From Dave Lindgren, Stillwater, MN (Obed and Verona Lindgren’s second of three sons)
Hello everyone, we are gradually doing more each month as COVID-19 conditions allow, but I keep close track of our local positive infections. I found the diversion of the Zoom calls and genealogy investigation this past year and the trip to Iowa in June to celebrate Cousin Dick’s birthday a real fun getaway. I want to send a special thank you to Dick’s family for arranging the party. Hopefully, another reunion will be possible sometime soon.
I’m keeping busy with my interest in cars, boats, motorcycles and repairs (fixing things that break) and of course the Zoom meetings. I think I got most of my mechanical aptitude and interest from Obed and Frank early on. I retired from teaching vocational education at the secondary high school level about 20 years ago and have had the time to pursue these hobbies. Now you know a little more about me and I hope to share more about my immediate family in future Newsletters.
I hope you will share some of the same, but I do realize available “time” is sometimes scarce. Hopefully, maybe some will find something to share. I’m sure anything provided will mean a lot to other interested family members reading the Newsletter.
The past year or so has been interesting to look back at Lanyon Lindgrens and other relatives. Trying to remember and somehow relate to all those relatives in and around Lanyon has been a challenge, but well worth the effort. Most of the names we have investigated I have heard over the years, but not really understood much about who they were and how they fit into the Frank and Amy’s generation.
Everyone needs to meet our second cousin, John William Johnson or JJ as he likes to be called. JJ is the grandson of Dr. Obed Simon Johnson. We have enjoyed visiting with JJ out in San Francisco on the Zoom calls. You will all like him, I guarantee it. It will be fascinating to learn more and more about his family and how we can relate to their life experiences past and present.
The one thing I’ve really thought a lot about recently is how tough and hardworking our relatives were in Lanyon. Farming isn’t an easy occupation. Bruce has worked on consolidating past knowledge about the family on the website. Many contributions from family sources have been consolidated to give, hopefully, future generations a look back. I have been particularly interested recently in the Altona, IL aspect of the migration to Lanyon. Mainly J.P. Johnson and Johanna Dorthea Burman (wed to J.P.—my great grandparents) as well as Johanna’s brother John Burman and another sister Helen Burman Lundeen.
At present, our website, is a retrieval and documentation project. The newsletter is the latest thought and effort to keep the ball rolling. It would be great to get the Gen 3 (my daughter) and Gen 4 (Bruce’s and Steve’s kids) involved in preserving the present as well. Today it is relatively easy to consolidate the digital emails or .doc contributions into a newsletter that will be a permanent achieve. We all know something about our cousins, but having an appropriate extended knowledge of contemporary Lindgren relatives would be very interesting to many of us. Aunt Irene seemed to know a lot about all of the “Grands” (Gen 2) and their kids, but now it is gradually disappearing and we need to preserve our family history as best we can. All of your thoughts are very important in this effort and I hope many are willing to contribute.