Traveling with Grandma & Granddad

I went through a year-long Administrative Trainee program with the USDA Soil Conservation Service that resulted in being transferred to the Agency's National Office at Washington, D.C. in 1962. Acceptance into the training program was a real honor but it included the commitment to transfer anywhere in the United States at the completion of the program. Having worked as a Technician for some 13 years with limited promotion potential, it was an opportunity to advance into a Professional position with much greater opportunity. It turned out O.K.though we will never know “what might have been” had we not made the commitment. Elaine and my parents lived close by during the years we lived in Seward and Lincoln; and, were very much a part of the lives of our four children from the time they were born. Our move and separation from extended family was a shock to all of us. We generally got back to Nebraska a couple times a year and the grandparents came back to Virginia to visit occasionally. This picture was taken on July 25, 1964 on our way back to Nebraska. Elaine's folks had taken a bus back to visit us, tour the area, and then ride back to Nebraska with us. They were great travelers. We had a 3-seater Pontiac Station Wagon with a luggage carrier on top and all had a good time traveling. We made this trip in 2-days spending the night in the LaSalle Hotel at South Bend, IN where we drove around the Notre Dame Campus and the Studebaker plant. Vehicle trips of this kind are always a “test” of peoples compatibility and Elaine's folks helped us pass the test with flying colors.