Mom bowled for years in a church bowling league. She was always winning trophy's, and going to tournaments when the grandchildren were small.
When I was growing up Mom crocheted; she made tablecloths and dollies in the most intricate patterns I have ever seen! I crochet and I can not make the beautiful items she made, I have tried. The amazing thing is she is left handed and works slightly differently than most. It causes her stitch to be a little different and can not be duplicated. She still makes afghans and blankets. Mom and Dad both had motorcycles in the 60's and 70's and would tour around on them. They also had a camper trailer that they took camping all the time. She loves to drive and loves to travel. Just say hey Mom I would like to and before you have finished, I swear she is packed and ready to go.
Mom played the piano as a child, went to Catholic Schools. But when we were children she taught Sunday school at the Lutheran Church on East 38th street in Erie, PA. Dad drove the Sunday school bus. She was very active with the Lutheran Orphans home that her friends ran.

Dad was in Wold war II and Stationed in Hiroshima for the cleanup detail after the atomic bombing. His occupation was a electronic tech. He was a Amateur operator Wa3trj. His church affiliation as a child was Seventh Day Adventist. When Bud married Frances (Gunther) she was a Catholic. They both became members of the Lutheran Church on East 38th St. Erie, PA. Bud drove the Church bus, and Fran taught Sunday school.
Dad raised canary's in the 1950's as a hobby. He entered them in bird shows, and won many 1st, 2nd class ribbons for best of show, best of breed,or best of song.
Dad had a great Bass song voice, I can still remember him singing with me, Let The Sunshine In. He taught my sister and I how to ride bikes, and showed us all the things we were not to do on them: (ride on the handle bars, ride backwards.) You know I probably would never have come up with those methods my self!
He was a good father, but exceedingly strict. He loved his family, and grandchildren (all five) to distraction. One of the finest things he did for my son Jeremy was two days before he died he took him to get his drivers license in SC. Jeremy was 16 yrs. old. Dad had been teaching him to drive his car, a standard transmission. They would take off together with a cooler of drinks and sand-witches on Saturdays and be gone all day, often getting lost! They didn't know their way around SC. My Father had had a serious aneurysm that was inoperable in Sept 1988, but he had promised Jeremy that if it was the last thing he did they would go for his test. Dad and Jeremy went to the SC Hy dept Oct 8, 1988,and Jeremy passed his drivers test with flying colors. My dad kept his word to my son and died two days later.
My Fathers life was not an easy one. He was an unwanted child. My Grandmother Lottie was so upset about being pregnant again that she refused to speak to Grandpa the whole time she was pregnant. When Dad came into this world in the cold snowy Month Dec. 2, 1926, his mother had nothing prepared for a new born babe. No Nappies as the diapers were called no bottles no clothes or crib. She just informed her eldest daughter Edith,to take care of it. Like he was a pet animal. The responsibility of that is astounding. Edith nick named him her little buddy. He weighed 2 1/2 lbs fully clothed with a receiving blanket. Edith literally was his Mother Lottie would not have anything to do with him as a child. Remember now this was the Great Depression and food was scarce; jobs were almost unheard of and poverty was plentiful. She had a very good job and continued to contributed to the family's Welfare. Edith was twelve years older than dad and when she left he was but 2 or 3 years old. Orvile took over where she left off.
My father was legally blind as a child and got his first glasses when he went to school. He was raised in the Seventh Day Adventist religion and went to a church school. It was his teacher that noticed he couldn't see and was not clumsy because of being Pigeon toed. The society for the Blind in Erie, PA bought him his first pair of glasses. Yes I know there was little money at that time but I still can not help wondering why no one noticed?

My mother's parents were legally separated when she was a child. Some of the children lived with their father Eugene Gunther on the farm at McClend Ave, The twins Joe and Jane lived with their mother Lena, in a small place between 2nd and 3rd and Sassafras. My dad was Grandma Lena's paperboy. Grandma told dad she had a daughter for him but he only knew about Aunt Jane. One day Grandma Lena, playing match maker arranged for mom to be at her house so she could introduce them. Mom did not care much for Dad or his brother Neale when they both started coming around. She really couldn't abide Neale at the time at all. Dad would ask her out to a movie , she would tell him she was too busy. When she would see him coming down the street she would take the twins (Joe and Jane ) and leave going out the back door taking them to the Park to play. Dad once told me that it was Love at first sight and no matter what mom did, it was his perseverance, that caught her.