*James Everette Staudt*
My dad was born on November 8, 1931 to
Edna Camille Rukstad Staudt and
Everette Matthew Staudt
in Watertown, South Dakota.
Lately, I have been thinking about dad's mother and
how she must have felt the first time that she
held him...what were her hopes and dreams for
him? Did she worry about his future and could she have
ever imagined what an amazing life he would lead?
I think if she could have known that he would someday stand up
for his country in the U.S. Army and become a Master Sergeant,
get a college education, marry the woman of his dreams,
Monica Rose Schonhoff,
have and provide for seven children, and entrepreneur
a mobile car repair business - "MCAR"
while operating the local skating rink (with our entire family
working there and helping out), become the Captain of
his own boat with a chartering business and later
become the pilot of his own
airplane and retire from the U.S. Government
at the ripe ole age of 55....all of this mixed with
lots of fun and amazing adventures...too many to post here...well,
without a doubt she would have been very pleased about
the paths her son would choose!
Though I really don't wish to see the future...I am certain that if
dad's mother could have known all of these things she
would have felt a sense of peace and excitement
about the future of this
sweet baby boy she was holding...
knowing that everything was going to be just fine...
Dad and Mom have a legacy of a 58 year marriage,
twenty-nine grandchildren,
19 great-grandchildren...
one of which is his newest name-sake, Luke Everette Aldridge, who
looks remarkably like the above baby picture of Dad -
(and 1 more on the way)!
What more could a mother hope for
for her child?
Happy Birthday Dad...I love you as high as the sky!
<3 Pats,
*Your favorite daughter
*Mom and Dad did such a wonderful job loving all
seven of us that each and every one of us feels
like we are their favorite!
Though rumor has it that Mike really
is Mom's favorite! :)
*****
P.S. At the time of this post Mom and Dad had 18 great-grandchildren, but at
12:08 this morning (November 24, 2011) Mason William Pitman
was born to Jason and Amanda Pitman weighing in
at 7 pounds 4 ounces!
A true Thanksgiving Blessing!
Congratulations to the proud parents, grandparents and
of course, great-grandparents!!
