In Memory of My Father

On September 11, 2022, the world lost a kind, gentle person. His name was  Michael Lee Jeckering and he was my father. Mike was born on January 31, 1950 in Dayton, Ohio. He was the second child of Paul George and Dorothy Jean (Hendricks) Jeckering, little brother to Jean Marie Jeckering (1948-1996). After he was born, the family welcomed 2 more children- Karla & Paul David (1954-2016). 

Mike lost his father at a young age- just before his 4th birthday. His mother remarried and he gained 4 more brothers with the name Potchik- John Mark (1957-2005), Carl, William and Frank. 

Mike went to and graduated from Chaminade High School in Dayton, Ohio, the same school as his father and many of his family members before him. 

After graduation, Mike married Christine but they soon divorced with no children. He then married Bonnie Jean Mendenhall on August 25, 1975. They were married for 26 years and spent those years in Ohio, Texas and Arizona, raising 3 children.

In 1980, Mike started his long career at FedEx as a delivery driver. He enjoyed his job, most of the time and was a dedicated employee until his retirement in 2005. He was only 55 at the time of his retirement and I don't think he was ready to settle down. He started an online Ebay business, selling antiques, car parts, model cars and other unique items. He enjoyed it and I know it helped pass the time. 

His whole life Mike had been a fan of cars. He was constantly buying and selling cars...never really seemed to hold on to one for too long. Car shows were his thing and every year, he looked forward to going to the Watson Lake Car Show in Prescott & the Barrett Jackson Car Show in Phoenix. He also enjoyed bowling and was pretty good at it.

He was preceded in death by his parents, his sister Jean and his brothers John and Paul. He leaves behind his 3 children- Mike Jr., Carrie and Nicole; 12 grandchildren- Alex, Lexi, Ally, Aden, Kaiden, Zander, Klayton, Kaylee, Jack, Audrina, Aubree, and Chloe. He also leaves behind his sister Karla, 3 brothers Carl, William and Frank and two very good friends Linda and Joanie. 

Mike was a very caring person. He was always interested in how his children and grandchildren were doing- called often "just to check in". I will miss him more than he will ever know. 

Now, enjoy some beautiful photos: 

"Tragedy by the Sea" photo, 1954 and some more lovely photos

Today I came upon an article showing all kinds of Pulitzer Prize winning photographs. There was one titled "Tragedy by the Sea" that was taken by Los Angeles Times photographer John Gaunt. The moment was taken on Hermosa Beach on April 2, 1954. A commotion was stirring on the beach so Gaunt grabbed his camera and started shooting. On the beach stood Mr. and Mrs. John McDonald, holding each other. Their 19 month old son Michael had wandered from their beach home and drowned in the surf. Gaunt was there to capture the scene and in 1955, won the Pulitzer Price for the photo. The child was swept out to see by the surf and his body wasn't found until April 12 when it washed up on shore.

As a mother of two, my heart aches for parents! The parents were John and Lillian McDonald. John Angus McDonald Jr. was born on July 20, 1921 in Montrose, Colorado and died on August 25, 1987 in Rancho Palos Verde, California at the at age of 66. Lillian was born on May 28, 1923 in California and died on 03 Mar 2021 at the age of 97 years old.

The 19 month old child who drown was their one and only child at the time. Michael Lewis McDonald was born on August 28, 1952 in Los Angeles. John and Lillian went on to have 3 more children: Jennifer Ann (b. Oct 1954), Gordon A. (b. Dec 1956), and Holly J. (b. Jun 1958).

I also found some beautiful photos of Lillian's immediate family.

Lillian's Father/Michael's Grandfather-

Leslie Lawrence Prince (1900-1969)

Lillian's Mother/Michael's Grandmother

Dorothy Marion Walker Prince (1899-1984)

                                                        Lillian's Brother/Michael's Uncle

                                                        Lawrence Lewis Prince (1925-2003)

            Above is a photo of John Gaunt with his prize winning photo of the McDonalds

John Gaunt was the son of John L. Gaunt Sr. (1889-1963) and Blanche E. Schontz (1890-1968). John Jr. was born on June 4, 1924 in Syracuse, New York and died on October 26, 2007 in Desert Springs, California at the age of 83. 

How Many Grandparents Do You Have?

A couple of days ago, I decided to figure out how many ancestors I have sucessfully identified- grandparents, great-grandparents, etc. As you know, we all have 2 parents, 4 grandparents, 8 great-grandparents and it continues to double with each generation. Here's a great visual representation:

I wanted to see how many of those I actually had and at what percentage was completed- giving me a good idea of what I could work on next. This is how it turned out: (Categories from left to right are: Relation, Name, Birth, Death, Age @ Death, Immigrant) Parents- 2/2= 100% Grandparents- 2/2= 100%

Family of Jacob Hewes Mendenhall (1813-1892)

Today, I came across this photo on Facebook:

This photo was taken around 1888 and it's fascinating because this is a photo of a man and his 13 children. In 1888, to have 13 children survive to adulthood- seems rare! The man in the front/middle is the father- Jacob Hewes Mendenhall (1813-1892). On November 8, 1838, he married Hannah Worrilow Newlin (1819-1873) in Middletown, Pennsylvania. They were actually 4th cousins, once removed. Jacob's 2nd great grandfather was immigrant Benjamin Mendenhall and Hannah's 3rd great grandmother was Mary, Benjamin's sister. They came to America in 1685 aboard the ship named Unicorn. So, together, Jacob and Hannah had 13 children, all lived to be adults. Here's a "who's who's" description of the photo with married names:(sorry, the photo is slightly blurry)

1. Anna Moore Haper (1854-1931), 10th child 2. Jane Trimble (1847-1929), 6th child 3. Henry Lewis Mendenhall (1864-1944), 13th child 4. Elizabeth Anne Abel (1842-1910), 3rd child 5. Charlotte Newlin Closs (1861-1890), 11th child 6. Jacob Hewes Mendenhall (1813-1892), the father 7. William M. Mendenhall (1843-1932), 4th child 8. Sarah Newlin Underwood (1839-1933), 1st child 9. Jacob Hewes Mendenhall Jr. (1852-1927), 9th child 10. Esther Hewes Garrett (1845-1915), 5th child 11. Mary Mendenhall (1848-1936), 7th child 12. Edward Mendenhall (1840-1918), 2nd child 13. Newlin Mendenhall (1862-1949), 12th child 14. Hannah Moore (1850-1910), 8th child With this many children, I'm always curious how many grandchildren there were-- so here is a "cousin chart"- it includes the year the grandchild was born, month, name of the child and the parent's name:

(sorry for the weird alignment--- blogger was being a pain!!)