Last week was my first to participate in the meme Wednesday's Walk Down Memory Lane. But I want to let you know that it was very memorable for me and I couldn't wait to participate again this week.
Last week, I wrote about my Grandpa Sumstad. He was such a hero to me and a spiritual mentor. If you missed it, you can read it here.
My dad called me from Florida later that day to tell me he'd received a phone call from a man named Bill Sumstad. Bill lives in the Seattle area and had somehow come across my blog post about my Grandpa Sumstad on Heart Choices. He thought we might be related!
Since that phone call, we've pieced together that yes ...we are indeed related. And Bill has a brother who lives in Tucson, Arizona! I also got connected to another new found relative named Ogee who lives in Oslo, Norway. We've become Facebook friends.
How's that for the Internet connecting people?
I thought I'd continue with my walk down Memory Lane by posting a few photos of my Grandpa Sumstad.
Here is my Grandpa as a child. He was named Henrik. As I mentioned last week, he was born on the family farm in Sumstad.
As a young man, my grandfather traveled to America with his younger brother, Tomas Konrad. My grandpa changed his first name to Henry and they took the name of their home town as their last name, Sumstad.
My grandfather met my nana, Aslaug Thoresen in church and they married. His brother Tomas Konrad married and had a daughter named Marian. Unfortunately, he died at a young age in an auto accident.
.BMP)
My dad was their first born and they named him Harry. A number of years later they had a daughter named Ruth. During these early years, the young family returned to live in Sumstad, Norway. My dad went to elementary school there but they returned to Brooklyn, New York once again.
Here is the family while they were living in an apartment in the Bay Ridge section of Brooklyn, New York. It was like Little Norway. My dad and his best friend Bob Sandbo used to hang out together and their moms would yell out the window to each other to see where the boys were.
My dad and mom met in church, Salem Gospel Tabernacle. They were in high school when they met and married in 1950. The next year they had my brother Steve and a new generation of Sumstad's began.
I wanted to post this memory for this week so my new relatives could learn more about my family. So, Bill, Ogee, and Reidar - I hope this provides a little bit of background for you too.
So Lynette, I have to say a big thank you for hosting Wednesday's Walk down Memory Lane. If I didn't participate I may never have found my new relatives. Don't forget to link to Lynette's blog to read more participating posts.
