What is in a Name?

From 1999 through 2012, Jacob has been the most popular baby name for boys in United States.  It originally came from the Bible.  He was one of twin sons of Isaac and Rebecca. The name comes from Hebrew meaning "to follow"or "to be behind". This refers to the circumstances of Jacob's birth when he held on to the heel  of his older twin brother Esau (Genesis 25:26).  Jacob may also mean "follower of God" in Aramaic.

Jacob was one of the great patriarchs of the Old Testament

Jacob in the Bible account, fathered 12 sons, who became leaders of the 12 tribes of Israel. One of them was Joseph, (of the coat of many colors)  a key figure in the Old Testament. He proved to be a hard worker and was clever,
He used both his mind and strength to build his wealth and family.
Sometimes Jacob made his own rules, deceiving others for selfish gain. He did not trust God to work things out.  Even though God revealed himself to Jacob in the Bible, Jacob took a long time to become a true servant of the Lord.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 So this is the meaning of your name. 

This reminds me of a story about your dad.

When Tony was in 1st grade and he came home one day very upset.  He told me that the teacher made scrolls with the meaning of each of the students' name.

I asked him what his meant and he said his name meant "Worthless".  But when I opened the scroll, it said "Anthony means PRICELESS"!
You must always understand the true meaning of words!

To me Jacob means "loved the most".

I have decided to tell you stories about the people that came before you and I hope that you will love the stories as much as I do.  I am not sure that they are perfectly accurate. My father told me many stories that were embellished to make them more interesting. I only wish you could remember him and I wish you could have heard the stories come from him.  Many people loved to hear him tell an amusing tale.  I have checked with historical sources and other family members but due to the fact that many have died and I cannot ask questions we will have to at least find the humanity and humor in all of this.  I can only give you stories from my family and a few from Grandpa Cessa's family.  Maybe the Sulley side of your family can give you some of their rich history too.

I hope that you will love your ancestors as much as I.
 
 It is because of them that you are who you are.  A Very Special and Unique person...Jacob Cessa

Your Dad's side of the family

                Your Dad, Anthony Stephen and you are the last of the Cessa bloodline that we know of.

Your grandfather Michael Stephen Cessa is the only son of Leona Marie Ragsdale Cessa (Noni) and Steven Cessa. 

Your Great Grandfather, Steve is from the Italian side of the family  (On your Dad's side)




Your Great Great Grandfather, Guiseppe, came from Cassamasina, Bari, Italy to Ellis Island, New York in 1913 when he was 17 years old.  He was sponsored by a relative and originally worked as a brick layer in Chicago then moved to Ely, Nevada to be a miner and then moved to Pocatello, Idaho where he started working on the railroad.  Eventually he settled in Denver with the railroad.

He married Evangelina Fioretti in June of 1924 in Denver. Originally she was from Rapollo, Italy and then she worked at the Italian Consulate in Denver.

                                                             Steve was born in 1925

    3 years later, his sister Anna Evangelina was born and six(6) days later his mother died
     at 29 years old.  Then because there was no one to feed the baby, she also died .

The name was misspelled on the grave markers

Guiseppe was heart broken and needed someone to help raise his three(3) year old, Steve.  Guiseppe took Steve took back to Italy to see his grandparents.  Then he was introduced to Evangelina's sister's friend Vittoria Canessa in Rapallo, Italy.   They met and 10 days later they were married.  Vittoria traveled to Cassamasima, Bari, Italy to stay with his parents until they could have the paperwork arranged for her to emigrate to the U.S.  Guiseppe and  Vittoria then had four(4) children. Anna, Rose, Joseph, and Naomi.  Uncle (Joe is the uncle that you and your dad go to see in Arvada.)  They lived out in the country which is now 64th and Federal Blvd in North Denver (The land was sold and became Rocky's Auto)

Your Great Great Grandfather Guiseppe died in 1982 after the Christmas blizzard of 1982 on December 28.  Vittoria followed him a year later.

Schindlers List...Szofran, Reumpler, Hunyar, Kretchmer, Walter Gaertner etc.

Your great grandfather (my father) was Conrad Joseph Schindler.  He loved you a lot.  He used to save fruit from the dinning room to bring to you.  It was the only thing that he had to offer because he could no longer drive to go shopping for toys.

Conrad, (my dad) was born on April 15th, 1917 in St. Louis, Missouri.  His parents were from Austria Hungary.  They were Frank Schindler and Barbara Szofran.

As long as I can remember, my Dad, Conrad Joseph Schindler( or Connie as some called him) would always tell the best stories. I realize now that some of the stories were "embellished" somewhat. What I know about the Schindler side of the family has been told to me by Dad and his sister Aunt Terry. Both stories are a little different so I tried very hard to blend the two.

It Begins.
 

Here is the Schindler Family when they were still in Europe.

 

This picture was taken around the time my Grandpa Frank Schindler was 12 or 13. This was taken of his family in Austria when the family was still together . The woman on the right and the bald man sitting at the table with her was your great-great -great (well call that 3 X great) Grandmother and Grandfather (Joseph Schindler and Teressia Ruempler Schindler) This picture was taken without John Szofron and Adolph. As you may notice they have been "Photo-shopped" into the picture from other photographed. (Wow! Can you believe that they had the ability to do that in 1900?) I Believe that John Szofron had already gone to the USA and Adolph was killed in a war.

...and this is the Szofran Family in 1910

Frank Schindler was born in 1891 in Dittersbach, Austria and came to Ellis Island, New York in 1910.  When he left he told his girlfriend that he would return after he made his fortune.  Instead he met Barbara Szofran and married her in 1915. 

Two years later Conrad was born and then Teresia was born in 1919.   They all lived in the countryside in a small community of Grover Missouri.

Grover is only 30 miles southwest of St Louis but in those days it was a long drive on country roads.  When Conrad and Terry were in high school they would board in Kirkwood/St. Louis  Monday through Friday. 

Grandma Barbara raised chickens and eggs to sell in St Louis.  One Saturday, Grandma,Grandpa  and Conrad drove into the city to deliver her eggs and chickens. They went to the little German pub for dinner and a few beers. On the way back home(at 10 p.m.) the car ran off the road and Barbara was killed.  Frank and Conrad were taken to the hospital and remained in comas for 5 or 6 days.      Terry thinks to this day that Grandpa fell asleep because of the food and beer and drove off the road.  My dad, Conrad would always tell us that another car ran them off the road.  Terry had stayed behind that day with her grandparents and was the only one of the immediate family to attend her mothers funeral.

So time went on and Grandpa Frank was lonely.   In 1938 Frank would take Terry to see family.  He wrote to a relative in Austria and as luck would have it Ida would see the return address and write to him.  They wrote back and forth until Grandpa decided to take Terry out of her last year of High School and go back to Austria with him where he would marry Ida, his sweetheart from high school.

1938 was a very tense time in Europe.  Hitler was starting to invade other countries and was beginning his campaign to exterminate all Jews.  In Germany and Austria anyone 'suspected' of being Jewish was asked to produce evidence that they were not Jewish by producing certificates of baptism for all four grandparents before they could marry.  There were many other things that you needed to produce and this is only one example. 

Terry remembers being in the town the day that Hitler and his motorcade paraded through.  Everyone all saluted him with a "Heil Hitler" with their arms in the air but she refused and clasped her hands behind her back and refused to salute

 She refused to salute and kept her arms behind her back,
similar to how this man  is doing in the picture

When the Nazi's closed the borders because of the impending war, Terry who was an American citizen, was among the last group allowed to leave.  Since Grandpa Frank was a German Citizen, he and his new wife, Ida, remained there.  Since Frank had been in the U.S. for 27 years he was considered a civilian "undesirable".   This meant they received much lower wages and could not use public conveniences (such as public transport) or visit many public spaces and businesses (for example they could not attend German-church services, swimming pools, or restaurants); they had to work longer hours and were assigned smaller food rations; they were subject to a curfew.  They could not enter marriage without a permit.

Frank and Ida moved to Rumburg, Austria and stayed there until the Russians invaded in 1944.  The Russian army removed them from their home and put them in a work camp until the end of the war in 1945.

Back in the U.S., Conrad and Terry started to work  in the war effort.  Terry served in the Marines and in a branch of the Coast Guard called SPARS.  Conrad eventually joined the Army.  In time he was sent from England to France and then on to Germany and was able to look for the father he had not seen or heard from in 7 years.

His last assignment was at Krumau Castle. (Krumlov today)  Since Conrad could speak High German fluently, his assignment was interrogating people that were captured and one of the first things he would ask was "Do you know a Frank Schindler?"

~

This is an etching of Krumau Castle that meant so much to him.  

I now have it in my home to remind me of this story.

~

The  war ended early in May and by June Conrad had found his Dad and Ida.It took a year to get Frank back to the U.S and then he applied and received his citizenship and was able to apply for  admission to the U.S. for Ida.  They stayed in St. Louis until Conrad decided to move his family to Colorado in 1956.  When we moved they decided to go back to Germany and live out the remainder of their lives.

Conrad Joseph Schindler - Dad

 

Conrad Joseph Schindler

"Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some stay for awhile and leave footprints on our hearts. And we are never, ever the same."

This blog is about anyone and everyone that has ever crossed my path. I have always tried to treat all with respect. If I have failed, I apologize and wish that I could take back any slight. In my mind I try to show my appreciation for you all.

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Saturday, February 7, 2009

Conrad Joseph Schindler - Dad

My father, C.J. Schindler (or Conrad or Connie) was always a story teller. I have heard many versions of his stories so I pick the version I like it becomes the truth!

He was born to a family of Austrian Hungarian, Romanian, Czech, German immigrants. Depending on where borders were at the time in history. His mother was Barbara Szofron from Timişoara, Hungary (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timi%C5%9Foara) and his father was Frank Schindler from Dittersbach, Austria.

Connie and his sister,Teresia spent their childhood surrounded by many of the Szofron relatives.

Life was filled with family, work, and school until Conrad was 16. They lived out on a farm a distance from St. Louis so when he went to school, he stayed with relatives in St. Louis and went home on weekends. One Friday, Barbara went with Frank to pick up Conrad and on the way home another car ran them off of the road. Barbara was killed and Frank and Conrad were taken to the hospital where they both remained in a coma for a week. Terry stayed with relatives and was the only member of the family to go to Barbara's funeral.

Life got back to normal for a few years until Frank decided to return to his homeland and marry his childhood sweetheart, Ida Mautch. He decided to take Terry with him. She was in the last few months of High School to Germany with him. It never occurred to her to go against her father's wishes but it remained a disappointment for her for the remainder of her life.

Grandma Schindler and the Cornelius family

You were probably too young to remember Grandma Schindler but she loved you dearly.  When you were born she was already very frail and in bad health.  She was always smiling or laughing and she would giggle when you did something cute.

My mother was born Vivian Lucille Cornelius on February 18, 1917.  She was born in Prescott Arkansas to Arthur T Cornelius and Ruby Stoudt Cornelius.  

Vivian had a younger brother, Burrell and a sister, Linnie Jane.  

Vivian, mother Ruby, Linnie Jane and a cousin. Notice Vivians' short leg

During her first year of life she had measles, pneumonia and Typhoid fever  and it settled in ball of her thigh bone in the hip.  This stopped the growth of her leg for a time. She spent time in The Shriners Hospital for Crippled Children where she had several operations and then a plate placed in her hip.   As an adult she had one leg 2 inches shorter than the other and walked with a limp.

When Vivian was 13 or 14 her father, Arthur T,  got in trouble for writing bad checks and he abandoned the family.  This was during the Great Depression and men would roam from place to place looking for work.  They would walk form town to town or even sneak into empty railroad cars and jump off at the next  stop.  

To help support the family, my mother who was 12 or 13, got a job working in a candy kitchen.

One day as she and another young girl were moving a vat of peanut brittle, the other girl slipped and upended the whole thing on Vivian.  They took her to the country doctor and he just ripped the hardened candy off of her which left her with deep scars on her arms and chest. 

In spite of her scars and her limp she was a beautiful Lady.  And probably the strongest woman I will ever know.  She married Conrad during the war and sent him off to eventually go to Germany.  During that time she wrote 1-2 letters EVERY day to him.  The letters give the unique glimpse of life in the 1930's and early 1940's.  When he left she was pregnant with Barbara and when she was born she sent pictures and stories of the baby to her Daddy.

When many of the men were in the war overseas, the women had to assume their jobs.  In those days most women did not work so things changed dramatically.  Vivian went to Secretarial School and then worked as a bookkeeper and stenographer for the Director of The Red Cross while Conrad was overseas.  She lived in an apartment with several other women and made her own clothes and even hats! 

The Nelson Klan

Barbara Kay Schindler was the only child for 6 years until that was interrupted by (as my mother wrote) a screaming "red, ugly baby."  Me. 

Barbara was born during World War II in 1945 in Little Rock Arkansas.  Her dad was in Europe and her Mom lived with room mates in Arkansas while he was deployed.  Vivian would send letters about her and pictures so that Conrad could get to know his little girl.

Then Daddy came home to meet her around the 8th of November, 1945.

After the war they made their home in St. Louis until Vicki Was born.  Our grandparents had come from Germany after the war and we were lucky enough to be able to spend lots of time with them.

When she was 11 the family moved to Canon City Colorado where she was enrolled in the 6th Grade.

Upon graduation from high school the family again moved to Aurora, Colorado

After the Summer of 1962 Barb went to Colorado State University where in her Junior year she began dating Bill Nelson and in 1966 they were married Burns Methodist Church.

The reception was held at the International Club in Downtown Denver.  Conrad's friend was the chef and he created a very unusual cake for them.  Barb was disappointed with her cake because it was made of cream puffs and she thought it would be frosted white but as you can see by the photo it was brown!

The year after they were married Barb did her student teaching and then graduated from college.  Bill (Bo) had graduated with a degree in forestry and began his career in Walden Colorado.  From there they moved often.  First to Slida then to Glenwood Springs Colorado,  Sheridan and Buffalo Wyoming, Denver, Washington D.C. and finally to Colorado Springs.

While in Glenwood Springs, Their daughter Tracy Lynn was born on November 4, 1970.