My Adventurous Mom, Julia Deemer

The following notes reflect comments from Julia Deemer to her questioning son, Roger Deemer, in the fall of 2024.

Earliest Memories.

Mother loved cats. We had a gray cat with a white chest. The cat was upstairs with newborn kittens and I was surprised the kittens’ eyes were closed and couldn’t see. That was a really pretty gray cat.

We used to wash laundry in a wringer-washer. We hung our laundry outside to dry. In the winter the clothes would freeze-dry. Sometimes, when it was rainy we dried our laundry in the basement and Mother would sing “Showers of Blessings” and I’d sing along with her as I helped hang the laundry. My little brother John would play with his toys in the basement while we worked.       

I was 7 when Mother died. I remember the abundant flowers at her funeral. She was well liked in Frankfort. She sent cards to a lot of people. Perhaps that’s where I get my card-sending habit from.

My father Married Lena Fewins when I was 9. We knew the Fewins family because we attended the Elm Grove church on Fewins Road occasionally. Our family and the Fewins family attended Lake Ann camp meetings (tent revivals) also. I had chicken pox when they got married and couldn’t attend the wedding.

I also remember having measles and Mother Lena reading to us at night when we went to bed.

My father was a carpenter and lumber worker who also ran a print shop our of our home. He printed cards, advertisements, business forms, etc. He started with a small, hand operated press, but upgraded 3 times to a very large automated press for the time. I used to put the letters away in the storage case. One time I got in trouble because my sister, Pearl, made me put the letters away by myself when I didn’t want to. I was so mad I just put letters in randomly.

Father made some of the chairs and tables we used in our home. I still have one of his tables and half a dozen chairs.

There was a woman who came to our church in Frankfort without her husband. One day he came to church drunk, got in an argument with the pastor and slapped him, sending his glasses flying. I liked that pastor so the incident really upset me. I was afraid of drunk men for a long time after that.

Mother Lena started a day-care about a year after marrying my Father. She never had any biological children, but she helped raise a lot of children in Frankfort.

Before marrying Frank, Lena worked as a nanny for the Case family. Leonard Case was a baby when his mother died. I heard she accidentally swallowed a safety pin. Mother Lena was the only mother Leonard knew as a little boy. He always honored her as if she was his mother. Leonard worked at the Cherry Hut and eventually became the owner, so I feel like the Cherry Hut is owned by relatives even though we aren’t biologically related.

My father, Frank, died when I was 12. Mother Lena remained a widow, caring for Children. We didn’t have a lot of material possessions, but she knew how to use what we had wisely. After decades of serving the Frankfort community as a licensed child-care provider, Mother Lena became known as “Grandma Jones” to many.

Teenage Memories.

I was Gwen Frostic’s first employee at her Frankfort shop on main street. She didn’t drive so I often took her places along with her dog, Teddy. (I was 14 when I got my driver’s license.) Gwen was a nice supervisor, happy to find someone who knew how to do printing.

Gwen once hired another girl who tried to read her Bible while folding printed cards. Doing 2 things at once didn’t work well so she didn’t last very long.

Gwen’s printing presses ran on electric motors with drive belts. The drive wheels and belts weren’t covered. One day my skirt got caught in the drive wheel and it ripped right off, leaving only the waste band behind. It was a popular style of skirt, full with excess material that floated out if you spun in circles. Gwen just looked at me and said, “It’s a good thing you’re wearing a slip!” Fortunately, she had a wrap-around skirt I could borrow until I got home that day. She installed covers on the presses after that.

Back then we took a generalized test every year and I always did great on the mechanical section of the test. Gwen thought I should be able to put the folding machine together when she got one, but it wasn’t the same as answering questions on a test.

There was a TV show called “Industry on Parade” that came and did a segment on Gwen Frostic’s shop. They filmed me putting cards on the display rack. At one point it only showed my hand placing the cards. Gwen said, “Well, you have a hand in TV now!” I never saw the show myself until just before my 85th birthday when Roger found it on YouTube.

Note: You can watch the Gwen Frostic episode of Industry on Parade on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFZgYjy70Bk. The segment starts at 7:23 into the video and Julia appears at 9:18 through 9:47, ending with the shot of just her hand and arm.

I played clarinet in the high school band. My clarinet was old and stopped working my junior year so I played base drum after that.

I graduated from Frankfort High School in June of 1958, second in a class of 33 students.

I continued working for Gwen Frostic that summer before college, then attended Eastern Michigan College for 2 years with a major in library science.

KI Sawyer AFB, Marquette, Michigan (June 1960 – August 1962)

I gave birth to Sharon Jean Deemer on March 12, 1961. Other women at the base were jealous because Mother Lena and my mother-in-law (Daisy Deemer) both came to help with the baby when she was born.

Interesting note: Lena and Daisy were sisters from the Fewins family.

I went ice fishing for the first and last time there.

Wheelus AFB, Tripoli, Libya (August 1962 - May 1965).

Orson got orders for Wheelus AFB in Tripoli, Libya. He went out by himself, and I had to follow with an 18-month-old daughter, 6 months pregnant with Roger. Most people were very helpful, but it was still difficult. I had never left Michigan before this. Some people discouraged me, saying I shouldn’t go, but I was determined. I wanted to be with Orson!

I flew to Grand Rapids and lost my breakfast during our descent. For many years I couldn’t eat eggs for breakfast. That was the only time I ever got air sick. From Grand Rapids I flew to Cincinnati and that plane backfired so we had to stay there for a while. Sharon discovered cigarette butts there and tried to pick them up whenever she saw one. (Cigarette butts were very ubiquitous at that time.) From there we flew to Columbia, Georgia, then another flight to Savannah, Georgia where I stayed overnight in an air force base.

The next day we flew to Bermuda! I was only there for a couple hours, but it left an impression. It seemed so exotic! From there we flew to the Azores.

I sat in a café with Sharon, but the waiters would not serve me, an unaccompanied woman with a small child. Finally, an airman in the USAF came and sat with me. Immediately a waiter came and the airman ordered for me. (All I wanted was a cup of coffee and something for Sharon to drink.)

From the Azores we flew to Moracco. I don’t remember much about Moracco. It was a short layover. From there we flew to Wheelus AFB and Orson was there waiting for me. I was hugely relieved to see him, partly because it had been about 3 months, but mostly because I was relieved from the stress of traveling. Orson would take care of me now. 

When it was time to leave, I was excited about going home, but I was not looking forward to flying on a cargo plane. We flew from Wheelus AFB to France in a C-130 Hercules that Orson called “The Terrible Airplane.”

We were only in France for a few hours, then we flew to England where we spent a few days sight-seeing. There was a military housing place near Hyde Park in London. We spent a lot of time there where Roger and Bruce loved to chase the pigeons.

We flew to New Jersey, got a car, and drove to Michigan before reporting to our new assignment.

Church Leadership and Travels.

I taught Sunday School, cooked, sang in the choir and volunteered in numerous other ways at church while our children were growing up. I got started doing things with the United Methodist Women’s (UMW) group at this time. My work with UMW lead to a host of other activities at church when Sharon, Roger, and Bruce were all in college. I took on leadership roles in UMW becoming very active in our Lake Ann UMC. I started chairing the social action committee at the district office. They asked me to be the UMW district vice president for 4 years, then I served as president for 4 years. I served as a UMW conference delegate several times, eventually serving as conference VP, then president. After that I was elected to represent Michigan on the national UMW council. That began my phase of traveling for the church.

I ended up serving on the Board of Global Ministries (BGM) for the United Methodist Church (UMC) as a finance chairperson. (My work as the Inland Township Clerk prepared me for this area of service.) I served 8 years on the BGM.

I served as secretary on the UMC committee of indigenous Americans known as NUMNAC (National United Methodist Native American Committee) and learned a lot about the plight of indigenous Americans from this work. I served this committee 4 years.

One time I was in Clairmont, CA for a NUMNAC meeting and 5 indigenous American men wanted to see the movie Men in Black. They didn’t want to leave me alone in my hotel room, so they asked me to go with them. I had fun going out to a movie with 5 native American men!

In December of 1999 I travelled to Tonga to meet with Methodist missionaries there. They had the best tasting lobster! I was there on New Years evening standing with my feet straddling the international date line where I was in 2 millennia at the same time.

I traveled overseas numerous times for the Board of Global ministries. I traveled to England for a meeting. We road a train to London and got on the subway where we had to sit for an hour without moving because of some maintenance problem. When we finally got into London we road a double-decker bus!

I walked across the border once from San Diego to Mexico with other members of the board to visit a women’s group in a church near the boarder. Coming through customs they checked everyone’s bag until they got to me. They just waved me through making all the others in my group envious!

Later I served on the hunger committee for the West Michigan conference of the UMC. For that committee I traveled to Zimbabwe twice. I visited “Africa University” there and worked at an orphanage across the road from the university. I sewed pajamas and other things for the children. We also helped build staff housing. For a while I worked in the library where I made friends with a couple students who also worked in the library. I corresponded with them for a few years.

We went to Victoria Falls and took a safari. We saw zebras, giraffes, baboons, a lion, a leopard and all sorts of other animals. At one point about 40 elephants surrounded our vehicle so we couldn’t move. They were so big, they could easily have tipped our vehicle over!

My hunger committee also traveled to visit some missions and rural villages in India investigating feasibility for digging wells. One group of Christians we visited had been moved from their rural village where there was no clean drinking water to a hill on the edge of a city. Their homes were made of cardboard and tin sheets. They all put crosses on their homes and flew a church flag at the top of the hill. Unfortunately, the nearest well was in a valley where they had to pass through Muslim and Hindu neighborhoods and people often threw rocks at them.

We stayed at a mission hostel for a few days where people came from the street when they were about to die. We visited a place where orphans and abandoned children stayed and were fortunate to meet Mother Theresa there. We didn’t get to talk with her much, but we got a nice photo!

My favorite church committee was called Gum Moon. It was a United Methodist mission in San Francisco. They took women in who came to the US to work and ended up trapped in prostitution. We helped them find better jobs. The mission was a place for their kids to come to after school where they could work on homework and hang out.

Once a year we traveled to San Fransisco for a meeting. I would go out a day early with another lady to take the trolly down to Fisherman’s Wharf and eat at Bubba Gumps’s. We also liked to visit China Town and the Ghirardelli’s chocolate shop.

I won the Northwest Michigan Fair homemaker of the year award in 1982, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990. I won a “county fair homemaker” award at the Michigan State Fair in 1983 and 1985. In 1985 I was the state first runner-up for homemaker of the year.

During that time, I started volunteering in the Evelyn Heim building where most open class entries are exhibited. I was soon the “barn boss” for the building. I supervised a team of great volunteers who kept the building running, judged entries, and became good friends. For many years I kept Snickers (my miniature schnauzer) in the corner of the barn behind the supervisor’s desk.

While I was supervisor, we put wheels under the tables to make them easier to move and bought wire racks to hang items from. I encouraged other women to enter the homemaker competition and a couple of them qualified for the state competition. When Roger retired from the air force and moved to Michigan, I recruited him and his family to help with the Evelyn Heim building. I also helped Roger and Amanda’s kids, Reed, Nolan and Sage, to complete projects and exhibit them there.

I remember Sharon showing Roger’s last steer in 1980 because he was at basic training at the USAF Academy.

Township Clerk

I ran for township trustee in 1980 with Mr. Beechraft because he wanted a partner to run with. We didn’t win that position, but I ran for township clerk in 1982 and won. I served 3 terms (12 years). (I was also elected county delegate to the state democratic convention one year.)

The township clerk has many important duties. I was heavily involved in elections, of course, but I had many administrative duties for the township. One odd thing that I really enjoyed was helping people find their family plots on the township cemetery. Few people know how to find their plots, but it’s very important and I felt good helping them.

We had no township offices, so I did most of my work from home. Occasionally we’d set up shop at the township hall for activities like voter registration drives.

One year we had a power outage from a storm during an election. I had to use candles to check people in and allow them to vote. Fortunately, our voting machines back then didn’t require electricity. Les Wilson eventually brought a generator so we could get the lights on.

Grandchildren

My first grandchild was Petter, born in Bergen Norway, February 28, 1989. That was a little strange having my first grandchild born so far away. I first saw him when they came to the US for Roger and Amanda’s wedding. Petter was 4 months old. We visited them for Christmas when he was 2 years old. I remember taking him for a walk on the steep hillside where they lived, and Petter fell in some dog poop.

Daisy was born there also, November 21, 1991, but Sharon and Chuck moved to Newfoundland when Petter was 3 and Daisy was only a few months old. They visited us in Michigan before going to Newfoundland. Petter was really cute dressed in a white shirt, knit vest and bow tie.

During one visit to Newfoundland Daisy would play in the living room wearing her swimsuit even though it was cold outside. She didn’t like wearing many clothes and never complained about being cold.

I made a quilt for Daisy with 12 blocks, each with a lady wearing a different dress. Daisy loved this quilt, using it to the point it needed repair.

Reed was my 3rd grandchild, born February 8, 1995, in San Antonio, TX. They made plane reservations to come visit us in April. That night Orson died. The first time I saw Reed was when everyone came for Orson’s funeral. It was a sad time, but having a new grandson helped ease the pain.

Nolan was born October 13, 1996. I remember visiting Roger and Amanda in San Antonio for Christmas. Reed and Nolan loved playing with a child nativity set. That was exceptionally cute.

Laura was born in June, 1995 in Crystal Lake Illinois. I went down for her Baptism. Laura loved to be in school plays when she was small. David was born January 6, 1999.

In 1999 Roger and Amanda asked me and Amanda’s mom, Nancy, to stay with Reed and Nolan while they went to Australia for 2 weeks. It was fun to be with my grandsons, but it was a lot of work and a little stressful. I remember pulling Nolan around the neighborhood in the wagon. One day Nancy dropped a bottle of pills and I was afraid Nolan would grab one and eat it before she could get them all picked up. I held Nolan tightly until every pill was picked up.

Roger and Amanda adopted Sage on March 30, 2001. I went to Detroit to meet them at the airport when Sage arrived. Sage was the only grandchild I had the privilege of meeting at the same time her parents did. I was excited to meet my new granddaughter and see that she arrived safely. I remember taking Sage to the commissary and she reacted to Asian people there. She was always excited to see Asian people.

Attending dedications and baptisms was always meaningful.

I remember eagle scout ceremonies for Reed, Nolan, and David. Those were moments of pride for me seeing my grandsons recognized for that noble achievement. Graduation ceremonies that I was able to attend gave me similar feelings of grandma-pride.

Several of my grandchildren were band members. Nolan playing the baritone stands out in my memory. I enjoyed his music, especially when he played with the jazz band, but I also enjoyed watching him play. I was always impressed to see him play that giant instrument!

I enjoyed watching Sage play soccer. We didn’t have girls’ sports when I grew up and no one played soccer, so it was a real joy to watch Sage and all those girls having fun and being competitive in a challenging sport.

When grandkids visited, I enjoyed taking them to Otter Creek beach, Sleeping Bear dunes, and some other fun places nearby. Daisy liked visiting the A&W restaurant and David liked visiting the Cherry Hut. I liked taking them to Frankfort to show them my home, play at the beach, and walk out the pier to the lighthouse. They all seemed to enjoy hiking back to the creek.

I enjoyed visiting Bruce’s family in Crystal Lake when Laura played Sandy in the musical, Annie. That was an especially fun time.

God

I was 6 years old when I went to the altar and prayed to ask Jesus into my heart. We were attending the Frankfort Pilgrim Holiness church. I didn’t fully understand what that meant at the time, but it’s the point that my faith became my own instead of just something my parents did.

The only time I remember getting a spanking was when we had some dark brown church pews stored in our garage while they were building a new church. I didn’t like the color so I painted a couple of them red. Dad was very unhappy with that. I was 7 and should have known better.

I liked going to church summer camp when I was a teenager. I learned how to short-sheet beds there. Singing was probably my favorite thing at camp.

Sometime in the 1990’s I attended an Emmaus Walk in Petosky. Louise Goin and a few other ladies from church went. We had a lot of fun together with silly antics and jokes. The cards and letters filled me with joy. The candle-light service at the end was very impactful. I attended many Emmaus Walks on staff working in the conference room, kitchen, table leadership, etc., and the candle-light service always moved my spirit.

Serving in the ecumenical group, Church Women United, was fun and fulfilling. I made some great, life-long friends while doing the work of God. They gave me a “Valiant Woman” award for my contributions in the local community.

I used to prepare and lead Sedar meals for our church in Lake Ann. Those were meaningful and gave me opportunity to serve others. I also provided Sedar meals for two native American churches, one east of Elk Rapids and another near Northport.