ftanderson

Our Anderson Family Connection

Anderson ~ Bennett ~ Benitez ~ Bingham ~ Black ~ Blaker ~ Brown ~ Buckley ~ Bunnell ~ Burwell ~ Chek ~ Cseh ~ Cogswell ~ Crabtree ~ Crawshaw ~ Critchfield ~ Darrough ~ Devine ~ Englehaut ~ Garwood ~ Gehr ~ Grow ~ Hoschouer ~ McArthur ~ McMurtrie ~ Millen ~ Newberry ~ Herrington ~ Hickcox ~ Hutchinson ~ Madison ~ Madison ~ March ~ Robinson ~ Peden ~ Monroe ~ Pruett ~ Piet~ Rodriguez ~ Stice ~ Sutcliffe ~ Warren

Our families come from Arkansas, Indiana, Missouri, Oklahoma, Nebraska, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia and dates back to 1895 in Kansas. We also came from Austria, Ireland, Scotland, Hungary, Germany, and England. Traditionally, the last name can tell a lot about your heritage. The last name often told where you came from and the class of your family. We haven’t kept that tradition; and so it isn’t as easy to tell much about a person from their last name these days.

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My Forever Family

I found my forever family in Betty and Ivan Blaker. They let me move in on a “trial basis” and gave me the stability, guidance and the love parents are suppose to give to their children. For the first time in my life, I actually felt like I belonged where I was. I was finally part of a forever family. Betty and Ivan showed me what a family is suppose to be like. They showed me how to become part of a family and learn to relax and enjoy the love it had to offer. I learned my parenting skills and even my grand-parenting skills from them. I will be forever grateful for the guidance and love they gave to a lost little girl.

I had always longed for a “forever family” that would love me for “me” and meet my needs and be my “parents” ever since I was a little girl. I had moved around all my life, not quite fitting in anywhere I lived, but I was really trying to find someplace that I could really belong. Ivan took the honors of “giving me away” on my wedding day. He shared his birthday with my oldest daughter and always made her feel so special that they had the very same birthday. Betty babysat the girls when they were little and I worked. They accepted me into their family as if I had been born into it. They always treated my girls as their granddaughters. Their parents were the first grandparents that I could remember having and they treated me as if I had always been a member of their family too. Up until just a few years ago, my daughters thought that Betty and Ivan were my real parents. I never spoke much of my past before then. All they knew is that Betty and Ivan were my parents and their grandparents. They were sad when someone said they weren’t their real grandparents and couldn’t believe that they weren’t their “real grandparents”. “Oh, don’t ever let your Grandpa hear you say that, it would break his heart.” They always have been and always will be my girls real grandparents!! They taught me to embrace holidays and enjoy every minute of them. They gave me the first birthday party I can remember. They never missed a single school play or musical that my girls were in. They always had something special for the girls for Easter and Valentines day. They are my “forever parents” and the best “forever family” anyone could ever possibly wish for! Before we really knew that Betty had Alzheimer’s; and while she was still coherent she told me that she and Ivan couldn’t love me anymore if I had been born to them and that she felt blessed to have me as her daughter and that she felt I was her real daughter. And, I told her I was the one who was blessed to have such wonderful parents! And, I felt like they were my real parents

Grandpa and Grandma Anderson

Mel Anderson (B. 1906) Worked in oilfield, railroad, farmer, carpenter, coop, county road crew. Mel’s dad was from Nebraska

Married Ruby Irene (B. 1915) Ruby made national news when she was the first woman elected to the city council in the 1920’s. Mel and Ruby made their home in New Albany. They had a large Apple Orchard on the edge of town. Mel had a rabbit that was box trained just like a cat. They accepted me into their family just as if I had been born into it. Well actually, Grandpa Anderson wasn’t too “keen” on the idea of a foster kid and made that known right up front. Until he met me and then he told Betty and Ivan, she’s a swell kid, she’s a keeper.
Children:

i. Betty (B. 1932)

ii. Melba (B. 1934)

iii. Don (B. 1936)

iv. Effie JoAnne (B. ___)

v. Jerry (B. ____)

vi. Melba Irene (B.___)

vii. Melvin Claude “Bud” (B.___)

viii. Nancy (B. 1952)

ix. Richard Dean “Rick” (B.___)

Betty Anderson married Ivan Loyd Blaker

Children:

i. Laura

ii. Susan

iii. Deborah (foster daughter-although I haven’t been called “foster” since the early 70’s)

Deborah Jean met xxxxxxx while home on leave from the U.S. Navy. They were married at United Methodist Church. The Reverend Dellenbaugh proceeded the ceremony. They had some very good years together.

Children:

o Jennifer married Jeremy

· Megan

· Jimmy

o Gayle married Larry (divorced); later married Eduardo (divorced)

· Lacy

· Christopher

· Alexis

· Madison

o Jamie married Kevin

· Kevin

· Novalie