Regina Chapter Continues Through Four Seasons of the Year--Part One: March 9th to August 2nd, 2013

Just a note of apology to start.  We have been happily busy in the Archives, visiting and teaching less actives and investigators, doing family history research for both of us and temple work for Sister Leary's ancestors and their descendants since our last posting in early March and little time to update the blog on a regular basis.  Also, we procrastinated because the blog has been difficult to work with. Maybe its our browser and for this version we are trying a different one.  So if it works out hopefully we will be more regular in our postings.  No word on India as of yet.  The last word we had from Vancouver where we applied was in December when they returned our passports and stated in a cover letter that the visa applications continue to be under review.  We never heard anything again from Vancouver.  Just the same, no one has given up and the Church Missionary Dept. had us reapply through Toronto in June.  Our applications finally got past BLS International Services Inc., the front office for document collection in Brampton, and were forwarded to the Consulate in Toronto for approval seven weeks ago.  We are always advised that the applications continue to be "In Process". Hopefully we shall hear soon.   If not, we may stay in Regina or be reassigned permanently somewhere else.  We will let you know.

--MARCH PHOTOS--

15 Senior and 2 younger Sister Missionaries at the Regina Temple in March

Some of the trees retain the fall leaves throughout the winter which makes for a beautiful contrast with the snow.

Then there are the Elm Trees that don't retain any leaves and it looks a little bleak. 

Sister Leary looks a little short here.  Some days we had to wade through the snow to get to work and other days the snow was removed for us to walk to the car park.  It could snow like Calgary of course and often one foot or more overnight.

A panorama from top to bottom looking north to northeast towards the Parliament Bldg and along Wascana Lake

Parliament Bldg looking across Wascana Lake

This gnarled Elm Tree caught our attention quite often as we turned at this corner every day on our way to the Archive Center.  To me it represented the trials and challenges of our lives and how they can cause us to change course and lead into forbidden paths if we are not rooted in the atonement of Jesus Christ.

In contrast to the above we see here beautiful trees standing majestically.   To me the white snow blanket represented the peace and comfort of the atonement which covers a multitude of imperfections.  Out of this base we see rising these wonderful trees representing the lives of faithful saints rooted in the atonement.  For each individual, we not only see the faithful stem but the branches of our posterity. 

Typical older small Regina Homes.  Many are well maintained and very picturesque.

Above are scenes and photos of ice crystals of the most beautiful hoarfrost I have ever seen.  These photos were taken along our route to the Archive Center in the morning of March 28th.  The entire city was draped in such frost.  It was stunning to say the least. 


--APRIL PHOTOS--

Sister Leary breaks a long standing record from prior missionaries twice in one month for the number of pages in a single file box of homestead records, all of which she prepared for imaging; first at 1476 pages then at 1494 pages.  Most file boxes have between 1000 and 1300 pages.

Left front to back: Elder Quist, Elder__?, Elder Rivera, Elder Barba, Elder Brisco & Elder Turner.

Right front to back: Elder Judkins, Elder Fratcher, Sister Tiefenback, Sister Bronson & Sister Needham

Front left and around the table: Sister Clarke, Elder Eckert, Sister Eckert, Sister Leary, Elder Tiefenbach and Brother Clarke

Missionaries at the Classic Buffet Restaurant for dinner on Saturday during April General Conference.  Sister Clarke always treats the missionaries for lunch during General Conference first at this restaurant on Saturday and then at the Stake Center on Sunday.  She is amazingly kind to us all. She is also serving a family history mission as a support to patrons who phone in for help to Family Search.

Spring thaw in full swing by April 29th.  Looking out from our apartment to the south.  The next day we had a blizzard.

Zone Conference blizzard and some of the missionaries at our apartment on April 30th for dinner.   Elder Barba (left) and Rivera (right) in the front, Elder & Sister Eckert (left at back) and Sister Porter (right at back) beside Sister Leary.

Saskatchewan Parliament Building and grounds in spring thaw

Bishop Dilts, who manages the Church's interests at the Archive Center and does the imaging, along with his wife Carma and family at their home.


--MAY PHOTOS--

Snow free at last on May 3rd.  Looking south from our apartment.

Noon walk with Sister Leary and Bishop Dilts out ahead.

Spring is finally here for a noon walk on May 6th with Canada Geese everywhere & Parliament Buildings and Wascana Lake in the background.

Elder Barba in Saskatoon for papers.  His parents live here as well after immigrating from Mexico and until he gets his papers he can only serve in Saskatchewan.  He was not able to go to the MTC for training but is a great missionary.

Regina First Nations Pow Wow at the Brandt Building on Lewvan Drive.  The colors were magnificent.  They all danced in an oval around inside of the stadium and then various chiefs (i.e. Third photo above) led a procession to the event hosts to receive recognition for their tribal dress and dance patterns.

Our son Mark and his wife Lyndsey with their two children, Abigail and Oliver, visited us in Regina for Mothers Day.  We had a great time with them--swimming, touring the sites of Regina and stopping at the Milky Way for ice cream of course. These 2 special grandchildren are among a total of 15 grandchildren of Elder and Sister Leary. They are all equally special to us and are scattered about in Alberta, Utah and California. We miss them of course but perhaps one day they will follow in our footsteps.

Sister Leary standing beside Amazing Race Flag at Wascana Lake foot bridge on May 13th.  Spring tree buds are well on the way.

Sister Leary again with a record long civil court record document that she prepared for imaging.  Bishop Dilts in the background does the imaging.  


SOME FAMILY HISTORY IN MANITOBA

MEMORIES OF GEORGE LEARY AND HIS WIFE ARMINTHA AGER WHO SETTLED IN NELSONVILLE, MANITOBA  ABOUT 1877 AND BUILT A BRICK PLANT WEST OF ROSEISLE THAT OPERATED INTERMITTENTLY DURING THE FIRST HALF OF THE 20TH CENTURY.  THEY ARE MY (GEORGE LEARY OF CALGARY) GREAT UNCLE & AUNT.  GEORGE IS ONE OF EIGHT CHILDREN BORN TO JOHN AND MARIA SNEYD WHO TOGETHER IMMIGRATED TO CANADA FROM SOUTHERN IRELAND WITH A BRIEF INTERLUDE IN JAMAICA A.LONG THE WAY.  THEY ARRIVED IN HURON COUNTY, ONTARIO IN ABOUT 1858 AND LATER MOVED WEST TO MANITOBA.  INA BRAMADAT, PICTURED BELOW, IS THEIR GRANDDAUGHTER WHO CONTINUES TO LIVE ON THE BRICK PLANT PROPERTY.  INA IS MY SECOND COUSIN ONCE REMOVED.

Above are beautiful pieces of  china,  embroidery and formal clothing that belonged to Armintha Leary (Formerly Ager).  Pictured above is Ina Bramadat in her home on the Brickplant Site west of Roseisle, Manitoba.  Armintha and her husband George were both quite tall.

Ina & Sister Leary holding a piece of quilting that Maria Leary nee Sneyd, my great great grandmother, was working on as a gift to Ina at the time of her death in 1901.  She passed away on the Leary property in the red brick home shown below.

Stone grave markers for Ina Bramadat's grandparents, George Leary and his wife Armintha Leary, nee Ager in Morden Cemetery southeast of Roseisle, Manitoba.

Leary Brickyard Site, local water source, red brick home of George & Armintha Leary and local school house all in close proximity to each other on the Leary property. The Brickyard site is designated a provincial historical site. The red brick home was built by George Leary from bricks from his plant. It partially burned in 1939 and was then rebuilt. It is a beautiful home by any standard.


THE LEARY'S FIRST SETTLED IN MAMITOBA AT NELSON, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS NELSONVILLE, LOCATED ABOUT 20 MILES SOUTH OF ROSEISLE, IN 1874 AND MOST OF THE OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS FOLLOWED SHORTLY THEREAFTER FROM HURON COUNTY, ONTARIO.  AMONG THE FIRST TO SETTLE WERE BENJAMIN LEARY, MY GREAT GRANDFATHER, A BROTHER OF GEORGE LEARY WHO LATER BUILT THE BRICKYARD PLANT AS ABOVE, AND HIS SON ORLANDO GEORGE LEARY, MY GRANDFATHER.  MY GREAT GREAT GRANDFATHER, JOHN LEARY AND HIS WIFE MARIA LEARY NEE SNEYD, ALSO CAME EARLY ON TO THIS AREA.  BOTH JOHN LEARY AND HIS SON BENJAMIN SETTLED IN THE NELSONVILLE AREA AND WORKED HOMESTEADS.

Site of Nelsonville which is now completely gone.  Pictured beside the rock feature and plaque is my cousin Ina Bramadat.  

The above three photos are of land once owned by John Leary, my great great grandfather and separately by his son Benjamin Leary, my great grandfather.  This land is very fertile as it was once the floor of Glacial Lake Agassiz. An escarpment running NW-SE lies a few miles to the west from here and separates this flat land from beautiful hilly farming and grazing country to the west. Orlando George Leary, my grandfather, later moved from this location in 1919, after a short period of time on a fruit orchard in Delaware, to northern Alberta with my father William Henry Leary and homesteaded 6 miles west of Whitecourt.  That is where I grew up before moving to Vancouver with my parents when I was 13 years old.

Certificate of land title with all water rights granted to Benjamin Leary, my great grandfather on 19th October, 1881.  The land is pictured above.

Ina Bramadat, my second cousin once removed, and yours truly--George Leary.  Ina is an amazing family historian and has done so much to retain records, property and memorabilia to remember our ancestors.  She is also an active family history researcher and has helped me a great deal.  This is a picture taken in her home near the Leary Brickyard Plant Site west of Roseisle, Manitoba.  I think you can see the Leary in both of us.  Ina claimed I had the trademark features of a Leary.  We had a most enjoyable time while visiting briefly with her and seeing the family historical sites as she guided us around the countryside.

Gravesite in the Morden Cemetery at Morden, Manitoba of John and Maria Leary and a grandson, born to George and Armintha Leary, by the name of Arthur Winston Leary who lived only 5 months.  John and Maria are the head of the Leary family of 10 that immigrated from Ireland to Jamaica and then to Canada in the mid 1800's.  What a great blessing it was to find their final resting place.

Typical gently rolling hills west of the escarpment where William Henry Leary, second son of John and Maria Leary and my great great uncle, settled on a homestead in the Swan Hills area around 1877.


BACK TO REGINA

Cathedral Village Art Festival in late May on 13th Avenue in Regina

Spring foilage is fresh and beautiful by late May in Regina

Sister Leary and her birthday roses

Sister Leary feeding the Canada Geese at our lunch time walk along Wascana Lake.  The geese can get a little aggressive if not careful so at this point Sister Leary had to take her leave.  This beautiful Wascana water way in Regina is a mainstay for the geese from April to October each year.

Sister Porter indulging in her favorite ice cream at the Milky Way Ice Cream Shop on Victoria Avenue.

Beautiful tree cluster of spring multicolors near the Archive Center on Hillsdale Drive.  Photo taken on May 30th.



--JUNE PHOTOS--

Elder Eckert & Elder Leary

Now this is some moving crew from heaven.  Look at the glow.  From left to right--Elder Rivera, Elder Barba, Sister Leary, Sister Harding, Elder Eckert, Elder Leary and Sister Needham.

Missionary crew that proudly managed to get all the important belongings for a family moving from Nokomis to Winnipeg into this 15 foot U-Haul van.

Beautiful early summer scenes along the Wascana waterway and near the Archive office along Hillsdale Drive.

  Jet streams in Regina from aircraft of the Royal Canadian Air Force based in Winnipeg.

Geese and little goslings enjoying the sunshine.

Bishop Dilts and his wife Carma to his right and the motley Archive Crew enjoying ice cream at the Milky Way. Sister Marx on the left and Sister Porter beside Sister Leary on the right.

A classic missionary photo of two faithful Elders.  Elder Barba on the left and Elder Rivera in training on the right.  We just finished visiting, along with these fine Elders, Sister Cappo and her 5 to sometimes 11 grandchildren that live with her .  Since Elder Barba has served here Sister Cappo has become active.

This is Sister Cappo with 10 of her grandchildren on this day with her.  Elder & Sister Leary and Elder's Rivera are the filler in the photo while Elder Barba, shown above at the back, is taking the picture.  These children loved the missionaries as you can see.

Our local squirrel mascot who lives in the tree just outside our  Archive office window.  These photos are taken through the glass window of the office.  Sister Porter likes to feed the squirrels peanuts.  Up to three squirrels seem to live in this tree and are often playing in the tree as they chase one another around and up and down.  It provides an interesting spectacle for us.

Sister Marx the missionary having a discussion with a lady that has picketed outside the Saskatchewan Archive Center for over 20 years on a daily basis.  She is always there every day when we leave at 3:00 pm.  This lady seems to be picketing about the lack of financial support for widows of deceased teachers--and apparently it's personal with her.  Her sign, which is very old, is directed towards the Saskatchewan Teachers Federation. Sister Marx is a great example to us all for her outgoing nature and eagerness to share the gospel with others.

Above top: Beautifully arched elm trees typically line many of the residential streets in Regina. Above bottom: Some more of the typical well kept older homes of the city.

Sister Needham in red and Sister Harding in pink hamming it up a little at the Archive Center.  We appreciate the help of the full time missionaries in document preparation.  They usually come once a week or every other week so we have lots of help.

Grand stately homes near the Parliament Buildings that we drive by on our way home from the Archive Center.

Sunsets are often very beautiful on the prairie.
  

Sister BigEagle with her two grandchildren, Cassie and Talin, are wonderful to visit and have started coming to church quite regularly.  Sister BigEagle says she always sees Sister Leary's mother watching over her when we visit.  First Nation people have a special spiritual depth.  We love this family.  Elder Barba and Elder Rivera have done a great job in teaching and nuturing this family back into activity.  Sister Leary and I have been helping Sister BigEagle compile her family history and she is preparing to go to the temple.

A full moon shot from our apartment.  The moon as seen from the prairie seems so bright, clear and detailed.  The photo does not catch the detail but does express the illumination as seen here.

Soccer being played behind our apartment.  There is also a baseball diamond beside this soccer field and it is often is use as well.  We appreciate this because in the bigger cities, at least where we have lived, the ball diamonds and soccer fields seem to get so little use.  Another thing we really appreciate here is on the pavement you see above, which is part of the parking lot, children by the 10's play and ride their bikes.  Parents seem relaxed with the environment and that is refreshing.

Relief Society activity--Lewvan Ward, Regina

The many faces of partaking of a certain candy stick at the Archive Center by Sister Leary and Sister Marx.

Sister Marx learned fast on the job at the Archive Center.  She just arrived from Utah and already claims a perfectly prepared file for imaging. 

The Archive Crew missing Bishop Dilts who was away for the day. Full time missionaries--Sister Needham and Sister Harding were helping out today. We always have a lot of laughs. Sister Porter and Sister Marx are single senior missionaries who share an apartment in the same complex we live in off Sherwood Drive in NW Regina.

Elder Martins on the left and Elder Quist on the right of the Leary's.  This is the evening before transfers so lots of pictures.  At transfer, Elder Quist became District Leader in the Lewvan Ward with 4 Elders and 2 Sister missionaries to watch over.  Elder Martins was transferred to Moose Jaw.

Elder Rivera on the left and Elder Barba on the right at transfer time. Elder Barba was transferred to Saskatoon and Elder Rivera remained here.  Elder Rivera is about 7' 3" high. He is from Utah and claims some Mayian descendancy and is full of fun. Elder Barba has some of the most amazing object lessons when he teaches the gospel.

--JULY PHOTOS--

A visit to Moose Jaw on Canada Day.  Above illustrates the beautiful countryside to the south of the city and shows a view east and west along the railway that runs through the city along a major prairie valley.  This valley is one of several NW-SE trending glacial meltwater channels in the region all of which find their way into the Qu'Appelle River Valley east of Regina.  These channels, now beautiful valleys with meandering rivers, were important drainage basins during melting of the glacial ice sheet that covered this region about 10,000 years ago.  Fertile flat regions on the prairies such as the former Glacial Lake Regina, southeast of Regina, and Glacial Lake Agassiz, that covered most of southern Manitoba, were all former lakes about 5000 years ago that today provide for rich agricultural soil derived from the former lake bottom sediments.  These meltwater channels would have drained into these huge glacially fed lakes.

1914 White Steam Car

1953 Dodge.  My first car was a blue 1953 Chevrolet Bel Air which was not on display in the museum.  

1926 Chevrolet Superior

 1955 Ford Fairlane Crown Victoria

The restored Model T Ford Runabout, shown about, was originally manufactured between 1908 and 1927.  We had a 4 door sedan Model T Ford on the farm in northern Alberta that I can well remember as a boy.  It had wood floor boards and I can remember the dust coming up through the floor while driving to town on Saturday's for groceries and supplies.  I remember the car being very reliable, sturdy and with a crank start and a rough ride.

Above photos were taken at the Transportation Museum in Moose Jaw.  Do you recognize a vintage car you might have used in an earlier day?  There were some here that I definitely related to from my farm experience as a youth and as a young man in Vancouver, B.C.  This is one of things about this part of Canada.  Some amazing museums.

Main street in Moose Jaw.  It is here on the left where the entrance is located to the famous "Tunnels of Moose Jaw" that depict a Chinese laundry where early Chinese immigrants lived and worked underground, never seeing the light of day, in very deprived conditions. The tunnels also show "The Chicago Connection" where bootleggers fleeing from the law south of the border would hide and hang out. It is believed ,these outlaws had links to the Al Capone gang in Chicago hence the nickname "Little Chicago" for Moose Jaw.

The famous Snowbirds, depicted above, are based at the Canadian Forces Base in Moose Jaw.

Sister Marx with another perfect civil record file ready for imaging at the Archives. She is amazing.

North Storm Channel runs westerly from the back of our apartment off Sherwood Drive.  It is a tributary that runs into the Wascana waterway to the sourthwest.  Lots of mallard ducks and ducklings along here and a beautiful walk along a path that stretches to a golf course at the western edge of the city.  

Memories of the Past plague is situated along the north bank of the North Storm Channel commemorating First Nation lands, wildlife and culture of this area. The portion entitled "In My Special Place" was written by two students from grade 3 and 6.

An abundance of beautiful green vistas in the summer months in Regina.

Unusual multi-colored leaves on a tree near the Archive Center.

 Storm clouds often seem somewhat unique in Regina.  Cloud formations are typically stratified and show evidence of multi-wind directions as illustrated above.

Canada geece with their flock of gosslings in and around Wascana Lake.

Talk about perfection--the 777th file for 1921 in the Civil Records prepared for imaging.  Sister Leary keeps giving Sister Marx a run for her money.  

Beautiful summer scenes like these are common place around Wascana Lake.  We walk along here just about every day of the week for our exercise.

Elder Rivera and Elder Martin talking with the sign lady at the Archive Center.  We wave to her every day when we leave by car and she waves and smiles back and puts a check mark on her record paper in hand.

Parliament Building and grounds in top photo.  The bottom two photos above are from flowers on the lane divider for the street in front of the Parliament Building.  Large potted or flowerbed flowers are typical all over the city at main intersections along such lane dividers.

 Another prairie storm cloud.  This one had massive frequent lightning associated with it.

Some plants along Wascana Lake.  For an excellent website of Prairie Wildflowers go to the link below by Shelley Banks:

http://prairiewildflowers.blogspot.ca/2013_05_01_archive.html

The summer season is in full swing at Wascana Lake.  These photos were taken across from the foot bridge onto a small island in Wascana Lake.

Sister Marx and Sister Leary beside a beautiful flower bed near the Archive office.

July 17th Zone Conference in Regina.  Sister Harding is the center of attention again.  She is a great missionary.

A Calgary Flames jersey in Regina Roughrider territory.  How about that! Bishop Dilts is showing some concern since he is a avid Roughrider fan.

Currency notes found in homestead records.  They were used like money orders or bank drafts today.

Regina City Hall and main sculptures and plaques of the front grounds.  Regina is known as the Queen City--you can see this inscription at the top of the plaque which reads "Who Dreams Shall Live".  Also, interesting connections with the people of India and China.

Farmers Market is popular in Regina although expensive.  It is located very near to the City Hall.

Another moon shot.  The moon is bright and crisp here and this is somewhat of an unusual image.

Parliament Building and Queen Elizabeth II Gardens

A large flower bed of Sunflowers rimmed with marigolds and daisies at the intersection of Saskatchewan Drive and Lewvan Drive.

Typical Elm lined street in Regina.  Photo taken towards the north end of Elphinstone Street.

Ice cream time by the Archive Sisters after a hard days work.

Regina Sunset

Beautiful summer colors in various trees in south Regina.  The beauty here in nature is just astounding.  You can tell by the number of pictures we take.

Canola as far as the eye can see

Beautiful blue flax field

  

Flowering flax

 Sister Leary inspecting the Estevan Coal Mine where lignite coal is being mined by open pit and dragline methods.

Sister Marx is an ardent rock hound and was in her glory here.

Beautiful glacial meltwater channel--Souris River valley today.

The above photos were all taken Wednesday, July 31 while driving from Regina to Minot, North Dakota.  The purpose of the trip was to obtain medical assistance for Sister Marx who is from Utah.

Sister Marx reminisces about the good ole school days.

Oops--It was a little louder than I thought it would be. 

 Steam tractor model that actually works

There are some amazing stories of gangsters 

Stevenson family home

 Doll collection

A beautiful hand made quilt on display

Historical village, museum and research center in Minot, ND



  --AUGUST PHOTOS--

North Dakota, from Minot through Williston to near the Canadian border, is a hive of oil & gas exploration and development activity for oil shale and carbonate hosted oil and gas resources in the Bakken Formation of the Williston Basin.  These resources are being developed through horizontal drilling, hydraulic fracturing and high well density.  This discovery, mainly through improved technology, is hailed as one of the largest hydrocarbon fields in the world.


Sister Leary and Sister Marx checking out a restaurant.

Wild sunflowers

Entrance road into County Flavour Bed & Breakfast located about 4 kms west of Coronach

Coronach and local area, Southern Saskatchewan. We came here to overnight on the way back from Minot, ND so that tomorrow we could tour the Big Muddy Valley and Badlands and other points of interest between here and Regina.  See Part Two for the continued adventure.