My daughter KayCee and I visited the Quincy Cemetary in Boone
Co Iowa for a week's worth of renovations on the tombstones. We
left with wire brushes, aluminum oil paint, paint brushes and
black paint markers. KayCee and I scraped old moss, dirt and age
off the tombstones, including graves of our own family, to stones
of those we didn't even know. The whole cemetary seemed to cry
with delight, the sun peeking through the rainclouds only for
us. It was a beautiful experience. After we finished scraping,
KayCee and I painted the tombstones with bright aluminum oil paint.
Some inscriptions on the tombstones could be made out so clearly,
years and years of god knows what finally scraped from the crevasses.
We sat down with the black paint markers, carefully carving into
the letters and coloring in names and dates. It took two weekends,
a series of major thunderstorms and a lot of patience to finish
our work. But when it was all siad and done, KayCee and I sat
back, drinking our warm sodas in the hot, humid sunlight and smiled
at eachother. The tombstones are so visible now, they look like
glowing white pillars against the dark trees. I plan to take picures
of the tombstones, and replace the old pictures with them on the
Gravestones page, also with the inscriptions and special details.
Also, a major rush of information has been coming my way, my mother
even coming to me with new scrapbooks she had found after rummaging
through old trunks and boxes. I have found many pictures, maps
and census records, and have put them aside. Some new pictures
have been scanned into our computer, but need resizing and some
light touchups before they are organized and put online. Keep
your eye out, it won't be too long before we (my daughter and
I) get to it.
The Fosher/Bundy/Fraasch reunion is taking place on June 19, 2004.
It takes place in Millbank, South Dakota, which isn't too far
from Ortonville, Minnesota. I plan to bring a major chunk of my
information to them, to verify and to share with the families
we've been looking up. Also, I have arranged to talk to one of
Loutisha Bundy's daughters, the last living daughter of that generation.
Hopefully, I can find new information that is more accurate and
more personal.