August 1987: Introduction to the Lawver and Klee Families

In August 1987, I went on my very first camping trip with my Uncle George, Aunt Marianne, and cousins, Kim, Wendy, and Joy. Marianne thought that it would be good for me to be around other kids my age.


We went to Silver Lake many summers and stayed at the State Park.


I fell in love with Jase Lawver, the minute I met him.    He was the cutest boy I had ever seen. He had big brown eyes and brown hair.     The older brother, Chad, was also very nice.    Their younger brother, Adam, was 4 yrs old at the time.   Skip Lawver was the jokester of the group and Jo Lawver was very nice, too.

Harold Klee was another of the jokesters of the group. His wife, Cheryl, was an elementary school teacher. They had two daughters, Heather and Dawn. Heather was 1 yr older than my cousin Kim and Dawn was about a year older than I am.

My Uncle George met Harold and Skip in Ypsilanti.  Harold, George, and Skip were roommates.  They have been friends ever since.


It was good to have all of these father figures around, as I no longer had that influence in my life.


Harold always used to joke around that they were going to have to initiate me into the group by dunking me in the lake.


Skip was famous for his school group where he would have all of us kids sit around in a circle and teach us funny things. One time, he held us upside down and made us recite the alphabet backwards. We would laugh so hard.



I had gone to New York City in July, so had a lot to say about the trip.


Many times, the camping trips would fall around my birthday in August, so they would celebrate my birthday with cake and presents.


Skip loved to talk about how he conceived each of the kids. We would all die laughing about how one of them was conceived in a cornfield.


One of our favorite past times was for the kids to play cards. Our favorite game was “Bullshit”. That was so much fun. I knew when Jase or Chad were lying, as you could see it in their faces.


Heather Klee was the oldest girl in the Klee family, who went to the University of Michigan and received her Master’s Degree from Pepperdine University.   
Her sister, Dawn, who was a year older than I, enjoyed gymnastics. Later on, she did a lot of coaching of the gymnastic teams.



I remember when Jase was around 15, I taught him to drive in my first car. I was so excited every time I saw him.


One year, we stayed at the state park in Traverse City and went to Mackinac Island for the day. I was so excited when I could ride bikes with Wendy, Chad, and Jase on the island. I was in love with Jase for many years, until I grew up. I took many pictures and couldn’t wait to get them developed.


The tradition of going on the three family camping trips continued each year until shortly after I moved back from Chicago in 2001.

These families continue to be a part of my extended family, for which I truly blessed.

Summer 1987: New York City

Mom and I flew to New York City to see the sights. We stayed in downtown Manhatten. We went to the Broadway play, “Chorus Line”. It was quite good. On our way out of the theater, we were walking and I looked over and noticed a 6th grade teacher from Lincoln Park, Miss Majeski. What a small world!! She took us to this restaurant, where the movie stars dine. She knew I liked to see movie stars, so gave us a bunch of ideas of where they could be seen.

We saw a taping of a morning talk show starring Mariet Hartley. I got my picture taken with she and her host. That was my first experience seeing a show taped.


We went to the Statue of Liberty and walked up all of the steps to the crown. The stairs were spiral towards the top and it was so hot that day. I thought we would never make it to the top.



We had a wonderful lunch at the Tavern on the Green in Central Park. We both felt like queens for the day. We ate in the flower room, where there were many chandeliers. I think this was one of the fanciest lunches I had ever had in my life.


Mom and I went to the top of the World Trade Center and saw a beautiful view of the city. We had breakfast there in a restaurant on the top floor.


Overall, this was a fantastic vacation. We both had a wonderful time.

September 1986: 6th Grade

My 6th grade teacher at Lincoln Park was Mrs. Boonstra.      She was our teacher half the year, but had some illness, so we had alot of substitute teachers.   I remember being voted in as President of the class for a month, which I was so happy about. I got to sit at the desk at the front of the class next to the teacher.   I got to grade papers for the teacher, which I thought was awesome. Some of my good friends were:   Shannon Rynberg, Tania Smith, Kristen Vogas, Brooke Nason, Kara Filius, and Matt Johnson.   

I still hated to go out to recess, especially when it was cold and snowy outside.  That is when I got the opportunity to work in the office for the secretary during her lunch hour. I took phone calls, scheduled appointments, and made copies for the teachers.   I loved it because I didn't have to go outside for recess after lunch.    I also took messages for our principal, Mr. Howe.  I felt very important in this position.  Mr. Howe seemed to like how well I did in the office.     

Summer 1986: Wisconsin Dells

Mom drove us to Wisconsin for this summer vacation. We visited the Wisconsin Dells, Baraboo (Barnum and Bailey circus), House on the Rock in Spring Green, and the Frank Lloyd Wright Architectural home. I thought it was pretty neat that we got to go on this boat that would change into a motor vehicle when it came out of the water.

We had a hard time getting a hotel in Wisconsin Dells, as there was a convention in town. We drove for miles looking for a place to stay and found nothing, so we ended up sleeping in our Ford Tempo at a truck stop. That was so uncomfortable. The next night, we were able to find a hotel at the Dells, which was much nicer.

1985: John Kulikowski's Wedding

Had a good time at the wedding reception for John and Debbie Kulikowski. Had fun dancing with Alexia, Alissa, and Aleah. Usually, I get bored at weddings, but this wedding was fun.

My Mom was real sad. This was the first wedding she went to without my father. When it got to the slow dancing, she just started to cry and got upset. I don’t remember her crying a whole lot when my father died, as she was trying to be as strong as possible. But, I think she needed to cry and get it out of her system. I felt bad for my mom at the wedding. I didn’t want to leave as I was having fun, but I knew I needed to be with her. She had been so good to me.

October 11, 1985: Dad's Ashes

On October 11, 1985, my friends and I were looking at my dad’s ashes in this urn. I think it freaked my mom out. It was weird to see my dad’s bones and such all made into small pieces. It was sad for me to see those ashes.



My mom knew how my dad loved Lake Michigan so we decided to throw his ashes out into Lake Michigan. We went out at night and walked the Pere Marquette Pier in the dark and spread his ashes at the end of the first stretch of the pier. I remember the two of us crying as it was so hard to do that. Who would have ever imagined that my father would take his life.

Before he died, we were thinking about moving to Florida, as he couldn’t find a good job in Muskegon. Plus, his parents were living down there in the winter months.

Sometime around that night, my mother had this vision, which I truly believe to this day. It wasn’t a dream, but it was God and my father letting her know that she was going to be OK and that she was going to find a job that she truly enjoyed. They also told her not to worry about her daughter, Amy, as I would be successful.     To this day, I always believe in that.  I don’t think it was a dream, but truly God and my father talking to us.

Dad's Last Gift to me - 1985

Played with Kim Daugherty.  Talked to my cousins on the phone.  I had a nice pink fashion coat.  I had 4 Cabbage Patch kids.    Tracy was the doll that my mom gave me. She had blond hair.  Manuela was the little preemie doll that my father got me from the toy story in the old Muskegon Mall.   My Grandpa and Grandma Gonyo gave me the cabbage patch kid named Joe.  Then, my Grandpa and Grandma Thomas got me a cabbage patch doll named Jacob.