 23 and 24, 1996. The hole got bigger and bigger until it was the shape of the balcony! The Builders for Christ also built a railing for the balcony and stairs leading up to it. And what a thrill it was to watch the men hoist the organ up to the balcony on March 23, 1996. (It should be noted here that Mr. Roy Zastrow, one of the Builders, is from my home church, St. Mark’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, Watertown, Wisconsin. Dick and I remember him scrubbing and cleaning the balcony floor on his hands and knees. His wife, Betty, also helped much in the work of the renovating of Abiding Savior. The Zastrows came down to the Valley for the winter from Watertown, and lived at Southern Comfort, one of the “parks”). As Dick always says, “THE LORD WILL PROVIDE”!

Once a month members of the congregation and we went to a restaurant for a delicious meal and Christian fellowship. One of the favorite restaurants in the Valley was Luby’s, but there are many other restaurants, including Mexican, where we enjoyed wonderful unforgettable times together. Dick and I also went to Seven Oaks Resort And Country Club in Mission (where Steve and Rebecca were living in our condo) to visit them and also go swimming in the huge swimming pool and sit in the wonderful Jacuzzi in the middle of the pool. There were two bridges over the pool so as to get to the Jacuzzi. It was a great place to go and relax.

“Winter Texan Day” was a memorable day in Progreso, Mexico. It was the day each year when the Progreso people would go all out for the winter Texans. There would be all kinds of delicious Mexican food, parades, entertainment (I love the Mariachi music), etc. We went, too, on March 21, 1996, and had a wonderful time. The businesses gave out colorful buttons, ribbons, cards, little hats, etc. to pin onto clothing or whatever (ours are pinned on a lamp shade). Some of the Winter Texans had their clothing full of them. We have 14 of them – a lovely remembrance of our happy times in Progreso.

Abiding Savior had called Pastor James Bolda, and he accepted the Call. His wife’s name is Joy, and his children’s names are Jace and Jenna. His Installation was to be on June 23, 1996. Dick retired on June 16, 1996, so the congregation had a barbecue dinner with a farewell cake for us which read, “Well done, good and faithful servant” – Matthew 25:21 – “God bless and keep you. Return safely to us.” One of the blessings on that day was an adult confirmation. Connie Hovda (Mrs. Hans Hovda) was confirmed. Dick had instructed her, and she was received into the communicant fellowship of Abiding Savior during the worship service (not long ago, June 18, 2008, Connie and one of their daughters, Kaitlin, who was quite small when we were still in Weslaco, came to visit us at our condo at 1520 Lakeside Terrace, Watertown, Wisconsin. What a joyful visit we had with them. Grownup Kaitlin was in a golf tournament in Wisconsin, and so they took the opportunity to visit us, too!)

We had moved our belongings out of the parsonage so that it could be gotten ready for Pastor Bolda and his family, and had put them in storage at “The Best Little Warehouse In Texas” in McAllen. Very kind members, Mr. Ev and Mrs. Alice Somers offered their very comfortable mobile home at Llano Grande Lake Park in Mercedes, not far from Weslaco, for us to live in until we went back to Wisconsin. We lived there for about a month until we left the Valley on June 21, 1996.

OUR TRIP BACK TO WISCONSIN

On the way back we stopped at the spectacular Precious Moments Chapel Center at Carthage, Missouri. Many of the ladies in our family collect Precious Moments figurines, and also have gifted us with some very beautiful ones, so we wanted to see the place where they were created. Mr. Samuel Butcher, who created it, invites people to the Chapel by saying on the brochure, “I would like to invite you to experience the peace, beauty, and comfort of this unique place which I created to honor the Lord and to be a blessing to you”. There is the Chapel itself, adorned with magnificent Biblical murals, stained glass windows, wood carvings and bronze work, intricate wrought iron gates, and a touching mural presentation, “Will You Be Ready When Jesus Comes?” There is also a visitors’ center, Best Western Precious Moments Hotel, gift shop, restaurant, free music shows, wedding chapel, etc. We weren’t there very long, but what we saw was so interesting, especially to see artists at work. I took many pictures which are in Album Number 48, 1996.

We also stopped in Hannibal, Missouri, and took a tour through Mark Twain’s (Samuel Langhorne Clemens) boyhood home, a small white clapboard house, on Hill Street. The inside of the house, especially the furniture, reminds me of the houses I lived in when I was growing up. It is located only two blocks from the Mississippi River. It began Twain’s life-long love affair with the River and later led to a career as river pilot and provided material for several books. One of his books is “Life On The Mississippi”, and two of his most famous ones are “Tom Sawyer” and Huckleberry Finn”.

THE WEDDING OF ANN MARGARET SEIFERT AND DAVID GLEN WILSON

Ann and David were married on July 7, 1996. The wedding took place in Good Shepherd Evangelical Lutheran Church in Midland, Michigan, the church where Ann’s father is Pastor. He and Dick officiated at the wedding service. Many family members participated in the service. Everyone looked so beautiful and handsome. Steph did a great job of organizing the reception entertainment. Steph and Jeff’s little daughter, Samantha, was the sweet little 4-year old flower girl, but was not feeling well.

JUVENILE DIABETES !

When they got back to Calgary, Canada, they were absorbed in conducting VBS (Vacation Bible School.). On the 4th day – as quoted from Steph’s book – “a quiet woman from our church sheepishly walked into the church area and said, “Stephanie, I think something is wrong with Sammy”. As any mom would do, my reaction was to head for her. Had she fallen outside? Was she cut? What did her brothers do to her now? “No, Steph, she’s okay right now, but I think something has been wrong for awhile.” Steph and Jeff made an appointment with the doctor, and found out that Sammy has Juvenile Diabetes.

What follows is all related in Steph’s book, “ALWAYS PERFECT’. Please read it. It is so heart-wrenching and tells of all the whole family had to learn to deal with the “disease”. They did not know what Juvenile Diabetes is, and neither did her Mom and Dad, and probably many others in the family. Dick’s Dad had Diabetes 2, but we were in Africa at the time he and Mom Mueller were dealing with it, so we did not know what Diabetes 2 or Juvenile Diabetes is ourselves. If we had known, we would have been on a plane and gone to Calgary to comfort and help our loved ones.

Steph and Sammy have gone to schools and lectured about Juvenile Diabetes. They have made videos to educate people about it. Also, they organized a “Walk For The Cure”, inviting people to be a part of it and support it by wearing a “Sammy’s Strollers” T-shirt with her picture on it. They have lectured to the Diabetes Foundation. Sammy was, and is, making a difference!

We thank the Lord that progress has been made, and instead of all the shots Sammy had to have every day, she now wears a pump which feeds the insulin into her body. But that is not infallible. Not too long ago, in the year 2008, Sammy was in a swimming relay and was swimming in the water when she blacked out. The pump had failed. She had to be pulled out of the water, and thankfully, Stephanie, her Mom, was on hand to give her a shot of insulin. Sammy is quite a trooper, thanks be to God, and the next morning was off to swimming practice! Please keep Steph, Jeff, Travis, Mitchell, and Sammy in your prayers. They have gone, and still do, go through some very traumatic times. Pray for a cure!

It was summertime in Wisconsin, so we were able to live in our trailer at Pioneer Park, Lake Delton, Wisconsin. It was a wonderful time to visit with our relatives and friends. We were in Waupun when Sue and Tim’s children, Chris, Julie, and Matt took part in a fishing contest. How thrilled they were when they caught some good-sized fish! We went to a spectacular air show in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, (which is a yearly event) with Tim, Sue, and their children. We had taken chairs and sat on the edge of the air field watching the show. It was fantastic!

After visiting with our loved ones in Waupun, we went to Merrill, Wisconsin, to visit the Weilands. We always marvel at the old courthouse there in the town square. We were there on the day Jim went to donate blood. He also went to meet one of the actors on the hit show MASH. How disappointed he was when he met an impersonator of the actor. They took us to Camp Phillip, Wautoma, Wisconsin, a Wisconsin Synod Lutheran “camp” where girls and boys get together for Christian fellowship. Jimmy was going to stay there for awhile. The boys slept in tents which looked like “wigwams”. They have very meaningful devotions for the children and adults there.