Sunday's Obituary: Curtis D. Luze

 

Grandpa, you will be missed.

In Memory of Curtis D. Luze

Curtis D. Luze, age 73, passed away at the Sanford Medical Hospital in Sioux Falls, SD, on Tuesday, August 28, 2012. Funeral Services have been set for 10:30am Saturday, September 1, 2012 at Rude’s Funeral Home, Brookings, SD. Visitation will be from 5:00pm to 7:00pm Friday, August 31, 2012 at Rude’s Funeral Home, Brookings, SD.

Curtis was born on March 4, 1939, in Brookings, SD, the son of Harold and Irene (Christianson) Luze. He received his education in the Brookings Schools and was a graduate of the Brookings High School in 1957. After receiving his education he served in the National Guard for 26 years. He was employed at various places in Brookings until 1971 when he was employed at 3M. He continued working at 3M until his retirement in 1994. Curtis was then employed at Conveyance Vans in Brookings. Curtis was united in marriage to Sharon Jorenby on January 30, 1959.

Curtis was a member of the First Lutheran Church and the Brookings American Legion Post #74. He enjoyed woodworking, cabinet making and traveling. He especially enjoyed spending time with his family and friends.

He was survived by two sons Allen (Lisa) Luze of Sioux Falls, SD, Bryon (his fiance’, Misty Moser) Luze of Brookings, SD, two daughters Loretta (Eldon) Crapser, Linda (Ron) Horst all of Brookings; 15 grandchildren; 8 great grandchildren; and one brother DuWayne (Sandy) Luze of Tacoma, WA; along with several nephews and nieces.

Curtis was preceded in death by his parents, and one sister Joan.

 

An Influx of Cousins

For a long time I thought I was alone in researching many of my family lines.  On several occasions I searched for cousins who were researching my family and came up empty handed.  Now all of the sudden I find myself responding to a handful of new cousins all within a couple weeks of each other. 

While this is a good problem to have, I'm a little bummed that just don't have time to work with all these family lines at once!  

So with these new cousins watch for more information in the Wicks, Luze, and Crapser family lines.

News from Hendricks Pioneer: Harold Luze visits Grimlie and Nelson Homes

I found this news clipping from the November 30, 1967 edition of The Hendricks Pioneer via Footnote.com.


On Page 6 of the November 30 edition, it reads:

"Birthday guests Sunday at the Hjalmer Grimlie home for Mrs. Grimlie's birthday were Mr. and Mrs. Linden Nelson and family of rural Toronto, Mr. and Mrs. Harold Luze of Brookings and Mr. and Mrs. Blaine Grimlie and Charleen.

Visitors at the Linden Nelson home of rural Toronto Friday evening were Mr. and Mrs. Hjalmer Grimlie, Rodger and Terry, Mr. and Mrs. Harold Luze of Brookings and Mrs. Donald Mennis and boys of Minneapolis."

I find the clippings from these old newspapers telling of the recent visitors to a home quite interesting.  You just never know when that distant cousin will show up in the local paper. 

I had never considered what the paper would look like after a holiday though.  The November 30, 1967 edition of The Hendricks Pioneer was published the week following Thanksgiving.  There were several columns of clippings just telling the world where everyone spent their Thanksgiving weekend.  Here's a small sample:

  

Honoring Our Veterans

To the men and women who have given the greatest sacrifice,
THANK YOU for your sacrifices.
To the soldiers currently fighting for freedom and democracy,
THANK YOU for your service.
To the wives, mothers, and children waiting patiently back home,
THANK YOU for your patience.
To the wounded who deal with their pains and memories every day,
THANK YOU for your sacrifices.
To the doctors and nurses who come to the aid of those wounded in war,
THANK YOU for your service.
To the soldiers still missing, taken prisoner, or returning unknown,
THANK YOU for your patience.
To the soldiers, marines, sailors and airmen; young and old, at home and afar,
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU.

 
Today I pause to remember the veterans in my family who have given the greatest sacrifice:
Kenneth Anderson, Vern Carter, William Carter, Allen Christie, Larry Crapser, Fay Crapser, John Fish, Charles Gillman, Burton Jorenby, Carroll Jorenby, Donald Jorenby, Frank Laabs, Joseph Lane, Alfred Luze, Dale Luze, Adelbert Printup, Bernard Singsaas, Merle Taylor, Erwin Waage, Tom S. Wicks, David Workman, Richard J. Ziegler, and Richard L. Ziegler.

I also thank the veterans who stand strong with us today:
Justin Benthin, Jerry Boellaard, Cal Christie, Don Crapser, Maynard Crapser, David Jorenby, Lyle Jorenby,  Allen Luze, Curt Luze, DuWayne Luze, and Danny Sharp.

Thank you for your service and the sacrifices you've made!


P.S.  If I've missed a veteran, my apologies.  Please feel free to comment on this post and let me know.

Saturday Stumble-Upon: It's a Small World After All

Since I started this blog back in July, I have heard from some cousins again and have also been in communication with a few new cousins.

Shari (Searls) Adair, a cousin in the Glenn family line who I've been in contact with for several years now, was surprised to learn that she knew two other sides of my family!  She was in school and 4H with my grandma Sharon (Jorenby) Luze. When the families lived in the Lake Campbell area, the Searls farm and the Jorenby farm were adjacent to each other. Shari's family had also lived near Lowell Workman in Eureka township.

Now with the realization that the cousins from the east (Glenns from Aurora) knew the cousins from the southwest (Jorenbys from the Lake Campbell area) and the cousins from the north (Workmans in Eureka township), I began to wonder how far apart these families really were.  So I pulled up Google Maps and started mapping the childhood homes of my great-grandparents.  Here's the result:

View It's A Small World - family beginnings in a larger map

Not bad!  Brookings is almost the center point of all of their childhood homes.  I'm willing to bet that at some point or another, the families all crossed paths in Brookings.  Moral of the story: It's a small world after all!