The Outreach

Newsletter 56 March/April 2013

Life Back in 1941 By Nola Mohrman

Back in 1941 things were very different and very simple when I

moved in the house at Whitney Road, Wellington, Ohio to be with my

new husband, Jeff. My husband was living in the house that he had

been born in. The house was sturdy but lacked the things that made

life easier living. There was a hand pump that was fed from a cistern

under the house. That was just inside the house and where the work-

ers could stop and wash their hands and comb their hair before they

ate. Mrs. Austin was their housekeeper back then. She did everything

that needed to be done in the house. She was quite deaf and when she

started to talk, her voice would get louder and louder as she went

along.

In the large kitchen there was a large black stove which ran on

gas-since there was a gas well on the farm. There were gas lights

throughout the house which were lighted with matches. There were

three fireplaces in the house, one in the dining room, one in one

bedroom and a stove in the parlor. Jeff remodeled the living room

and took out a wall, built a stone fireplace there and took out the

iron stove. He also put a furnace in the basement which was back in

1963 and it is still heating the house. It should run another 40

years. Along came electricity for the whole house and new windows

(Andersen, of course). Another fireplace in the dining room and

paneling two glassed in corner cupboards. So down through the

years the house was practically new.

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We Need You! The Outreach staff is looking for more patrons who would like to be featured in our newsletter. Please submit your stories and poems to be printed or

let us know if you would be available for an interview. Please

call 614-259-5034 for more details.

(Life...cont.)

The boy’s bedroom had two windows in it and was

redone with tile floors and, of course, with all new

wallpaper. All this was done and the new residents of the Farm are

very happy with everything and said they’d not change a thing.

I stayed there after my husband died in 1980 for 27 years alone,

doing the upkeep and whatever needed to be done. I was lucky to have

one son close (fairly) to take care of the major repairs until I retired

to a place in Columbus. I had lived there for 66 years.

My neighbor did the farm planting and the harvesting too after

Jeff died. I had known him since he was born and his mother and I were

close friends. In later years I loved to ride on the combine with him

to watch the grain flow from the spouts. Farming has changed consid-

erably over the years. No more horse drawn plows or equipment. The

big tractors all have cabs on them with air conditioning, and comput-

ers that show you at a glance how many bushels over a certain spot

and if you were preparing the ground how much fertilizer was needed

in that spot. So farming has kept in step with everything modern.

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Upcoming Events January- February-

Upcoming Events

March (every Saturday)… Enjoy free live music at Java Central from 7-10pm. 20 S. State St.

March 17th… Rotary Club of Westerville presents Fish Fry and Chicken Bake. 11:30am-5:30pm at Otterbein Cam-pus Center. All you can eat chicken, fish and hot dogs plus great sides! Carry out meals available and all proceeds go to Westerville City School Scholarships.

March 19th...Container Gardening. 11am at Inniswood Metro Park. Learn the basics of growing plants in contain-ers. Age 50 and over. Call 614-895-6216 for more de-tails.

March 24th… “A Joyful Noise” The Otterbein University Concert Choir - 7:30 pm - Grace Lutheran Church, 100 E. Schrock. Free will offering accepted.

April 7th...High School Honor Band - 2 pm at Fritsche Theatre at Cowan Hall, 30 S. Grove St. Free and open to the public.

April 27th…Shredding Day. 10 am– 2pm at Hoff Woods Park, 556 McCorkle Blvd. Shred any important docu-ments that need

shredded.

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JULIE The Diary of Mattie Spenser By Sandra Dallas Mattie agrees to marry the town’s eligible

bachelor and sets off to build a home with him

in Colorado. As they cross the wilderness she

learns the truth about her new husband and

finds love in this poignant saga of pioneer life. It Happened One Night (NR, 1934)

HEATHER Only Time Will Tell By Jeffrey Archer

This is the tale of Harry Clifton, born in 1920, who spends his life working on the docks in southwest England and often wonders the true identity of his father. Packed with colorful characters, this

novel will bring to life a family history that no one would have imagined.

The Bourne Legacy (PG-13, 2012)

Staff Picks_

ELLYN

True Sisters

By Sandra Dallas

The year is 1856. Mormon converts

Nannie, Louisa, Jesse, and Anne (from

the British Isles) travel in the Martin

Handcart Company and make the 1,300

mile journey from Iowa City to Salt Lake

City, enduring many hardships along the

way.

Beasts of the Southern Wild

(PG-13, 2012)

MARIE

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

By J.K. Rowling

In the fourth installment in the Harry

Potter series, Harry competes against

students of other magic schools for the

coveted Tri Wizard Cup.

Pitch Perfect (PG-13. 2012)

THOMAS

Into Thin Air by Jack Krakauer

The author describes his spring 1996

trek to Mt. Everest, a disastrous ex-

pedition which claimed the lives of

eight climbers and explains why he

survived.

Lawless (R, 2012)

The Westerville Year of the Arts is upon us! For the rest of 2013, there will be sched-uled activities sponsored by the City of Westerville, including the Westerville Public Library, focusing on immersing yourself in a craft, or maybe just exploring something new. Stay tuned for more info.