We are lucky enough to live on the farm my husband's grandfather homesteaded. He bought the first parcel July 5, 1912, so what else could we do but hold a centennial party!
Grandpa John was quite a man. He worked for tree conservation, fought to bring electricity to the farmers, worked to bring in the local hospital, and belonged to and worked tirelessly in many organizations, among them, the VFW, Granges, soil conservation districts and more.
He immigrated to this country in 1905 at the age of 14 1/2. By 1912 he bought his first 20 acres, by 1917 he was fighting for this country. We honored him this weekend with a party that almost all his living relatives came to.
What a legacy!
An incredible article in the Seattle newspaper circa 1961
One of his many obituaries.
He was proud to serve!
Because he was one of the first tree farmers in the country, promoting sustainable and responsible harvesting, we thought it appropriate to use a piece of one of his trees and mark some of the rings with major events. We have his birth in 1890 and his great great grandchildren's birth in 2008 and everything in between!
We couldn't leave out the little guy who marks all our celebrations!
We had archival papers, like the document when he became a U.S. citizen, enlarged, then displayed them on the wall for guests to read.
The table holds towels and water shoes and badminton rackets for games in the pool!
The bar!
Our signature drink was a lemon drop, with four simple syrups to flavor them, mint, rosemary, rose and lavender.
Long tables set up for dining, we added votives as the evening wore on.
Comfortable seating around the pool. I caught one of the cows eating my roses earlier in the day!
The day before and the day after it rained, but the day of was sunny and beautiful!
We displayed both the Italian and American flag to honor his heritage and his new country!
What a wonderful day.
