Reunion Wrap-Up

The 2014 family reunion season has come to a close for us. The Miller and the Schumm reunions were held back-to-back, one weekend after the other, making for a busy but memorable time.

The Schumm reunion goes back much farther and encompasses more relatives than the Miller gathering. The Schumm reunion is for the descendants of John Georg Schumm and his five children who immigrated in 1833. And there are thousands who descend from them.

The Miller reunion, on the other hand, is for the descendants of my Miller grandparents and consists of my aunts and uncles and cousins. Below is a rundown of both reunions.

An estimated 225+ relatives attended the Schumm reunion last Sunday and most were able to sit under the shade of the pavilion, located near Zion Lutheran Church.

Nearly 225 attended the 2014 Schumm Reunion. (2014 photo by Karen)

2014 Schumm Reunion. (2014 photo by Karen)

The Lutheran Men of Song provided the afternoon entertainment. They were great!

Lutheran Men of Song, 2014 Schumm Reunion. (2014 photo by Karen)

Lutheran Men of Song, 2014 Schumm Reunion. (2014 photo by Karen)

How often do you attend a reunion where not one, but two people over 100 years old are also in attendance? Both Velma Schumm (100) and Karl Schumm (almost 101) were there and they both sang for those gathered.

Karl stood up and sang Baptized Into Thy Name Most Holy, singing in German. This was his Confirmation hymn and he was right when he said that we would not understand what he was singing. At least I couldn’t!

Karl Schumm, 100, sings a hymn in German. (2014 photo by Karen)

Karl Schumm, 100, sings a hymn in German. (2014 photo by Karen)

At the conclusion of the reunion Velma joined the Schumm Singers as they sang Blest Be the Tie That Binds.

The Schumm Singers, with Velma, 100, conclude the reunion with song. (2014 photo by Karen)

The Schumm Singers, with Velma, 100, conclude the reunion with song. (2014 photo by Karen)

I met some Schumm cousins, who are also Schinnerer cousins. Karen traveled from Illinois and her sister Sue from Michigan. They won prizes for being first-time attendees.

Sisters Karen Pautsch & Sue Hooper, win prizes for first-time attendance. (2014 photo by Karen)

Sisters Karen Pautsch & Sue Hooper won lovely prizes for first-time attendance. (2014 photo by Karen)

Other prizes were given to Karl and Isabelle Schumm, married the longest (76 years); Miriam Hofmann and Vince Muntzinger, both over 90 years old; Loren  & Linda Meyer, traveled the farthest (from Iowa).

Name tags indicated from which of the five Schumm immigrant children relatives descend–Katherina, Martin, Friedrich, Jacob, or Ludwig. Attendance was pretty much a tie between the descendants of Friedrich and the descendants of Ludwig. Unfortunately, none of Jacob’s descendants were there. It is interesting that some people had two [sometime three!] stickers on their name tags, indicating descent from two [or three] Schumm immigrants. We had two stickers on our name tags, even though we descend only from Ludwig. I’ll just let you think about that and see if you can figure it out yourself.

The next Schumm reunion will be Sunday, 7 August 2016.

About 55 attended the Miller reunion this year, held the last weekend in July. This reunion has turned into a three-day event that revolves around visiting and reminiscing and eating. It all begins on Friday afternoon, when the out-of-state relatives begin to arrive. Groups of us meet to eat on Friday and Saturday nights and the main reunion is held on Sunday, in Berne. This year we had an all-time record number at the Chatt Bar on Saturday night. About two dozen Miller relatives filled up their main area.

About 55 Miller descendants attended the 2014 Miller Reunion. (2014 photo by Karen)

About 55 descendants of Carl & Gertrude (Brewster) Miller attended the 2014 Miller Reunion. (2014 photo by Karen)

It is always good to see everyone and catch up on the latest news

Visiting with the Linn branch at the 2014 Miller Reunion. (2014 photo by Karen)

Visiting with the Linn branch at the 2014 Miller Reunion. (2014 photo by Karen)

We also enjoy looking through old photos. Aunt Ruth, 94, can identify nearly everyone on the old photos.

Aunt Ruth at 2014 Miller Reunion. (2014 photo by Karen)

Aunt Ruth at 2014 Miller Reunion. (2014 photo by Karen)

Leah, the family gymnast, provided some entertainment in the afternoon.

Leah Eichler, 2014 Miller Reunion. (2014 photo by Karen)

Leah Eichler, 2014 Miller Reunion. (2014 photo by Karen)

Next year’s Miller reunion will be held the last weekend in July.

Family reunions are all about memories, fellowship, catching up on news, meeting new relatives, photos, reminiscing, renewing acquaintances, and….food. And I can’t wait to do it all over again.

 

 

 

 

8 comments

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    • Kate Eichler on August 8, 2014 at 10:21 am
    • Reply

    Thanks Karen for the pictures and write-up of the reunions, I can’t imagine having over 250 at a reunion, I tried to visit with everyone at ours, and having 200 more would taken me a long time. Hopefully in a few years we can have someone 100 years old. keep up the good work, I enjoy all your posts. Love, Aunt Kate

    1. Yes, it would take some time to visit over 200 people personally. The Schumm reunion is an all-day event… Aunt Ruth is getting near 100 and she still gets around quite well. It would be great to have a centenarian at the Miller reunion in a few years. Thanks for writing!

    • Marcie Edgell on August 8, 2014 at 10:28 am
    • Reply

    Karen, these are precious…the pictures, the memories, and the fact you had two members of your family attending who were 100 years old. How extraordinary! What a gift to have them still in your lives.

    I, too, attended a family reunion this last weekend in which my 99 year old Aunt Frieda Bennett was in attendance. Her daughter announced that we were all to save next May 30 to attend Aunt Frieda’s 100 birthday party at Central College Church here in Westerville. Aunt Frieda was born in Westerville in 1915 as Frieda Conklin. She married my Mother’s brother, Bill Bennett, in July of 1939. She had three children, one of whom is deceased. Both siblings live here in Westerville as does Frieda.

    It is truly remarkable how many people are living to the age of 100 and beyond now. Thanks for sharing all you do.

    My greetings to your Mother and to the Miller family.

    Marcile Byers Edgell

    1. Great to hear from you Marcile! I hope you have been well. You should try to attend the 100th birthday celebration for your aunt. That is so special. Yes, there seems to be more people reaching that milestone age these days and the Schumms seem have their share. Thanks for writing!

    • Brian Brewster on August 9, 2014 at 3:01 pm
    • Reply

    My does Ruth look well. I always enjoyed her, and especially her letters. Would love to have seen her. Thanks for the pictures.

    1. We meet every year, Brian. We should try to get together with you next year. I’m sure Ruth would enjoy that. Years ago Ruth stayed in Ohio a week or longer, staying long enough to attend the Brewster reunion, too.

    • Mary Goodwin Haddad on August 10, 2014 at 4:04 pm
    • Reply

    Your posts on your reunions are great. I’m sorry to say that our families have not stayed so faithful in having family reunions, although I love them. It’s hard to believe that I’m now one of the older ones of the family. We have tried to do cousins gatherings but some do not respond which is sad. Thanks so much.

    1. I would keep trying to get your cousins and family together. Getting together at least every few years would be nice and could start a tradition. We are fortunate that we keep the reunions going in both families.

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