In an effort to document my family treasures which cannot be scanned in, I am publishing this series of pictures as part of the Treasure Chest Thursday theme at Geneabloggers. Someday in the future, I hope to shed some light on these treasures for my family who might inherit them. What were they for? Who did they come from? Why were they considered treasures? Let’s find out.
Jessica Cross Stitch Magnet
This family treasure is a little cross stitch with my name on it in red thread. My mother made this piece as part of a massive collection of cross stitch magnets and items she created and sold at our schools for extra income. She created the cross stitch names and cut them out. She then glued each name on a piece of cardboard cut to size, and glued a magnet on the back. Then she finished off the piece by gluing pre-made lace around the name. This magnet is about 2 1/2 inches wide.
My mother made hundreds of these magnets and put them up for sale in the craft fairs. I remember standing at the school during the sale, looking at her display of names in all different colors and laces. I can’t recall how much she was selling them for, but it couldn’t have been more than $1 for each one. It was probably less than that.
I treasure this magnet. It is rapidly falling apart due to age. The lace is yellowing and falling off the piece. The only thing that is not coming apart is the thread in the name, and the magnet is thankfully still securely attached on the back.
My husband’s grandparents Max Earl Green and Velma Isadora Bostic were married on July 19, 1941 in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Their first child Barbara was born nine months later. Their only son Jerald was born two years after that, just before Max enlisted in the Navy in 1944.
Wedding Invitation for Max Green and Velma Bostic
Marriage Certificate for Max Green and Velma Bostic
Marriage License for Max Green and Velma Bostic
Max and Velma Green, September 1944
Certificate of Death for Alice Karpuk
I am writing this post in honor of my Aunt Alice who should be celebrating her 72nd birthday this week. Instead, her life was cut far too short by pneumonia.
My Aunt Pauline Alice Karpuk passed away at just four months of age. She was born November 18, 1939 and died April 5, 1940. Her parents were Andrew Karpuk and Mary Rose (Stroik, Kasper) Karpuk of Saginaw, Michigan. My grandmother had a total of sixteen children. Thirteen survived to adulthood. Two of them, a set of twins between her last two sets of twins, were stillborn prematurely and the family story states they were buried in a shoebox in the back yard. Remarkably, baby Alice Karpuk is the only child of my grandmother’s that was born live and died as an infant.
Obituary for Alice Karpuk
Mortuary ALICE KARPUK. Alice Karpuk, infant daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Karpuk, 520 Gallagher, died Friday night at St. Mary’s hospital after a brief illness. She was born Nov. 18, 1939. She leaves her parents, two sisters and four brothers, Rose Helen, Edward, Donald, Andrew and Albert, all at home, and her grandmother, Mrs. Helen Stroik of Saginaw. Baby Pauline Alice Karpuk The funeral will take place at 9:30 a.m. Monday at the home and at 10 a.m. at St. Casimir’s church. Rev. Fr. Frances S. Kozak will officiate and burial will be in Mt. Olivet. She may be seen at the home after 3 p.m. Sunday.
Mortuary
ALICE KARPUK.
Alice Karpuk, infant daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Karpuk, 520 Gallagher, died Friday night at St. Mary’s hospital after a brief illness. She was born Nov. 18, 1939. She leaves her parents, two sisters and four brothers, Rose Helen, Edward, Donald, Andrew and Albert, all at home, and her grandmother, Mrs. Helen Stroik of Saginaw.
Baby Pauline Alice Karpuk
The funeral will take place at 9:30 a.m. Monday at the home and at 10 a.m. at St. Casimir’s church. Rev. Fr. Frances S. Kozak will officiate and burial will be in Mt. Olivet. She may be seen at the home after 3 p.m. Sunday.
Baby Alice’s obituary was published in The Saginaw News in Saginaw, Michigan on Saturday, April 6, 1940 on page 9.
This is the obituary for Maria (Oakes, Green) Ford, former wife of Parley Green. Published in the Union and Advertiser in Mumford, New York on May 13, 1886.
Obituary for Mrs. Maria Ford
Deaths and Funerals Mrs. Maria Ford, formerly Mrs. Parley Green of Mumford, died in that village at the age of 83 years. Her maiden name was Maria Oaks, and she was born at Bradford, Vt., opposite Crown Point, June 9, 1802. She was one of the earliest settlers in Mumford, and is the last of those who can properly be called the pioneers of that village. Her life was passed there, and she was greatly respected by all in that village. She raised a large family who are now residing in Scotland. The funeral was held at the Baptist Church in Mumford, and the interment was in the cemetery there. In her last illness she was tenderly cared for by her daughter, Mrs. John Munson, who was unwearied in her attentions and kindness to her invalid mother.
HFS Beanie from Diane Dreffs
This little blue Beanie cap with the initials HFS was worn by my mother, Diane Marie Dreffs, in elementary school as part of her school uniform. She attended Holy Family School in Saginaw, Michigan in the mid and late 1950’s. She gave it to me in the year 2000 when I took an interest in the family history.
W Letter from Diane Dreffs
It now resides in my closet, preserved safely for her grandchildren.
With it resides her school letter, a single W. This was worn when she attended Webber Junior High School in Saginaw, Michigan, in the early 1960’s.
This is the obituary for my uncle, Walter Dreffs. He was my mother’s brother.
Obituary for Walter Dreffs
WALTER ‘DONKEY’ DREFFS Walter “Donkey” Dreffs, 62, Brandenburg, died June 14, 2010 at University of Louisville Hospital in Louisville. He was an army veteran and retired from civil service. Mr. Dreffs is survived by his wife, Judy Ann Cowsert Dreffs; a daughter, Michelle Poling, Shipshewana, Ind.; two stepdaughters, Donna Toney, Muldraugh, and Cheryl Thomas, Elizabethtown; two brothers, Albert Karpuk, Saginaw, Mich., and Don Karpuk, Skidway Lake, Mich.; four sisters, Rose Dreffs, Susan Dreffs and Wilma Rivera, all of Saginaw, Mich., and Diane Kane, Mio, Mich.; four grandchildren; seven step-grandchildren, a great-granddaughter, and several nieces and nephews. Funeral services were held June 17, from the chapel of Hager Funeral Home. Cremation followed. Condolences may be left online at www.hagerfuneralhome.com.
WALTER ‘DONKEY’ DREFFS
Walter “Donkey” Dreffs, 62, Brandenburg, died June 14, 2010 at University of Louisville Hospital in Louisville. He was an army veteran and retired from civil service. Mr. Dreffs is survived by his wife, Judy Ann Cowsert Dreffs; a daughter, Michelle Poling, Shipshewana, Ind.; two stepdaughters, Donna Toney, Muldraugh, and Cheryl Thomas, Elizabethtown; two brothers, Albert Karpuk, Saginaw, Mich., and Don Karpuk, Skidway Lake, Mich.; four sisters, Rose Dreffs, Susan Dreffs and Wilma Rivera, all of Saginaw, Mich., and Diane Kane, Mio, Mich.; four grandchildren; seven step-grandchildren, a great-granddaughter, and several nieces and nephews. Funeral services were held June 17, from the chapel of Hager Funeral Home. Cremation followed. Condolences may be left online at www.hagerfuneralhome.com.
This week we take a look at the lineage of the Yach or Jach surname as it pertains to my family’s history. I know almost nothing about this family line.
Earliest Known Ancestor
Mary Yach, also known as Marianna Szulfer Jach, may have been born in Klukowo Huta, Kartuzy, Prussian, Poland in 1840. I haven’t done enough research myself on her to know for sure, but it seems researcher Susan Chapman has.
The only thing I know about my 2nd great-grandmother Mary for sure is that she married my 2nd-great-grandfather Adam Goretski (aka Gorecki) circa 1864 presumably in Poland before immigrating to the USA in 1866 or 1868. She and her husband Adam had about 15 children, many of which died young.
After her first husband Adam died, Mary remarried a man named Ignac Betker (aka Nick). She and Nick lived together until his death in 1912. Mary died sometime after 1920, presumably in Portage County, Wisconsin. I have been told she is buried with her second husband Ignace in St. Adalbert’s Cemetery in Alban, Wisconsin.
Lineage of the Yach or Jach Family
Lineage
Jessica Marie Cole > Diane Marie Dreffs > Mary Rose Stroik (1910 – 1994) > Helena Frances Goretski (1891 – 1982) > Mary Yach (1842 – )
Family Notes
Additional Information
Check out my Ancestry Family Tree for Mary Yach.
See the memorial for Mary’s second husband Ignac Betker on Find A Grave.
Look at the research for the Jach family completed by Susan Chapman.
Mom's Golf Ball Dog
This little fellow was handmade by my mother, Diane Marie (Dreffs) Cole in the early 1980’s. Seven golf balls were hot glued together and the whole thing was spraypainted black in our back yard. She spread out newspaper over the picnic table and went to town with a spray can. She used a black puffball for a nose, a small piece of red felt for the tongue, two googly eyes and a pink doll hat. It’s hard to see in the picture, but there is a white goose feather in the hat. There’s also a black felt tail and two matching ears.
My mother made dozens of these goofy golf ball dogs and sold them at craft fairs at the high school. I’m not sure how I managed to salvage one. She must have gave this to me before she gave up the hobby. I love it!
This is the obituary for William John Romaine, published in The Saginaw News in Saginaw, Michigan on Saturday, April 23, 1966 (page A11). William is the son of Alexander Romaine, who was the fourth and final husband of my grandmother Mary Rose Stroik. William passed away in 1966 and his father Alex did not marry my grandmother until 1979.
Obituary for William John Romaine
Romaine, William John, 1801 North Bond Street. Passed away early Friday evening at Hurley Hospital, Flint, of injuries received in an automobile accident. Age 30 years. He was born June 30, 1935 in Flushing, and attended schools in Saginaw, graduating from Arthur Hill High School in 1965. He was presently attending Delta College. For the past five years he had been employed at the Chevrolet Transmission Plant. He was a member of Zion Lutheran Church. On June 8, 1963, he married Norma Meyerhalt, who survives him. He also leaves one daughter, Tracy Lynn Romaine; also three step-sons and one step-daughter, Barbara A., Karl F., Kenneth A. and Kevin J. Meyerhalt, all at home; his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Alex Romaine, Fosters; one brother and one sister, James Romaine, Grand Rapids; Mrs. Earl Campbell, Saginaw. Funeral announcement will be made later by the Case Chapel, 409 Adams St. Friends may call at the chapel after 7 p.m. Sunday.
Romaine, William John,
1801 North Bond Street.
Passed away early Friday evening at Hurley Hospital, Flint, of injuries received in an automobile accident. Age 30 years. He was born June 30, 1935 in Flushing, and attended schools in Saginaw, graduating from Arthur Hill High School in 1965. He was presently attending Delta College. For the past five years he had been employed at the Chevrolet Transmission Plant. He was a member of Zion Lutheran Church. On June 8, 1963, he married Norma Meyerhalt, who survives him. He also leaves one daughter, Tracy Lynn Romaine; also three step-sons and one step-daughter, Barbara A., Karl F., Kenneth A. and Kevin J. Meyerhalt, all at home; his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Alex Romaine, Fosters; one brother and one sister, James Romaine, Grand Rapids; Mrs. Earl Campbell, Saginaw. Funeral announcement will be made later by the Case Chapel, 409 Adams St. Friends may call at the chapel after 7 p.m. Sunday.
This week we take a look at the lineage of the Goretski and Gorski surnames as they pertain to my family’s history.
I have seen this surname spelled as variants of Goretski and Gorski throughout my research. It is not clear to me what it originated as in Poland. It seems some of the family still carries the name Goretski while other branches, such as with my great-grandmother Helen Frances Gorski, changed the name sometime in the early 1900’s.
My 2nd great grandfather, Adam Goretski, was born in Prussia, Poland. His birth year is unclear and it may have been as early as 1828 or as late as 1837, depending on the source. It seems that he may have immigrated to America in June 1866, according to a Petition for Naturalization dated January 4, 1874 that might be his. It is indexed as Adam Goritzki, and I will order a copy to see if it matches his family details.
According to other researchers, Adam Goretski died on March 1, 1893 in the Town of Sharon, Portage County, Wisconsin. I have no proof of his death date or his burial, and I could not find an obituary in Portage County to support this date.
Along with his wife Mary Yach/Jach, we believe Adam had ten children: Martha, Joseph, Rozalje, John, Agatha, Antonia, August, Toefil (aka Charles), Alexander, and my great-grandmother Helena Frances Goretski. Adam died at age 56 when his youngest daughter was less than 2 years old. He is buried in Sacred Heart Cemetery in Polonia.
Lineage of the Goretski Family
Jessica Marie Cole > Diane Marie Dreffs > Mary Rose Stroik (1910 – 1994) > Helena Frances Goretski (1891 – 1982) > Adam Goretski (1837 – 1893)
Items of Interest
Check out my Ancestry Family Tree for Adam Goretski.
See the Find A Grave memorial for Adam Goretski.
