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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Huron Expositor, 1985-07-10, Page 9Family follows its heart BY HEATHIERMcILW RAITH Some day they hope to make their return to Ontario permanent but in the meantime Rob and Marg Sallows and their children will live on memories revived during a recent three-week vacation here. It's been five years since the Sallows and their two children, Carly and Daniel, then aged six and four, left Egmendville and moved to a town called Kitimat, located on the northwest coast of British Columbia at the end of the Douglas Channel' and about 4() miles northwest of Vancouver. It was a move made out of a feeling that job security at the Bendix plant in Hensell, where. Mr. Sallows than worked, was only temporary. A job offer from Alcan, Aluminum Company of Canada Smelter, the second largest in the free world, and the promise of an all-eXpenie paid relocation to Kitimat, was too Much to turn doWn. And to date life in' Kitimat has been good. The Sallo'ws say they've enjoyed the last five years, but admit eventually they hope to return to Ontario, the province they'll always call home: "You can't spend 20 or 22 years somewhere and not call it home. It's where you did all your growing up. Coming back here will alw,ays,be coming home to us. This is where our hearts are,' commented Mr. Sallows, "It's just too bad there aren't the jobs to keep young people ie Ontario." ' The Sallows have found life in Kitimat to be very different from the life they lived in Egmondville. For one thing, they note, they are very isolated, located in a valley surrounded on one side by water, the other mountains and bush, `We're only a half day from Alaska," said , Mrs. Sallows. ' "And being so close to Alaska, and after seeing so much of Canada .travelling here, Kitimat is, really like the last frontier." Another difference the Sallows have noticed is in the weather, which is almost opposite of this area -- goal winters and. poor summers. Kitimat," said Mrs. Sallows. There we are, for example but in the boondocks, so to speak, and we have these great sports complexes, unlike anything you'd even see in cities such as Landon, Ontario. We've heard all kinds of comments froin visitors td Kitimat about how they've never seen anything like it in a town that size," said Mrs. Sallows. "Kitimat is very fitness oriented and the facilities are there for it, both natural and man-made. And at the rec centres, specifi- cally at River -Lodge, where I work, Alcan really gives its all. It holds six classes a week of to• aerobic exercise and they're free. As well it 'provides a weightroom at work for its employees and soy children because Rob works for Alcan can swirl for only 25 cents each," said Mrs. Sallows. One of the benefits of living in a place like Kitimat is the opportunities it offers because of its proximity to the ocean and the mountains.' One of the opportunities it offered Mr. Sallows was the chance to take up scuba diving. Interested in the sport even while living in Ontario, but unable to pursue the interest because of the expense of the sport, (Conti "The summers are lousy because there is a lot of rain but the winters are good, very mild, unlike the winters I remember in Huron ,-County," said Mr. Sallows. With a population of 13,000, unlike other towns its size Kitimat is a self-contained unit. In order to survive the town has to cater to its residents or lose them. And for the most part. . a lot of the needs are met through the efforts of Alcan, who chases to be very supportive of the community that is so vital to its operation. An employer of some 2,000 of the residents, Alcan, according to Mr. and Mrs. Sallows is responsible for putting a lot of activities and programs in place, at reduced cost to residents. "There's everything you need right in, FAMILY TRIP — The Sallows returned to Ontario for the first'time four weeks ago after a live-year absence. They live now in the northwestern coastal town of Kitimat, British Columbia. While Fn the Seaforth area they stayed with Jim and Janneke Murray and their children near St. Columban. Seen here are (bottom) Daniel, Marg and Rob Saltows and (top) Michelle. Murray, Carly Sallows and Morgan Murray, • (Mcilwraith photo) MAN FROM A TLANTI§? 7 Rob Sallow's, originally from Egmondville, has taken up Scuba' diving as one of his hobbies since moving to Kitimat, British Columbia. In a recent return to Ontario, Rob' got in a bit of diving at Tobermory. Although unlike the "Emerald Sea" or Pacific Ocean. he said Tobermory is a great spot to dive. • XPOS.itor SECOND - SEAFORM,.ONTARID, WEDNESDAY, JULY 10, 1985 — PAGES 81 - 88' I SECTION Cousins meet after 50 years DUBLIN MEETING—Marie Louise Melady, 76, of Dublin, recently had a cousin visit tier from Coppell, Texas. The cousins had never met each other, and after 50 years or so, Mrs. Melady's cousin spent time with her in Dublin, retracing the family's history. (Bader photo) BY ANDY BADER / Imagine meeting one of your cousins after 50 odd years. Two cousins who had never met did just that a couple of weeks.ago in Dublin. "We really had a ball," Marie Louise Melady said about the visit of her cousin Mary (nee Murray) Bohstedt, "She is really sociable--you know, the kind of person you like as soon as you meet her." • Mrs. I3ohstedt, 67, a native of Coppell, Texas (approximately 10 Minutes from Dallas) visited Mrs. Melady because she wanted to leans more about her family, who had spent time in Canada a long time ago. "It all4tarted," Mrs. Malady began, "wheivcmy uncle and aunt bought a farm in McKillop Township back in the mid 1800's. Matthew Murray was born in 1857 and he married Mary Holland in 1881. They farmed in McKillop Township until 1889, when Matthew's brother, John Murray, bought the farm. "John was my father," she vividly recalls., "Matthew was my uncle--Mary Bohstedt's grandfather. Mary was the daughter of Leo Murray, who was the son of Matthew and Mary. Mrs. Melady, a 76 year-old retired school teacher, had compiled a family tree a couple of years ago. With a little help from these books to help her refresh her memory, she remembered everything like it happened yesterday. She gOntinued her story, "Matthew and Mary had four kids while they were still in Canada," she said. "After they sold the farni,' they moved to Salix, Iowa. They had four more kids in the United States. "Noiv Mary wanted to meet her Canadian cousin since she had heard about the family originating here in Canada," said Mrs. Melady. "She wag needing information for a family tree of her own. She found all the necessary information from the Murrays in Iowa, but she didn't have any from the time spent here, "By a streak of luck, she contacted my sister-in-laW in Palm Springs, California. "My sister-in-law knew I had already made a family tree otthe Murrays here in Canada, so my sister-in-law referred her to me. That how it all began," Mrs. Melady said.' began," Mrs. Melady said. Naturally, Mrs, Bohstedt followed up on the tip from Mrs. Melady's sister-in-law in California, and wrote to her in Dublin around Easter of this year telling her who she was and what she wanted. "I mailed her a copy of my book which had ail of the family tree information in it," said Mrs. Melady. "When she received the book, I got a phone call from her that same day. On June 3 to June 10 she came to, visit." Mrs. Melady mentioned that it was hard for Mrs. Bohstedt to decide whether or not to come to Canada to visit a cousin she had never met or knew that well. When Mrs. Melady invited her to visit, they both were discouraged by the respective members of their families, "It was a tough decision for her to make," said Mrs. Melady (because her husband in Coppell wasn't in tbo good of health), "Her family started to talk her out of it, but her daughter told her one day to do what she wanted to do. That clinched it." "If you think you can't do it, you won't," Mrs. Melady said. "If you think you can, you/. Mrs. Melady, a teacher for 34 years Logan, McKillop and Hibbert Townships, was also having a tough time deciding whether or not to invite her cousin in the first place. The cheerfill, pleasant lady was happy she did. "She was a really informative talker," she said. "She had an incredible irish wit. She was sociable and pleasant. "During the mornings of her visit, I'd take her around to where her grandparents used to live," Mrs. Melady said. "I drove her around and showed her everything. • "In the afternoons and evenings, our relatives would visit," she said. "I'd invited them all to see her, and over 100 showed up throughout the week. "She left a tremendoug impression on all of my cousins. She also couldn't get over the friendliness, 'generosity and warmth the Editor's note: The following is a record of the visit of Mary Murray Bohstedt as felt by Marie Malady. BY MARIE M EIADY On Monday, June 3, I surveyed my garden with proud eyes. The geraniums, fushias and begonias were in full bloom, displaying their red and white beauty. Around the flowers, -I had placed my garden ornaments in the theme of fairytales: Old MacDonald's Farm, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and our Blessed lady, to oversee it all. Yes, everything was perfect to welcome my special guest. Slowly my thoughts drifted back to bur first distant meeting. Could my sister-in-law in California have told her cousin about me, and that started, a chain of events that would change both our lives? This stranger, her father's first cousin, my second -cousin, from Dallas, Texas, wanted to meet me, Marie Melady and her other Canadian cousins. Well, was I the one to give her the Murray history! Several letters and phone palls were exchanged from Texas to Canada. Finally, I said to her the best way to lean about your long-lost cousins was to come to Dublin, ' Ontario and meet them. And so a St. Columban visit was arranged for the first week of June. My dreaming soon came to an end. My people here showed towards her, "She left here with the feeling that Canada was the most wonderful place to live," said Mrs, Malady. "She thought it was great. "She also took pictures of everyone and everything around the house, She took home all kinds of symbols and reminders of Canada, she said. A widow since 1955, Mrs. Melody has lived in St. Columban and Dublin, keeping herself busy by helping out children at St. Columban school by teaching them crafts. . - She also keeps busy with her bell and rosary collections, and by decorating her lawn with flowers and shrubs. "I haven't been in the best of health, but I keep going day to day," she said. "I don't have any family of my own, just the school kids.. Some of my former studants still come to visit.. They share' all of my enjoyment." Mrs. Malady's school children, past and present, are not the only ones who will share the enjoyment and fun which radiates from her. The relationship which began just a short time ago between Mrs. Bohstedt and Mrs. Malady will continue. `We've started something," Mrs. Melady said. "The communication will continue and spread to other parts of the family. "It was a glorious ending," she said, "to a wonderful visit." niece, Marie Cleary of London drove up the lane with my honored house guest, Mary Murray Bohstedt as the clock struck 5 p. in. on that Monday June 3, Mary had a long day of travel from Dalles, Texas to Toronto to London, Ontario. But my warm welcome soon erased any of her doubts about coming. Inside my home I had a huge, colorful sign. It read: "A special welcome Mary to St. Columban and Dublin, Canada. I hope your stay is an enjoyable one." Love Marie. Our week together just flew by Every morning we went out to visit different people I wanted Mary to meet. I especially wanted her to see her grandparents' Canadian homestead in McKillop Township. Every afternoon and evening, I opened up my home to all the Murray relatives and friends of the area. in total, we had over one hundred guests in to meet Mary Murray Bohstedt, sign the guest book, enjoy a visit, and a social tea. Some of our visitors even took part in a sing-song with "The Yellow Rose from Texas." When Mary and I wanted some quiet to ourselves, we could go out on the back patio and enjoy the sun, more flowers and a little garden done in the theme "In a little Dutch Garden." I made this as a tribute to our good Dutch friends in Canada. (Continued on page 136) Diary of a cousin's visit