Resilience: Readers tell stories about persevering through tough times
- GAYLE WORLAND
- Updated
In January, as days seemed dark and the COVID-19 pandemic approached the two-year mark, the State Journal posed a question to readers: As the challenges drag on, can we take inspiration from earlier generations?
Many of you responded with tales of resilience from the distant and not-so-distant past. We heard about generations who survived world wars, overcame tragedy or otherwise made their way through difficult times through sheer determination. We share some of those letters here.
John Givens and Rosemary Franke
- JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
- Updated
John Givens shares an embrace with Rosemary Franke, the widow of his long-time friend Tom Franke, at her home in Stoughton. Tom Franke wrote a tribute to his friend's resilience shortly before passing away.
John Givens and Tom Franke in 2021
- JustDane
- Updated
Tom Franke's tribute to John Givens:
This is a story of a man’s resilience from middle-class black America to success. John Givens, now living in Madison, was born in 1947 in Natchez, Mississippi, to a solid family consisting of an aunt, one brother and two sisters.
Olive Pulvermacher and her family
- Updated
My grandmother, Olive (Pulvermacher) Phillips, died in 1967 when I was a teen. She was born in 1891 in Roxbury, Wisconsin, one of 16 children. Shortly after graduating from St. Francis School of Nursing in La Crosse, she experienced firsthand the challenges of the Spanish influenza pandemic.
Following their marriage on Nov. 11, 1918 — Armistice Day — my grandfather, Morton, apprenticed to become a barber. They moved to Wabasha, Minnesota, and had five children. One son died from diphtheria as a toddler. A second tragedy followed. In their small apartment above the barber shop, my grandfather died in the night of a heart attack in 1932. After burying him, my grandmother hitchhiked back to Wisconsin. In the midst of the Great Depression, a relative drove her back to Minnesota in an old pickup truck to collect her young children and their few belongings.
Bernard and Hazel Larson on their wedding day
- Updated
My parents were strong, hardworking, resilient people who taught me by example. Their life experiences shaped my own strengths and resilience, and for that I am grateful. COVID made me question how they — the “Greatest Generation” — would have reacted to the pandemic. I think strong and determined, just as they lived their lives.
My mother, Hazel Mell Larson, was born in Wisconsin in 1918, the oldest of six children. Faced with the tough times of the Depression, the family moved to Chicago in the late 1920s. My mother lived in Chicago until she was a young adult, returned to Madison to live with her maternal grandparents, and went to work at the Community Laundry. Although she did not finish high school, it was always her goal, and she eventually earned her GED.
Fredericka Marie Caroline Biederstaedt
- Updated
My great grandfather, Johan Frederick Theodor Hasselmann, came to America in 1864 with his first wife, Johana Caroline Dorothea Biederstedt, and their daughter, Fredericka. Caroline was already sick with tuberculosis, and later died in May of 1866, leaving Johan (John) in a new land, not speaking English, with or without his later zinc factory job, and with a child to raise. Keep in mind the Civil War was still a factor, and immigration levels were down, generally.
Being a resourceful man, he sent back to Germany for Caroline's sister, Fredericka Marie Caroline, and she gladly came to America in November of 1866 to join John. She became his second wife 16 days later, and they settled in the LaSalle/Peru area of Illinois where John's brother, Louis, who had come to America in 1862, also lived. The family prospered, and produced nine children of their own.
Book of savings stamps
- ALOMA DOLAN
- Updated
Aloma Dolan grew up in Westfield and was living in Oshkosh with her family in 1941 when America entered World War II. She was just 10 years old when her father came home from work on Dec. 7, 1941, saying he heard America had just declared war on Japan because of the attack on Pearl Harbor. There was talk of little else for some time to come.
Most of Aloma’s neighbors had a family member in some branch of the service during the war, unless they were farmers. Aloma and her sister June wrote to and mailed care packages to several soldiers they knew. They even wrote to two other soldiers whose names and addresses were given to them by their school.
Dianne Treichel's grampa, Dick Glissendorf
- Updated
My grampa, Dick Glissendorf, was born in Milwaukee in 1892, but lived most of his life in Phillips, Wisconsin. He wrote a booklet called, "A Stump Sitter Reminiscing," which I'll quote from in the last paragraph. He spent years trapping in the woods, including, in one six-month period, 48 beaver, two fox, 40 mink and 400 muskrats.
One incident demonstrating resilience is quoted here from his booklet:
Margaret Lorraine Bearden on her 100th birthday
- Updated
This picture was taken of my mother on her 100th birthday. Margaret Lorraine Bearden (Gundlach) was born on Aug. 7, 1921, and passed away Dec. 7, 2021. One of America’s “Greatest Generation,” she experienced the Great Depression as a young child and endured a worldwide pandemic in her final years. Many months in assisted living were spent isolated from family until all could be fully vaccinated and hug and visit once again. Her family and friends were overjoyed to celebrate her 100th birthday outside on a beautiful day at her family home. She was even able to meet her five-month-old great grandchild from Georgia.
Her life is a testament to the challenges overcome by a generation, many long passed, who stood strong in adversity and thrived giving way to the cherished childhood many of us boomers enjoyed.
Jean Muckian's father
- Updated
My father, Norbert Rasmussen, was a U.S. Army master sergeant during World War II. He was captured in Italy on Dec. 14, 1943, by the Germans and, after being forced to surrender his boots, was marched across the Alps to a prisoner of war camp in Germany. He was beaten and starved. I don’t know the specifics of his captivity, but I do know that my father spent Christmas 1943 behind enemy lines.
However, as children, my siblings and I never knew of the horrors he experienced and why Christmas was always a difficult season for him. But Christmas in our childhood home was filled with joy, laughter, lights and good food. Santa Claus always arrived with wonderful presents. Every year, Christmas Eve ended with Midnight Mass, where my father often sang a solo version of “O Come All Ye Faithful” in the choir. He seemed to be the very essence of the Christmas spirit.
Jean Muckian-2
- Updated
Jean Muckian discovered this newspaper brief written about her father, a World War II POW.
More like this...
John Givens and Rosemary Franke
- JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
John Givens shares an embrace with Rosemary Franke, the widow of his long-time friend Tom Franke, at her home in Stoughton. Tom Franke wrote a tribute to his friend's resilience shortly before passing away.
John Givens and Tom Franke in 2021
- JustDane
Tom Franke's tribute to John Givens:
This is a story of a man’s resilience from middle-class black America to success. John Givens, now living in Madison, was born in 1947 in Natchez, Mississippi, to a solid family consisting of an aunt, one brother and two sisters.
Olive Pulvermacher and her family
My grandmother, Olive (Pulvermacher) Phillips, died in 1967 when I was a teen. She was born in 1891 in Roxbury, Wisconsin, one of 16 children. Shortly after graduating from St. Francis School of Nursing in La Crosse, she experienced firsthand the challenges of the Spanish influenza pandemic.
Following their marriage on Nov. 11, 1918 — Armistice Day — my grandfather, Morton, apprenticed to become a barber. They moved to Wabasha, Minnesota, and had five children. One son died from diphtheria as a toddler. A second tragedy followed. In their small apartment above the barber shop, my grandfather died in the night of a heart attack in 1932. After burying him, my grandmother hitchhiked back to Wisconsin. In the midst of the Great Depression, a relative drove her back to Minnesota in an old pickup truck to collect her young children and their few belongings.
Bernard and Hazel Larson on their wedding day
My parents were strong, hardworking, resilient people who taught me by example. Their life experiences shaped my own strengths and resilience, and for that I am grateful. COVID made me question how they — the “Greatest Generation” — would have reacted to the pandemic. I think strong and determined, just as they lived their lives.
My mother, Hazel Mell Larson, was born in Wisconsin in 1918, the oldest of six children. Faced with the tough times of the Depression, the family moved to Chicago in the late 1920s. My mother lived in Chicago until she was a young adult, returned to Madison to live with her maternal grandparents, and went to work at the Community Laundry. Although she did not finish high school, it was always her goal, and she eventually earned her GED.
Fredericka Marie Caroline Biederstaedt
My great grandfather, Johan Frederick Theodor Hasselmann, came to America in 1864 with his first wife, Johana Caroline Dorothea Biederstedt, and their daughter, Fredericka. Caroline was already sick with tuberculosis, and later died in May of 1866, leaving Johan (John) in a new land, not speaking English, with or without his later zinc factory job, and with a child to raise. Keep in mind the Civil War was still a factor, and immigration levels were down, generally.
Being a resourceful man, he sent back to Germany for Caroline's sister, Fredericka Marie Caroline, and she gladly came to America in November of 1866 to join John. She became his second wife 16 days later, and they settled in the LaSalle/Peru area of Illinois where John's brother, Louis, who had come to America in 1862, also lived. The family prospered, and produced nine children of their own.
Book of savings stamps
- ALOMA DOLAN
Aloma Dolan grew up in Westfield and was living in Oshkosh with her family in 1941 when America entered World War II. She was just 10 years old when her father came home from work on Dec. 7, 1941, saying he heard America had just declared war on Japan because of the attack on Pearl Harbor. There was talk of little else for some time to come.
Most of Aloma’s neighbors had a family member in some branch of the service during the war, unless they were farmers. Aloma and her sister June wrote to and mailed care packages to several soldiers they knew. They even wrote to two other soldiers whose names and addresses were given to them by their school.
Dianne Treichel's grampa, Dick Glissendorf
My grampa, Dick Glissendorf, was born in Milwaukee in 1892, but lived most of his life in Phillips, Wisconsin. He wrote a booklet called, "A Stump Sitter Reminiscing," which I'll quote from in the last paragraph. He spent years trapping in the woods, including, in one six-month period, 48 beaver, two fox, 40 mink and 400 muskrats.
One incident demonstrating resilience is quoted here from his booklet:
Margaret Lorraine Bearden on her 100th birthday
This picture was taken of my mother on her 100th birthday. Margaret Lorraine Bearden (Gundlach) was born on Aug. 7, 1921, and passed away Dec. 7, 2021. One of America’s “Greatest Generation,” she experienced the Great Depression as a young child and endured a worldwide pandemic in her final years. Many months in assisted living were spent isolated from family until all could be fully vaccinated and hug and visit once again. Her family and friends were overjoyed to celebrate her 100th birthday outside on a beautiful day at her family home. She was even able to meet her five-month-old great grandchild from Georgia.
Her life is a testament to the challenges overcome by a generation, many long passed, who stood strong in adversity and thrived giving way to the cherished childhood many of us boomers enjoyed.
Jean Muckian's father
My father, Norbert Rasmussen, was a U.S. Army master sergeant during World War II. He was captured in Italy on Dec. 14, 1943, by the Germans and, after being forced to surrender his boots, was marched across the Alps to a prisoner of war camp in Germany. He was beaten and starved. I don’t know the specifics of his captivity, but I do know that my father spent Christmas 1943 behind enemy lines.
However, as children, my siblings and I never knew of the horrors he experienced and why Christmas was always a difficult season for him. But Christmas in our childhood home was filled with joy, laughter, lights and good food. Santa Claus always arrived with wonderful presents. Every year, Christmas Eve ended with Midnight Mass, where my father often sang a solo version of “O Come All Ye Faithful” in the choir. He seemed to be the very essence of the Christmas spirit.
More like this...
As featured on
There are no plans to extend the order. Plans at the Madison School District and UW-Madison are unclear.
The package of bills also need to clear the Senate, but appear likely to be vetoed by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, who has pushed for increased spending on training and recruitment.
The state's employee testing program will also end on March 13.
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