My Heros Submitted byDale Ramsey Thanks Dale! |
It was Just Berl and Me...Berl being the youngest, I always wanted a sister,
but it never worked out to be. Berl and I really enjoyed each other growing up, but
seems when the time come for us to choose our future, we certainly took different paths. Berl took up farming in Washington County and I worked in communication overseas and all over the United States.
I guess the next Hero of mine in Newton County would be my Uncle Guy, he taught me lots when I was young. Uncle Ott protected me in school and kept the
bigger kids from beating me up.
Of course all my school teachers were Heros to me...Oma Kilgore, Beecher Clark, Norman Phillips, Lois Clark.
And I will always think of Hez Villines as one of my Heros. He had the little store there between Ponca and Boxley and was our neighbor. We lived there where the spring comes out from the bluff in the back yard of Hez and Minnie. Berl and I always went to Sunday School at Walnut Grove, and had to walk, but Hez had an old tractor sitting by his barn. He told us one day if we could get it running we could have it, so needless to say we got it running and we went to church on that tractor! Hez said he had no idea we could ever get that tractor to run as it had been sitting there for years. And he talked endless about how funny it was to see us riding on that old tractor to church. He was such great influence in our life. Of course Mom and Dad had to be top of the list...
The pictures were taken in front of Young's Grocery Store in Ponca, ran by my Grandpa, Lester Young.
Delia's given name was Flossie Cordelia Young, daughter of Lester and Rachel Spencer Young. She was born October 30, 1913 and died July 6, 1992. Audie was the son of LaSala and Leona Bean Ramsey. He was born December 1, 1914 and died January 9, 1982. Mom and Dad are buried at Summers Cemetery in Summers, Washington County, Arkansas.
Mom made all of our clothes and I remember how proud we were of those jackets she made for us that we are wearing in the picture.
My Dad hauled lead to Joplin, Missouri for two old miners that lived at the top of Ponca Mountain in an old cabin. They would dig lead from an old mine there and when they got a load, Dad would haul it to Joplin. The Miners were Doc Hedges and Ben Heuer. Ben was an old German and spoke hardly any English. On the trip to Joplin they had to cross a swinging bridge near Huntsville, Arkansas. When they got to the bridge Doc would tell Dad to stop and he would examine the bridge to make sure it was safe. He would slowly walk across the bridge kicking a plank occasionally and pulling on some of the cables. When he got to the other side he would holler and motion for Dad to proceed saying the bridge looks fine. He did that everytime, he didn't trust the bridge holding a heavy load of lead and would never be in the truck as it crossed the bridge. Dad told that story so many times and always got a laugh from it. After they sold the lead and got their check they would pay Dad for the hauling then they would spend the rest of it on groceries and whiskey. They would go back and start digging again hoping to get another load before their supplies ran out.
Of course this is just a small part of the people I remember there at Ponca that I had so much Love
and respect for. And so many laughs from some. Lot of comedy in some of those poeple there in Newton County years ago, some intentionally and some otherwise. Then we didn't have all these fancy gadgets to watch the world, we only had each other to watch and listen to, and we had to be able to laugh at ourselves.
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Take Care, Judy Tate