I have enjoyed traveling thru small towns and discovering little museums and points of interest.  When I got to Concordia KS, I saw a sign for a museum for the Orphan trains in this country.  I had no idea what it was about so stopped and learned some incredible facts I had never known.  Between 1854 and 1920 more than 250,000 orphan children from New York were sent on trains across America to be adopted or simply taken by individuals and families.  These children were the result of parents who died or abandoned by families who could no longer care for them.  They were children of immigrants who got to New York, could not find work, and who lived in poverty in tenaments not meant for fit for humans.  I was told that in the 1850s New York was approximately the size Wichita is today and had 10,000 families PER WEEK coming to New York.  Amazing.

This Society is now headquartered in Concordia and serves to connect those persons and their offspring with their families from which they were separated.

After spending a couple of days in Omaha with friends, I headed out for my next stop.  At this time, I have travelled close to 4000 miles from AZ to CA to OR to WA to ID to MT to SD to NE and now to KS.  No big deal but what is shocking is the first moisture I encountered was in Concordia, KS.  Anyone who has ever been in the NW in May will be as shocked as I encountered no rain or snow over that distance.  Now on the other hand, when you get to the Midwest, the bugs on the windshield replace any moisture and requires periodic stops to simply be able to see out!

In South NE, I saw the little white church that had been restored and was taken back to earlier years when many of the churches in this part of the country were similar.  In those days most of the residents of our communities attended one of the churches and families were all involved.  Over time that trend has been reduced and now the worshipping centers have taken on a totally different look.  The bottom picture is from a new church campus in Russell, KS.  If you aren't familiar with Russell, it is a small and shrinking town of less than 5000 people in the town.  I also noted in one small community in KS three different Lutheran Churches in a 3 mile stretch (3 flavors of vanilla ice cream).  Sad the  church facilities have grown while families attending have shrunk.

I wonder how we would all be judged in these churches if we were analyzed for the amount we spend on our own satisfaction vs. our outreach!  Might not come out as well as even some of the poorest administered non profits!

Too much reflection time on my hands as I drive along the journey.

******************NOTICE OF PROBLEM IN COMMENTS

I have had a number of you contact me about the posts and your attempt to comment on them.  I am not certain  but appears that you first have to register with blogspot.com and then your comments will be posted on the blog.  Otherwise, you can certainly leave notes and comments on my facebook.  I will always respond to messages I receive so if you don't hear from me you will know I did not receive your comments.  This is my first attempt at a blog so probably have a LOT to learn.  Thanks for your kind comments and insights.  They are all appreciated.

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When I first met Judy in 1959, I soon learned of her two best friends, Kathy and LaRue.  Both of them had married so I did not initially meet them and I also learned that the guys they married (Del & Don) had another friend Ed who Judy dated and was part of the trio!  So I felt a little bit out of it with them but over a period of years they have been open to welcoming me into the group and we have spent many fun times on activities ranging from cruises to reunions!  Kathy and LaRue did come to the memorial service  the end of March and have been a wonderful support to Judy and me over the years.  In the picture from left to right is Del and LaRue, Kathy, and back row her husband Don and me (in case you forgot who i am).  We had a wonderful visit and dinner together and enjoying a round of golf tomorrow (supposed to be high 90s in Omaha with humidity).  Thought I'd share that last part in case I don't survive the weather and golf game!

When the girls came to the memorial, I noted that each of them had known Judy longer than anyone else who were able to make the memorial.  They outdo my 58 years by at least 10 more!!!!

My trip continued to Fremont,NE where Judy and I met and married nearly 55 years ago.  It was a very mixed feeling because change occurs and the home Judy lived it had been torn down and replaced with a commercial expansion.  And the church where we were married (middle picture) has been sold to another non denominational church and the new larger one just doesn't match the memories from the one above.  I did go by Judy's Dad Bill and Arlene's home in west Omaha and was very pleased to see the current owners are keeping it very neat,

But like the rest of my journey, it is the poeple I have been able to see that makes the difference.  Judy's sister Joan and her husband Bud live in Fremont near Judy's child hood home.  I was lucky to find Jodie (daughter David's age) at their home so had a chance to catch up with them and Bill, Mike, and Dan and their families.  Jo is dealing with some health issues but still maintains a positive attitude.  Bud is full time caregiver and the kids are very frequently with them.  It was good to spend the time sharing old stories and new memories

Remember the days of the Burma Shave signs along every highway in America?  Well, like those signs I saw for hundreds of miles signs advertising Wall Drug in Wall SD.  The signs had tempting notes like 5Cent coffee or 5 cent ice cream cones.  Well, I couldn't avoid the temptation and stopped to check out the drug store. What I found shocked me.  More than 75,000 square feet (probably equal to half the total town footage) of every kind of western gift, clothing eatery, or about anything else you might want.  I learned the drug store got the start in 1931 when the owner bought the drug store near the edge of the Badlands and promoted traffic by posting signs on the roads offering "free" ice water.   This creative pharmacy graduate found the way to an incredible tourist oasis in the middle of SD.  Pretty amazing and worth several hours of browsing.  

I made a point of trying to find interesting places to visit, eat, and stay.  When I got to Murdo SD, I decided it was time for lunch and I saw billboards advertising Star Cafe.  So I headed there and was pleasantly surprised with true down home cooking.  The special was a hot turkey sandwich (of course on white bread) with mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry and whole kernel corn!  And it was only $8.50.  What a deal and it was really very good!  On my way in to town, I saw an auto museum that had been there since 1954.  So of course, I stopped.  Only $11.50 and you could tour hundsreds of autos dating back to the early 1900s with a little "fake" town including the local bank.  Many of the cars appeared to have been there for many decades with flat tires, no restoration, and dust accumulated many inches thick over the years.  But i did see the 1951 Ford coupe.  My first car had also been a 1951 Ford Victoria hardtop that looked like this one from the front but not the same style as mine.  

The other picture above is from Mitchell SD.  Their big claim to fame is the corn palace so I headed there to check it out.  Well, I come from wheat country and can't imaging taking heads of corn to recorate the exterior of the main convention center every year.  Oh  yeah, and they did the same inside the building.  Guessing those cold winters with the strong winds cause people to pursue very unique activities.