MEMORIES

Memories of her Grandparents by Velma Dora Cochren Terry.

Ruhama Isadora Fenton Brown

My grandmother, on Mother’s side. A very tiny little lady, the first real Christian I came in contact with. She belonged to the Church of Christ, was a firm believer in God and left her Christian testimony whatever she went.  First church, I ever attended was with her.  We stayed with her every summer for a week.  She made the best tomato soup I ever tasted. I never saw her mad; the most patient of people. She died when I was 14.

Burgess Franklin Brown

My grandfather was born in Tennessee, was part Cherokee Indian. When he came to Kansas, he came in a covered wagon, Indians were living all through the prairie states, buffalo roamed everywhere at this time.  He settled in Sylvia, Ks and lived in or around there until he died.  He was crippled since he was in his late teens, kicked by a horse, walked with a cane for years.   He could drink coffee as hot as anyone could make it.  He was an impatient and gruff person, all us grandchildren were a little around of him.

George Daniel Cochren

My father moved to Plevna with his family around 1919.  First worked in harvest fields, then was a track walker for Santa Fe Railroad for a short period, and then became janitor for Plevna Public School, and remained so until his death.  When  I attended school, daddy was always janitor, when weather was bad, he would fix our lunch in the cooking room in school (hot dogs with sandwich spread and drinks). Boy! We liked that. We always watched for him to ring the school bell.  He walked home with us for lunch every day  the weather was good. Daddy never owned a car, but he made us a comfortable and happy home.

He played violin and piano.  He bought us a player piano when I was in my early teens.  He would play and we would all sing.

He told us of when he first came to Plevna as a boy, there were buffalo roaming all over the plain.  The first thing I can remember was going swimming, with me on his back. I was about 2 ½ years old, my mother said, but I can remember it clearly.

When pay day came, once a month, Daddy always bought a cigar and a big sack of candy.  When we would smell the cigar smoke, we knew it was candy time.  Daddy was a good moral man.  He lived like a gentleman and set a good example for us.  He was a positive man about manners.  Was not a Christian until on his death bed 2 days before his death, he himself told me he had made his peace with God.

Valjean, my brother, was born after we moved to Plevna. 

He (father) lived to only to see one grandchild, when Melvin Daniel Priest was one month old,  he died. He and mother were very happy together.  We were really poor, but didn’t know it, because we were happy, and never went hungry or ragged.