Michael's Parents:
Malcolm LaVerne Tieman b. 20 Feb. 1926 d. 5 Jan 2011 m. 30 Dec 1944 to
Doris Earline Morrill b. 12 Nov 1924 d. 9 Mar 2003
"I'm 82 years young I was born Malcolm LaVerne Tieman of the parents of Malcolm Sommer Tieman and Viola Marie Reitz Tieman on Feb 20, 1926 at St. Joseph Hospital in Lee County , Keokuk Iowa . I weighed 13 lbs. at birth. When I was 3 years old I came down with polio which I don't remember. My dad took me to Dr. Northup a friend of the family and I was given a complete body massage for one hour a day 7 days a week for a year. It cost my parents $1 a day which in those depression days would be like $100 a day in this day. In those days there was no health insurance available. The only deformity I have is my left thumb is crooked and left arm smaller than my right arm. But luckily I can use my hand.
Keokuk was named after Chief Keokuk of the Sioux Indian Tribe which settled there.
The Mississippi river is a mile wide and I used to swim & fish in the summertime. When I was 6 years old my grandfather, Don Morrill and I would fish by the dam about 500 ft. from the closed spillway and catch catfish and perch. It was great sport. Don would clean them and had a delicious dinner. (Some confusion here as Don was not his grandfather, but his father-in-law, could he have meant his grandfather Fred Reitz?) Every summer I would spend the summers at my grandfather's farm in Kahoka , MO. a hour drive south of Keokuk. I fed pigs also rode on back of pigs and young calves - didn't stay on long, but was fun. Also learned to hunt small game and got to be a good shot - my uncles Fred and Floyd Hewitt taught me how to shoot.
Beverly was born 3/15/47 Richard was stillborn 1/28/48
In 1941 USA declared war on Japan Dec 7, 1941. I was drafted in the Army which I was a senior in High School. I graduated on June 6, 1944 from Keokuk Senior High and was in service on June 30, 1944 in Fort Dodge , Iowa . I was sent to Fort Leonardwood , MO. for army basic training for 6 weeks. I was then sent to Buckley Field in Denver , CO. for 6 weeks of gunnery school. We had to take apart and reassemble a 50cal. machine gun blind folded in 3 minutes.
While in high school I met your mother Doris Earline Morrill - fell in love with her and we got married on Dec. 30, 1944 in Kahoka , MO by justice of peace. Don & Alta, Dee 's parents drove us in a blinding snow storm - it was so bad Don had to look out the window so he could see out that night. Of course my mother was crushed because I was only 18 & Dee was 20 - Dad was for us.
Dee was a Registered Nurse just graduating from nurses training of 3 years in1945, she was only the second student in Iowa 's history to score 98 on her state board test.
On Christmas Eve 1945 I was in a convoy going through Paris France in a severe thunderstorm. It was cold, 38, we had no canopy over our heads - we were wet and hungry. We arrived in the Black Forest where we slept in tents - got food and dry clothes & boots. Stayed 2 days. Then we went to a small village called Furstenfeldbrook which is south of Munich - helped guard SS troops with the Polish guards - who broke open barrels of denatured alcohol and of course died within minutes. Horrible site to see. Then I was shipped to a supply depot out of Munich and stayed till I was sent home in June of 1946. I had an honorable discharge from the 9th Army Air Corp as a Staff Sgt.
Your mother met me in Chicago where we stayed at the Waldorf Astoria for a week. Saw Liberachie play piano before before he became famous. Came back to Keokuk - your mom had rented an upstairs apt. on 16th & Main St. I went to work for J.C. Penney Co. Walked 16 blocks to work one way 2x a day. We had a little fan - it was really hot - your mom worked at St. Joseph Hospital .
I earned a yearly membership at the YMCA by working in the summer teaching boys ages 6 to14 years how to swim in the winter on Saturday I coached a boys basketball team same ages with another coach while in the 9th to 12th grade at Keokuk High. I also worked at J.C. Penney as stock boy and marked merchandise after school and all day Saturdays. Mr. J.C. Penney visited our store in 1948 - he drove himself from Missouri to Keokuk which was a 2hr. drive - on that Father's Day he worked on the floor with the men selling merchandise - I had the pleasure of working next to him - He could call you by your first name after only hearing it once - a remarkable man and mind - He had 3 sons who he made to work for a living as he never gave them any allowance - he remarked you learn more by doing than have someone support you.
Michael was born Aug. 20, 1950 When Beverly was 4 years old - she would take her chair & coloring book and crayons and sit on the corner and color. Grandma Alta lived across the corner from her - none dare touch her, our Caesar , G. Alta's red cocker spaniel would take them in a minute. The neighbors and friends of ours could talk to her but don't touch. Crazy - but that's the way it was.
Beverly went to school at Garfield School and then I was transferred to Freeport , Illinois , next to Wisc. boarder, where we lived between 4-5 years- then we moved to Elgin , Illinois -with Penney's Every year Freeport did a presentation of the Lincoln & Douglas debate - everyone in the city of 25,000 dressed in costumes of that era - this lasted one week - and on Sat. had a big parade of horses & oxen pulling covered wagons - bands & clowns - a big day for Freeport - these were fun times.
Connie was born in Freeport in August 5, 1958. It was so cold in Elgin, Ill. -20degrees below zero and 5 - 6 feet of snow from Nov. til April - we had red flags on our car antennas so we could see who was turning the corners. Snow plows kept the main streets open all winter - thank God for that. Beverly & Michael walked 4 blocks to school, snow drifts so high we could not see them when they were walking.
In Akron, Ohio, Beverly put snow on Michael's face and froze his cheeks. Mom spanked her little butt and she never did it again - It took years before his cheeks healed up. Beverly graduated from Buchtel High School in Akron - when I quit Penney's and joined Buckeye Mart in Columbus .
Moved from Columbus to Akron where I managed stores for Scotts 5-10. 1962 and'63. Every year in Aug. the city had movie star celebrities come in for the Soap Box Derby race - the one Beverly & Michael was Hoss, Little Joe and Loren Green - they stopped in front of Scotts and I got their autographs but they got lost over the years. We moved from Columbus where Michael graduated from high school and started art school to Mass. with Ben Franklin stores and back to Akron a second time to Ellet where I worked for Prudential Insurance 15 years until 1991.
When Beverly was 18 she went to nursing school at City Hospital in Akron for 3 years then graduated as a registered nurse. She met Bill Starr while in nurses training. He had a red convertible which Connie liked to ride in. Bill was at college in Youngstown where he graduated as a Civil engineer. They were married for 21 years, had Nicole & Amy she then got divorced - Bill met another woman. Bill worked at Kodak in Rochester NY till he retired at age 55. He now lives 1 1/2 hours from Dallas . Beverly & Bill lived in Texas once before 1976-1982 - kids were little - 4-5 years old. Mom and I went down there for Xmas a couple of times.
I retired on April 1st 1991 from Prudential Insurance Company - after 15 years service - I enjoyed every minute of it. Mom and I bought a house in Akron and lived there 20 years in Ellet, suburb of Akron where Connie graduated from High School. We sold home and rented an apt. in Cuyahoga Falls across from golf course - When your mom passed away on 3/9/03. I moved to Danbury Retirement Home on April 22, 2008."
