they would turn in their graves

Renee Nicole Good Renee Nicole Ganger was born in 1988 in Colorado, the daughter of Timothy Dee and Donna Marie (Cook) Ganger. She attended Coronado High School in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and graduated in 2006. Renee was a member of the show choir when she was a junior and a senior. In 2005, she was a member of the school’s “Community Crew”. The yearbook states: “For those of you here at Coronado who don’t know what the acronym for the club FCCLA means, to help with your bewilderment, FCCLA stands for: Family, Career, Community and Leadership. Also, for those of you who haven’t even heard of FCCLA, here are some clues for you! FCCLA is an organization that provides opportunities for personal development and enables the students to be successful in their careers and with their families. The members of the club are involved in community service such as tutoring children. They also compete in culinary competitions.” Renee was registered to vote in Colorado at least by 2008. Renee was ...

Judith Williams, 1988 Judith Eva Edwards was born in 1940 in Michigan, the daughter of Elmer Richard and Pauline Minnie (Cutler) Edwards. When the 1940 census was enumerated, Judith was living with her parents and older sister Sylvia in Hazel Park, Oakland County, Michigan. Her father was a gas station attendant and her mother a homemaker. In 1950, the Edwards family (then including Judy’s younger brother Donald) was living in Sterling, Macomb County, Michigan. At that time her father was a polisher in a polish shop, and her mother was keeping house. Judith was married in 1959 to James Wilbert Williams, also a Michigan native. Judith holds a BS degree from Eastern Michigan University in English, Speech and Social Studies. Mrs. Judy Williams was a member of the Southfield High School English Department in 1961; she must have been just out of college and a first-year teacher. The Williamses had three children, Jeffrey, Jennifer and Jeanie. I first met Mrs. Williams in the fall of 1988, w...

Janet Maxim, 1988 Janet Ann Peavyhouse was born in 1941 in Tennessee, the daughter of Kenneth Abraham and Justine Eula (Richardson) Peavyhouse. In 1950, Janet and her four siblings were living with their parents in Fentress County, Tennessee. Her father was working in newspaper advertising, and her mother was keeping house. Janet was pictured in the Western Kentucky University of Bowling Green, Kentucky   Talisman   yearbook in 1960, as part of the freshman class. Her address in the yearbook was given as South Lyon, Michigan. In 1961, she was listed in the   College Heights Herald   of Bowling Green, Kentucky as one of the sophomore students who had achieved a 2.5 or better grade point average. In 1963, the   Kalamazoo Gazette   reported a marriage license issued to Alexander T. Maxim of Drayton Plains, Michigan and Janet A. Peavyhouse of Kalamazoo, Michigan. I believe Alexander and Janet had twin sons in 1966, Marc and Michael. They were later divorced. I ...

Because I was able to find less biographical information than usual about these important women in my life, today I'm highlighting three teachers: Linda Gosling, 1986 Linda Carol Chandler   was born in 1948 in Michigan, the daughter of Charles Price and Carolyn Joy (Lapointe) Chandler. In 1950, Linda was living with her parents in Detroit, Wayne County, Michigan, where her father was a dentist and her mother was keeping house. In 1964, Linda was listed in the Kimball High School yearbook in Royal Oak, Michigan. She was married to Joseph Michael Gosling before 1987. I met Mrs. Gosling in the fall of 1986 when I was an eighth grader at Avondale Middle School. She was my algebra teacher. The prior year our district had instituted an experimental program, enrolling about thirty seventh graders in pre-algebra. Prior to that year, no student in Avondale School District could take any advanced mathematics course until high school. Generally freshmen took either pre-algebra or “business ma...

Remember back on 1 October 2025 when the government shut down, and millions of government employees were furloughed? My sister, an employee of the United States Forest Service, was among those people. She had already scheduled her vacation during the furlough time, and was also able to spend some time with our parents while away from work. I don't have any word yet on whether she received any back pay from the furlough time, and it certainly affected her financial bottom line. And...her vacation didn't count, because she was on furlough, so she has to take some more vacation time before the end of the year or lose the accrued vacation. Also on 1 October 2025, my husband's employer (not a government entity) used the government shutdown as an excuse to fire him and six other employees. One of their clients, the U. S. Department of Energy, had not paid any of their invoices since July, and during the shutdown would definitely not be paying any more, for at least the length of ...

Ida Swigart Ida May Nyberg was born in 1933 in Duluth, Saint Louis County, Minnesota, the daughter of Jacob E. Nyberg (a native of Sweden) and Mary (Preston) Nyberg, a native of Wisconsin. The Nyberg family lived in Royal Oak, Oakland County, Michigan in 1935. In 1940, Ida, her sister Margaret and her parents were living in Sterling Township, Macomb County, Michigan. At that time Jacob was a truck driver for a sewer construction company and her mother was a homemaker. In 1949, the Nybergs joined the Immanuel Lutheran Church, a Swedish-American church, in Detroit, Michigan. The 1950 census located Jacob, Mary, Ida and Margaret residing on Fourteen Mile Road in Sterling Township, Macomb County, Michigan; Jacob was working as a tool and die maker. In June 1955, Ida traveled with her parents on the   Stockholm   to Sweden, where they planned to stay three months. She returned in August 1955 on the  Kungsholm . The Kansas City Star , 30 December 1956: “The marriage of Miss Ida...

Joy Stevens, 1953 Joy Ann Stevens was born in 1937 in Michigan, the daughter of Paul and Mildred (Sandwick) Stevens. In 1940, Joy was living with her parents and older brother Richard in Dalton Township, Muskegon County, Michigan. Her father was working as a die setter for a steel furniture manufacturer, and her mother was employed doing clerical work in a department store. In 1950 the Stevens family – then including Joy’s younger brother Philip - were living on Whitehall Road in Dalton Township, Muskegon County, Michigan. At that time, Paul was a foreman in the office equipment industry, and Mildred was a bookkeeper working in a department store. Joy attended North Muskegon High School, where she was a member of several groups including the Girls’ Athletic Association, the Norse Star newspaper staff, the pep band (she played the cornet), and the student council. After graduation from high school, Joy went on to study at Michigan State University, where she was on the honor roll for th...