And then two young adults fell in love and became one.
This all happened on July 20, 1968. Maurice Ray and Renee Sue were wed.
These I Can Promise
Author Unknown
I cannot promise you a life of sunshine;
I cannot promise riches, wealth, or gold;
I cannot promise you an easy pathway
That leads away from change or growing old.
But I can promise all my heart’s devotion;
A smile to chase away your tears of sorrow;
A love that’s ever true and ever growing;
A hand to hold in yours through each tomorrow.
St. John’s Lutheran Church
Wasn’t my mom a beautiful bride?
The Happy Couple.
They resided in a small town called Dalton. My dad was a electrician and mom was a stay at home mom. They started their family pretty sudden as my brother was born January 2, 1969. They named their first born Jan Lynn Bradley.
Dad and my brother Jan.
On November 18th 1970 came their second child. A daughter they called JoAnn Sue (me).
Ain’t I cute?
My Brother And I.
The Bradley Family.
They moved from Dalton to Manchester then to Markesan. They bought a house in Markesan and called it their home for the rest of their lives. They had 2 healthy children, a boy and a girl so they stopped while the getting was good and left it at that.
Some of my dad’s hobbies:
Dad was a member of the Markesan Volunteer Fire Department for ~19 years. He loved going to the meetings, love to make a difference by serving on the department and helping others out in need. I remember as a kid they would have fire fighting competitions and they would hang a empty beer keg on a cable between 2 squads and they would have to use the fire hose and water to spray the keg and get it to the opposite side. If they did then they won!
Dad’s pride and joy, his boat.
Can you spot me in the above photo? I don’t have very many pictures of me and my dad and when I scanned this picture in I noticed I was in it. Dad loved to fish. My parent’s had to save up to be able to buy this boat and he was so proud of it. I swear I had to wax it twice a year. On his off time we were always going fishing. My Grandma had land that a river went through and we would go there all the time during the summer months and fish in the evening from the shore. Then we got the boat and we spent time on the lake. We would go on vacation once a year when I got older to Hayward just so we could go fishing on the lakes up north because the fishing was suppose to be better “Up North”.
Men’s Slow Pitch Softball.
During the summer months dad was the pitcher for the Friday Canning Company men’s slow pitch softball team. When we weren’t fishing we would be cheering dad on at his softball games. He would have tournaments on the weekend that we would go to also. He taught me how to play, I went on to play after college with my girl friends.
Bowling Winners.
During the winter months dad and mom were avid bowlers, they were on a couples league and each on their own women’s and men’s leagues. They got my brother and I into bowling also. Dad and I entered a bowling tournament and we won first place. That was one of the proudest days. I didn’t continue on with my bowling.
My Birthday Party.
Another hobby as you read in Part 1 was hunting. Dad loved to hunt and he taught me how to hunt. I said since my Birthday was during deer season that would be my favorite time as I had my Birthday party at my grandparents house and I got to go hunting.
Old Hunting Tags.
The Bradley Family Older.
My dad was my best friend as I was growing up. He taught me a lot. I will never forget what a great father he was to my brother and I as well as what a great husband he was to my mom. We had our family up’s and down’s and threw it all it made our family stronger.