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Vern was born in Mountain Home, Arkansas, and Judy was born in Collinston, Utah. Somehow their paths crossed when they were both 20 years old and they were married a year later at 21. By their own account, their lives have been wonderful.
This was a time of the great depression. Jobs were hard to get and the pay was very low. Vern was a cook at the Hotel Utah and Judy was a nurses aid at the hospital. They both took their meals where they worked, as part of their wages. They had a small apartment, which was the only one that had a bathroom. They felt that they were lucky and doing great until they decided to buy a house. The bank laughed, they couldn't afford the down payment. They decided to pack their clothes and they moved to California. They lived and worked in California until the war. Vern was drafted in the Navy, so Judy moved back to Utah with their nine months old daughter. Things didn't work out there and Judy moved back to California. She was not able to get her old apartment back and apartments just couldn't be found, so when she finally found a chicken coop that had been converted into an apartment, they took it. While it wasn't the most ideal it was a roof over their heads. It had one room, a small kitchen and a bathroom. There was a bed that pulled out from the wall and when you let the bed down there was a big hole in the back wall about 4 ft square. They went to the nearest store and got some cardboard and nailed it to the wall. They had 2 doors and 2 windows, without locks on any of them but, after buying locks and installing them, Judy felt safe staying there. 2 1/2 years later Vern came home and they were a family again and life went on. During the next four years they had another baby girl. They also had a lot in Sylmar and started to have a house built, it was almost finished when Vern was called up with the National Guard and sent to Korea. Judy moved into the house. They had a washer, a refrigerator, kitchen table and chairs, no beds or sofas. There was a gully in front that was so deep that when it rained, to get to the street, Judy had to drive across the back lots. Vern came home after another 2 1/2 years and they were a family once again. Much later on they bought a 5th wheel and each year they spent 3 months touring the United States. They have been married 63 years and are still happy together. |
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