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Newspaper Archive of
Shelton Mason County Journal
Shelton, Washington
January 25, 2007     Shelton Mason County Journal
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January 25, 2007
 
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What's Cookin'? Myrtle follows her 'gyps3 tleart' By REBECCA WELLS On December 23, Norma Vincent took her mother, Myrtle (Ryckman) Williams, to visit her sister-in-law, Dorothy Ryckman in Shelton. "Oh, she has company," Myrtle observed as they approached their relative's home, but Norma insisted they go in to see her anyway. Little did Myrtle know the "company" she had noticed were all family mem- bers who had come to celebrate her 88th birthday with a surprise party. How did she handle the shock once everyone started cheering for her'? "I was too dumbfounded to think anything," Myrtle remembers. With the exception of a 99-year- old aunt, Myrtle is the matriarch of her family. Her granddaughter, Tammy Heisey Graham of Seattle, had organized the celebration. AMONG THOSE who show- ered her with "love and devotion" as her daughter Norma put it, were Myrtle's nephews Jerry, Terry and Michael, and niece Michele, along with their spouses and children. Also in attendance were relatives Merle Vanderwal, Margaret Brown, Ruth and Ruel Pierce, and Myrtle's other grandchildren, Scott Heisey, Katy Joy and John Graham. Myrtle's granddaughters Sheri Heisey Bickmore and Anne Heisey Young, who lives in Nashville, Ten- nessee, with her four boys, could not make the trip but nephew Terry Ryckman and his wife Mary drove up from the Oregon Coast for her surprise party. Family friends from Alaska sent flowers for the oc- casion. Besides her four grandchildren, Myrtle also has eight great-grand- children and two adopted great- granddaughters. Myrtle also has three sisters-in-law named Dorothy who married her brothers. To help straighten out the confusion, two of the Dorothys go by the nicknames "Big" and "Little," since "Little Dor- othy" stands around 5 feet tall and is married to Myrtle's little brother Warren Ryckman, while "Big Doro- thy" is married to her big brother, Elmer "Bud" Ryckman. Myrtle staed o6t as a surprise Christmas present to her family by being born on December 25 of 1918 in a fhrmhouse in Emmons County, North Dakota. Lingering in her hazy childhood memories is one adventure she and her brother had while riding on the edge of her father's wagon. Her father drove the horses to a gate and then got down to open the gate when all of a sudden the horses took oil" running. Her brother Bud man- aged to jump offand then yelled for her to do the same but Myrtle just held on and rode the out-of-control wagon for about a mile before the dust settled. This harrowing experience didn't end up traumatizing her. On the contrary, she still loves horses and used to own a number of them when she and her daughter Norma lived in Utah. In fact, they would still own horses if they could afford them and if their Star Lake neigh- borhood allowed them. "I never rode with a saddle; I rode bareback. I have ridden with a saddle but as a rule I didri't," Myrtle remembers. BY THE TIME she had turned 18, the family had moved tb Shel- ton and Myrtle had a new mode of transportation: hitchhiking. "My sister-in-law and I wanted to see places and we didn't have the money to do it, so we hitchhiked," she explains. So 70 years ago the two young women traveled from Shelton to Long Beach, Califor- nia, and back by hitching rides the whole way. They visited California because her sister-in-law's boy- friend was stationed down there with the U.S. Navy at the time. During one of Myrtle's hitchhik- ing journeys, she was in Lynden ENJOYING A BIRTHDAY CAKE from a celebration a year or two ago is Myrtle Williams, who just turned 88 on Christmas Day. when a distant relative happened to be the one to give them a ride to their destination. "I didn't even know him, but he turned out to be my uncle's brother," she remem- bers. "I used to hitchhike quite a bit when I was young. I don't know where all I went. I didn't keep track of it." She does remember once taking her mother along on a hitchhiking journey up to Bremerton to visit her brother who was in the naval hospital. "I wouldn't do it today. It'd be too dangerous," she says. MYRTLE'S FAMILY moved to Shelton in 1937. By the following year she had graduated from Irene S. Reed High School, found em- ployment working for the Shorter family and the Booths and had married James Vincent. Her sister, Hazel, married Jim's brother Jdhn and the families lived in Shelton for many years, off and on. Later, Myrtle and her husband had two children, Norma and Milton Vin- cent, before eventually getting a divorce. Myrtle returned to Shelton tom Tacoma in the early Fifties, work- lug as a cook at the old Cota Grill when it was owned by Edna John- son. Myrtle's two children attend- ed Shelton schools until 1955. Her son Milton died at the age of" 16 but Norma graduated with the Irene S. Reed Class of 1958. Years later, Norma's daughter, Anne Heisey, would graduate from Shelton High School, making three generations of family women graduating from Shelton schools. Upon her return to Shelton Myrtle married Cecil Patterson, a longtime Shelton resident and son of Grace Patterson, an original pi- oneer woman who had traveled to this area in a covered wagon. Their son Allen, who was born in 1953, still has an official certificate com- memorating his pioneering grand- mother. Myrtle was widowed and her daughter grew up and married Da- vid Heisey. When her daughter was living in Duluth, Minnesota, where her son-in-law was stationed in the U.S. Air Force, Myrtle loaded up her Volkswagen Beetle with her son Allen and their two dogs and drove out to be with them. LATER, THE entire family of Myrtle, Allen, David, Norma, their three daughters, a large German shepherd and Myrtle's two smaller dogs piled in the Beetle again and drove to a Ryckman family reunion near Pollock, South Dakota. Along the way, they ran out of gas "in the middle of nowhere," as Norma re- calls, and had to park overnight by a closed gas station and wait un- til it opened in the morning before they could proceed. "It was August, hot, and the mosquitoes ate everyone alive, all seven people and three dogs packed in the little bug," Norma remembers. Myrtle's next big move was to Chugiak, Alaska, where her son- in-law David was transferred after returning from military service in Vietnam. Myrtle trekked, caravan style, in two cars, up the Alaska- Canada Highway to Alaska, again to be near her daughter Norma. Myrtle brought her son Allen who was a teenager by then. Alaska turned out to be Myrtle's favorite state. "I loved it: the only place I ever was homesick for," Myrtle says of Alaska. She espe- cially enjoyed the long, sunny sum- mers and snowy winters, a sharp contrast from Shelton's rainy, damp weather. "I came from snow country," Myrtle explains. "We like snow a lot better than rain," her daughter Norma adds. HIGHLIGHTS from their stay there include Allen's performance in the role of "Big Brother" in the play 1984, before graduating from high school in Anchorage. He lat- er went on to become an air traf- fic controller in Denver, Colorado. Myrtle, meanwhile, became a cook again, this time at the Sad Shack Cafe in Anchorage. "I like to cook. I like to eat," she says. Myrtle also did some in-home care in Alaska. By the late 1980s Myrtle had re- turned to Washington, settling in Elma. In 1989 she met and married Jack E. Williams, whom Norma de- scribes as "a flamboyant character straight out of the Old West." At this time, Norma was living as a cowgirl on a ranch in Utah. Myrtle and Jack joined Norma in Utah, moving to La Sal, Utah. "Five minutes from the top of the mountain and on the edge of the desert: You can't beat that, right on the edge of the ridge lands," Norma remembers fondly of the area of Utah she used to call home. Another thing they liked about this rugged home was it gave them the chance to see a bear standing in the wild. FOR THE NEXT few years they enjoyed their time "taming the gypsy in their souls," as Norma says, by exploring the deserts and mountains of Washington, Arizona, California, Tennessee, Colorado and Utah. One of their jaunts took them to Graceland, the legendary home of Elvis Presley in Memphis, Tennessee. Sometimes Jack would just wander off into the desert without knowing specifically where he was headed. Though Myrtle has also always enjoyed traveling, Norma says she believes what her mother really appreciated about these par- ticular trips was just the time they spent together. Their fun ended in 2005 when Myrtle once again became a widow. She and Norma have since both come back to Mason County, and attend Grace Community Church in Elma. "Myrtle is still a gypsy at heart and would still spend her time FIR ANE Volunteers Wanted! Your special time with our residents is greatly appreciated. Learn about fascinating lives as you share stories and talents with unique individuals who experienced  and made  history. Call now to find out about Fir Lane's new volunteer activities and to become a volunteer. 3601426-1651 2430 North 13th Street .:. Shelton, WA 98584 v,.,,K, Page 16 - Shelton-Mason County Journal - Thursday, January 25, 2007 traveling but for a limited retire- ment income," Norma says. "I NEVER GET tired of trav- eling," Myrtle confirms. She says she has fun encountering new people and places. However, at her age, she has let her driver's license expire and spends most of her time knitting, crocheting, doing crossword puzzles, playing Scrabble, reading and watching game shows. Myrtle shared a simple recipe for a longtime family favorite: Homemade Noodles Ingredients: 2-5 eggs About 1 tsp. of salt, or a few pinch- es more for a larger serving 2 C. flour Preparation: Assemble a very large mix- ing bowl, a pastry sheet, a fork, a rolling pin and a knife or pizza slicer. Begin by mixing a little of the flour with one egg and the salt into a stiff dough in the mixing bowl. Gradually add the rest of the eggs and flour while continu- ally mixing the batter into a stiff dough. When the dough is thor- oughly mixed and stiff, roll out into thin dough on.a baking sheet, as if it were pie-crust dough. Use the pizza cutter to make thin strips, the width depending upon the desired width of the noo- dles, as they really expand while cooking. About 1/4" wide is Drop the noodles into a ing or lightly boiling soup. will take about 10 cook. Serves two or three She also shared how to the soup in which to cook i homemade noodles: Homemade Turkey Chicken Soup Ingredients: Raw turkey or chicken Pinches of salt, pepper, onion and other taste Preparation: The day before serving noodle dinner, put the raw or chicken in a large roasting t with some water. Cover and in the oven at 350 degrees enheit until the fowl is and tender. Let cool. Debone the bird, separa. the meat from the broth. Let I#. meat and broth sit overnight the refrigerator. The next day skim off the layer on the top of the cold b out of the refrigerator. Keep spoon or two for the soup and I the broth and the small spOO ] fat and the deboned fowl i#° kettle on top of the stove anda adding pinches of the seasoni.-" listed above. Simmer until wp] cooked. When ready for supper, P, the fresh noodles and add the$ the broth. Danger and downed tree removal Storm drainage control Bill Mq Turnal Enterprises (00t60'p 866.3931 or (360) 432.0971 Ii i rii 2 :: rQ EARLY BIRD SPECiALg 1{" Mol.hg-Thursday 3-5:30 p.m. $15 i,,,,l,,,th, h,.,,c,,,a,l,, * (:l.,icc oI' till rcc * (:hoicc o[' sigh' lish • (:l.icc of' SOUl or salad * (:ornhrcad 10s41 K-,,-ly O-ek P, oad sw, Oiympi 30 866-87[ 2c S,,,,/rh,,,,, l l,,,,,-+f,q I th lhv 8 F'ri & Sal I lan,-!)l '11 Keep the home fires burning with a gas or woodstove or insert by FIREPLACE PRODUCTS Even with the power out... you stay warm! Don't let the next bout of bad weather catch you without heat! 90 Days Same As Cash Capital City ,e & Fan Center 2118 Pacific Ave., Olympia - 943-5587 Monday-Friday 8:30 a.m.-6 p.m., Saturday 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m., Sunday 10 a.m.-2 p.m. What's Cookin'? Myrtle follows her 'gyps3 tleart' By REBECCA WELLS On December 23, Norma Vincent took her mother, Myrtle (Ryckman) Williams, to visit her sister-in-law, Dorothy Ryckman in Shelton. "Oh, she has company," Myrtle observed as they approached their relative's home, but Norma insisted they go in to see her anyway. Little did Myrtle know the "company" she had noticed were all family mem- bers who had come to celebrate her 88th birthday with a surprise party. How did she handle the shock once everyone started cheering for her'? "I was too dumbfounded to think anything," Myrtle remembers. With the exception of a 99-year- old aunt, Myrtle is the matriarch of her family. Her granddaughter, Tammy Heisey Graham of Seattle, had organized the celebration. AMONG THOSE who show- ered her with "love and devotion" as her daughter Norma put it, were Myrtle's nephews Jerry, Terry and Michael, and niece Michele, along with their spouses and children. Also in attendance were relatives Merle Vanderwal, Margaret Brown, Ruth and Ruel Pierce, and Myrtle's other grandchildren, Scott Heisey, Katy Joy and John Graham. Myrtle's granddaughters Sheri Heisey Bickmore and Anne Heisey Young, who lives in Nashville, Ten- nessee, with her four boys, could not make the trip but nephew Terry Ryckman and his wife Mary drove up from the Oregon Coast for her surprise party. Family friends from Alaska sent flowers for the oc- casion. Besides her four grandchildren, Myrtle also has eight great-grand- children and two adopted great- granddaughters. Myrtle also has three sisters-in-law named Dorothy who married her brothers. To help straighten out the confusion, two of the Dorothys go by the nicknames "Big" and "Little," since "Little Dor- othy" stands around 5 feet tall and is married to Myrtle's little brother Warren Ryckman, while "Big Doro- thy" is married to her big brother, Elmer "Bud" Ryckman. Myrtle staed o6t as a surprise Christmas present to her family by being born on December 25 of 1918 in a fhrmhouse in Emmons County, North Dakota. Lingering in her hazy childhood memories is one adventure she and her brother had while riding on the edge of her father's wagon. Her father drove the horses to a gate and then got down to open the gate when all of a sudden the horses took oil" running. Her brother Bud man- aged to jump offand then yelled for her to do the same but Myrtle just held on and rode the out-of-control wagon for about a mile before the dust settled. This harrowing experience didn't end up traumatizing her. On the contrary, she still loves horses and used to own a number of them when she and her daughter Norma lived in Utah. In fact, they would still own horses if they could afford them and if their Star Lake neigh- borhood allowed them. "I never rode with a saddle; I rode bareback. I have ridden with a saddle but as a rule I didri't," Myrtle remembers. BY THE TIME she had turned 18, the family had moved tb Shel- ton and Myrtle had a new mode of transportation: hitchhiking. "My sister-in-law and I wanted to see places and we didn't have the money to do it, so we hitchhiked," she explains. So 70 years ago the two young women traveled from Shelton to Long Beach, Califor- nia, and back by hitching rides the whole way. They visited California because her sister-in-law's boy- friend was stationed down there with the U.S. Navy at the time. During one of Myrtle's hitchhik- ing journeys, she was in Lynden ENJOYING A BIRTHDAY CAKE from a celebration a year or two ago is Myrtle Williams, who just turned 88 on Christmas Day. when a distant relative happened to be the one to give them a ride to their destination. "I didn't even know him, but he turned out to be my uncle's brother," she remem- bers. "I used to hitchhike quite a bit when I was young. I don't know where all I went. I didn't keep track of it." She does remember once taking her mother along on a hitchhiking journey up to Bremerton to visit her brother who was in the naval hospital. "I wouldn't do it today. It'd be too dangerous," she says. MYRTLE'S FAMILY moved to Shelton in 1937. By the following year she had graduated from Irene S. Reed High School, found em- ployment working for the Shorter family and the Booths and had married James Vincent. Her sister, Hazel, married Jim's brother Jdhn and the families lived in Shelton for many years, off and on. Later, Myrtle and her husband had two children, Norma and Milton Vin- cent, before eventually getting a divorce. Myrtle returned to Shelton tom Tacoma in the early Fifties, work- lug as a cook at the old Cota Grill when it was owned by Edna John- son. Myrtle's two children attend- ed Shelton schools until 1955. Her son Milton died at the age of" 16 but Norma graduated with the Irene S. Reed Class of 1958. Years later, Norma's daughter, Anne Heisey, would graduate from Shelton High School, making three generations of family women graduating from Shelton schools. Upon her return to Shelton Myrtle married Cecil Patterson, a longtime Shelton resident and son of Grace Patterson, an original pi- oneer woman who had traveled to this area in a covered wagon. Their son Allen, who was born in 1953, still has an official certificate com- memorating his pioneering grand- mother. Myrtle was widowed and her daughter grew up and married Da- vid Heisey. When her daughter was living in Duluth, Minnesota, where her son-in-law was stationed in the U.S. Air Force, Myrtle loaded up her Volkswagen Beetle with her son Allen and their two dogs and drove out to be with them. LATER, THE entire family of Myrtle, Allen, David, Norma, their three daughters, a large German shepherd and Myrtle's two smaller dogs piled in the Beetle again and drove to a Ryckman family reunion near Pollock, South Dakota. Along the way, they ran out of gas "in the middle of nowhere," as Norma re- calls, and had to park overnight by a closed gas station and wait un- til it opened in the morning before they could proceed. "It was August, hot, and the mosquitoes ate everyone alive, all seven people and three dogs packed in the little bug," Norma remembers. Myrtle's next big move was to Chugiak, Alaska, where her son- in-law David was transferred after returning from military service in Vietnam. Myrtle trekked, caravan style, in two cars, up the Alaska- Canada Highway to Alaska, again to be near her daughter Norma. Myrtle brought her son Allen who was a teenager by then. Alaska turned out to be Myrtle's favorite state. "I loved it: the only place I ever was homesick for," Myrtle says of Alaska. She espe- cially enjoyed the long, sunny sum- mers and snowy winters, a sharp contrast from Shelton's rainy, damp weather. "I came from snow country," Myrtle explains. "We like snow a lot better than rain," her daughter Norma adds. HIGHLIGHTS from their stay there include Allen's performance in the role of "Big Brother" in the play 1984, before graduating from high school in Anchorage. He lat- er went on to become an air traf- fic controller in Denver, Colorado. Myrtle, meanwhile, became a cook again, this time at the Sad Shack Cafe in Anchorage. "I like to cook. I like to eat," she says. Myrtle also did some in-home care in Alaska. By the late 1980s Myrtle had re- turned to Washington, settling in Elma. In 1989 she met and married Jack E. Williams, whom Norma de- scribes as "a flamboyant character straight out of the Old West." At this time, Norma was living as a cowgirl on a ranch in Utah. Myrtle and Jack joined Norma in Utah, moving to La Sal, Utah. "Five minutes from the top of the mountain and on the edge of the desert: You can't beat that, right on the edge of the ridge lands," Norma remembers fondly of the area of Utah she used to call home. Another thing they liked about this rugged home was it gave them the chance to see a bear standing in the wild. FOR THE NEXT few years they enjoyed their time "taming the gypsy in their souls," as Norma says, by exploring the deserts and mountains of Washington, Arizona, California, Tennessee, Colorado and Utah. One of their jaunts took them to Graceland, the legendary home of Elvis Presley in Memphis, Tennessee. Sometimes Jack would just wander off into the desert without knowing specifically where he was headed. Though Myrtle has also always enjoyed traveling, Norma says she believes what her mother really appreciated about these par- ticular trips was just the time they spent together. Their fun ended in 2005 when Myrtle once again became a widow. She and Norma have since both come back to Mason County, and attend Grace Community Church in Elma. "Myrtle is still a gypsy at heart and would still spend her time FIR ANE Volunteers Wanted! Your special time with our residents is greatly appreciated. Learn about fascinating lives as you share stories and talents with unique individuals who experienced  and made  history. Call now to find out about Fir Lane's new volunteer activities and to become a volunteer. 3601426-1651 2430 North 13th Street .:. Shelton, WA 98584 v,.,,K, Page 16 - Shelton-Mason County Journal - Thursday, January 25, 2007 traveling but for a limited retire- ment income," Norma says. "I NEVER GET tired of trav- eling," Myrtle confirms. She says she has fun encountering new people and places. However, at her age, she has let her driver's license expire and spends most of her time knitting, crocheting, doing crossword puzzles, playing Scrabble, reading and watching game shows. Myrtle shared a simple recipe for a longtime family favorite: Homemade Noodles Ingredients: 2-5 eggs About 1 tsp. of salt, or a few pinch- es more for a larger serving 2 C. flour Preparation: Assemble a very large mix- ing bowl, a pastry sheet, a fork, a rolling pin and a knife or pizza slicer. Begin by mixing a little of the flour with one egg and the salt into a stiff dough in the mixing bowl. Gradually add the rest of the eggs and flour while continu- ally mixing the batter into a stiff dough. When the dough is thor- oughly mixed and stiff, roll out into thin dough on.a baking sheet, as if it were pie-crust dough. Use the pizza cutter to make thin strips, the width depending upon the desired width of the noo- dles, as they really expand while cooking. About 1/4" wide is Drop the noodles into a ing or lightly boiling soup. will take about 10 cook. Serves two or three She also shared how to the soup in which to cook i homemade noodles: Homemade Turkey Chicken Soup Ingredients: Raw turkey or chicken Pinches of salt, pepper, onion and other taste Preparation: The day before serving noodle dinner, put the raw or chicken in a large roasting t with some water. Cover and in the oven at 350 degrees enheit until the fowl is and tender. Let cool. Debone the bird, separa. the meat from the broth. Let I#. meat and broth sit overnight the refrigerator. The next day skim off the layer on the top of the cold b out of the refrigerator. Keep spoon or two for the soup and I the broth and the small spOO ] fat and the deboned fowl i#° kettle on top of the stove anda adding pinches of the seasoni.-" listed above. Simmer until wp] cooked. When ready for supper, P, the fresh noodles and add the$ the broth. Danger and downed tree removal Storm drainage control Bill Mq Turnal Enterprises (00t60'p 866.3931 or (360) 432.0971 Ii i rii 2 :: rQ EARLY BIRD SPECiALg 1{" Mol.hg-Thursday 3-5:30 p.m. $15 i,,,,l,,,th, h,.,,c,,,a,l,, * (:l.,icc oI' till rcc * (:hoicc o[' sigh' lish • (:l.icc of' SOUl or salad * (:ornhrcad 10s41 K-,,-ly O-ek P, oad sw, Oiympi 30 866-87[ 2c S,,,,/rh,,,,, l l,,,,,-+f,q I th lhv 8 F'ri & Sal I lan,-!)l '11 Keep the home fires burning with a gas or woodstove or insert by FIREPLACE PRODUCTS Even with the power out... you stay warm! Don't let the next bout of bad weather catch you without heat! 90 Days Same As Cash Capital City ,e & Fan Center 2118 Pacific Ave., Olympia - 943-5587 Monday-Friday 8:30 a.m.-6 p.m., Saturday 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m., Sunday 10 a.m.-2 p.m.