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BOB WALL’S TRIBUTE TO CLARENCE & VIDA WALL1. SUMMARY REMARKS I can’t think of any nicer people than my Uncle Clarence and Aunt Vida. They are indeed two of my very favorite people. I feel so fortunate to have them as my uncle and aunt. I remember them fondly from the time I was a small child. My first memory extends back to the time I was at Grandma Wall’s funeral in 1938, when I was 4 years old. I grew very fond of them a few years later when I was growing up in Spring Canyon. They both treated me and the other family members like we were their own kids. I was sad when they moved to Cleveland, because we lived in the same town and we were all close family members. While I enjoyed our close association with Clarence and Vida and their children during the time I was a young child, I appreciated them even more as a teenager. And I really had it confirmed again and again what truly great people they were after I spent many happy times with them including many hunting and fishing trips. It was a happy time for me in the early 1940’s when we first moved to Spring Canyon, even though World War II was in full progress. It was nice to be raised in the presence of Clarence, Lloyd, Lowell, Evan and their families. We lived nearby and we hunted, camped, fished and celebrated together. This family association formed a firm Wall family bond that still exists today. And Clarence and Vida were the steady glue that held us all together. After Clarence & Vida moved to Cleveland, I found every excuse that I needed in order to be able to visit them. We took our teen age girl friends from Carbon County to visit them often. Both us and our girl friends liked to visit there because Clarence and Vida were happy to see us. They treated us like adults. They, were very nice to us and fed us some of Vida's very good food including her hot bread which could not be beat. We spent many happy times together deer hunting in the Salina Mountains, fishing at Fish Lake and at the Blackfoot Reservoir. And in more recent years, I have had the opportunity of asking Clarence and Vida to recite their childhood, teenage and adult experiences. We took a wonderful trip with Jim and Joan and Clarence & Vida to the Uintah Basin in September of 2001 and saw the old Wilford Wall family farm and the local Myton cemetery where Clarence’s grandparents are buried. We saw the old granary where Clarence and the whole family lived before their home was built. A picture of this granary is shown in the Uintah Basin 2001 Travel Photos section of the Website (www.cvwall.com)
Clarence has told us many wonderful stories about his life, as did Vida.
I have recorded their comments on my 8mm camera and I will cherish these
memories as long as I live. I realize that all of us in my generation have had it very easy in life compared to Clarence & Vida and their parents and siblings. They have worked so hard all their life, especially during the depression in the 1930's, and during World War II from 1941 through most of 1945. And they continued to work hard all of their lives. I remember both Clarence & Vida as not only being very hard workers, but superior parents, good family members, good fisherman, good hunters and, great cooks. They were a super uncle and a terrific aunt. But, and most important of all; they were good friends to me and the rest of the Wall family. I always felt welcome around my Aunt Vida and my Uncle Clarence. I sincerely hope they are healthy for many more years so that I can continue enjoying their company. The world will not seem the same when Clarence and Vida are no longer with us. Hopefully that day will not come for many years. 2. SOME DEER HUNTING MEMORIES: Hunting with Clarence & Vida and the rest of the Wall family in the Salina Mountains are some of my most cherished memories. As a teenager, I could not sleep 3 days before deer hunting started. Deer hunting was a true family re-union for the Wall family. I remember sitting around the campfire and hearing Clarence and his brothers swap stories of deer hunting, mining, farming, and the depression years. I remember that Clarence could pack a big deer farther than anyone. And he was the first one to volunteer to hike down into the canyon and pack someone else's deer up the steep canyon. I could not keep up with him and I was only packing a rifle. Clarence would always give you first choice of where you wanted to hunt and he would take the lesser desirable spot. Clarence was and still is now a great cook and he has the best cooking grill in the family. Clarence’s hot cakes could not be beat and his deer liver and onions were great. And I normally don’t like liver and onions.
I remember
that Clarence and Vida hunted as a team and both were good shots. They almost
always killed their buck and then helped the rest of us get ours. What a joy it
was to hunt with them and the rest of the Wall family. Clarence and
Vida were such a joy to be around during those wonderful years and they helped
shape the lives of the Wall family members by showing them how to act and how to
share with others. I can’t think of any two people who share more with
others than my Aunt Vida and my Uncle Clarence. They have been a wonderful
influence on the Wall family, and they still are a terrific example for all of
us to emulate. Pheasant hunting at Clarence’s and Vida’s place in Cleveland was one of the highlights of my life. I learned that in order to get a good shot at pheasant when Clarence & Lloyd was around was very difficult. It was difficult because Clarence & Lloyd could shoot quick and hit the target. But Clarence would often let the rest of us have the uncontested shot even though he could have bagged the pheasant. But the most important thing I learned was that Clarence and Vida showed the rest of us what it meant to share your home and land with others and be nice to everyone all the time. I remember hunting at their place in Cleveland year after year from the time I was only 10 to 12 years old. We often had a large hunting party involving 20 or more people. And Vida would have breakfast ready before the hunt for all of us. And it was a great breakfast with hot bread and pancakes, eggs, bacon, and toast. Then we went hunting and she did the dishes and then fixed a very big dinner for the whole 20 man crew. The food was wonderful and I can still taste the homemade hot bread and butter. Then after lunch we went hunting again and Vida did the dishes again and then fixed another big supper meal for all of us that were staying overnight or a snack for those that were leaving. When the day was over, Clarence and Vida gave us most of the pheasants and then Vida gave us some more raisin filled cookies to eat on the way home. I loved her cookies as did everyone else. Vida was and still is a superior cook and a truly great person. How many other women do you know who would let 20 or more people with dirty clothes come into her home year after years and never complain? I loved Aunt Vida’s hot bread and her desserts. I appreciated her pleasant demeanor that was always noticeable. Those were the days that shaped my thoughts and actions for many years to come.
Clarence and Vida are two of the finest
people this world has ever produced. And I would also put my mother, Jewel
Wall in this same category. My mother loved Vida and still speaks highly
of her to this day. They shared many common experiences when Clarence
married Vida and they lived near us in Spring Canyon and in earlier days in
Idaho and Montana. My mother and I believe Vida washed their clothes in a stream of
cold water using a scrubbing board. And yet they were always happy and
appreciated helping all those around them. They both spend more time
worrying about those around them then taking care of themselves. And that
tendancy is true
even today. But this is
how good people behave. All of us have been over the years
beneficiaries of their wonderful personalities. No one has ever been to Clarence
and Vida's home without being offered food and a bed to stay all night.
They are generous hosts and great friends. I enjoyed the many fishing trips to Fish Lake and later to Blackfoot Reservoir. These were great family reunions. Vida and Clarence were good fishermen and good hosts. They always were so fun to be around. I enjoyed hearing Clarence & Vida and Clarence's brothers tell family stories about deer hunting, mining, and farming and the days of the depression when they had nothing. Even though I had heard many of these stories before, I enjoyed every minute when they were told again. We shared many experiences around the campfire chatting and enjoyed eating freshly grilled potatoes and trout on Clarence’s favorite grill. Those were the days when all of us kids saw two great people in action, and we all loved being around Clarence and Vida and their family. I know that Lloyd and Margaret thought the world of Clarence and Vida as did Clarence’s other brothers and sister. It was nice to see the family harmony that was generated by Clarence, Vida, Lloyd, Margaret, Lowell, Francis, and Evan during these fishing trips and on other occasions. I know that when Evan had some hard times financially,
about 10 years or more before he died, Clarence & Vida gave him money to fix his
trucks and to pay his bills. Clarence and Vida have given almost everyone
in their family so many things including clocks, dinosaur tracks, iron wood,
food, money and more. If you needed or asked for any help, Clarence and
Vida would give it to you, even if they had nothing left to take care of
themselves. They would give you the shirt off their back if it would make
you feel better. All of my uncles and aunts, but especially Clarence & Vida are truly fantastic people. And those still living remain shining beacons of integrity and friendliness. They are truly remarkable individuals, and will remain in my memories long after they are gone. And I believe they have been the guiding light that has helped keep the rest of the Wall family more or less on the right track in life. I believe much of the success other members of the Wall family have achieved can be largely attributed to having seen how Clarence and Vida treat other people. What truly remarkable people they have been during their entire life. If the rest of us can continue to learn from them, we will all be better off in the future. 5. SOME FAVORITE STORIES I HEARD I enjoyed listening to Clarence describe how his teen age brothers and he took a team of wagons and cut and hauled wood from 9-mile canyon back to their farm in the Uintah basin. You can see pictures of 9-mile canyon in the Travel Section of the website. Clarence and his brothers Orval and Lloyd rode many miles in cold weather to get fire wood. They had to stay overnight in cold weather, because the trip took several days. At his time Clarence was a very young teenager. I enjoyed hearing Clarence tell about his life on the farm and how he left home in his early to mid-teen years to work on the farms in Idaho and Montana and to work with the sheep. He was a cook' helper at first, then he became the cook. He helped put up hay, milked cows, repaired fences and did many other things. Clarence said he could never remember when his mother, Fanny Krebs Wall, was not sick, but that she was a very nice person. And in those days Clarence said that they often had very little food and very few clothes and virtually no toys. They rode horses to school in cold snowy weather. Clarence worked on his grand parents farm many summers as a youngster and as a young teenager in the Uintah basin. Licquor was banned in the USA in the 1920's and 1930's by constitutional amendment. Once, Clarence and his brothers made a little bootleg whiskey using an old liquor still they made. One time they hid a bottle of whiskey in the family well, and Clarence’s Dad (Wilford) found it, before the kids could dispose of it. Clarence and his brothers were expecting punishment, but Wilford liked the homemade whiskey and asked them later whether they had any more bottles of that “stuff”. Wilford was pretty strict with the boys and made them work hard on the farm. From various stories Clarence told us, you can tell he liked his only sister, Neva, and they shared many common experiences together. Clarence spoke highly of his brothers and Clarence appreciated all the help they gave him in the teen-age years and in his early married years. In 1937 the famous "tomato incident" occurred when Vida was 21 years old.
Clarence came up behind Vida, who was then bending over. Clarence,
for some strange reason, that no one could ever understand, took a ripe
tomato and rammed it up Vida's dress, as she was still bent forward.
Of course the unthinkable happened. The ripe tomato was squashed,
and the tomato particles ran all down Vida's legs. Vida
immediately turned around and launched after Clarence threatening him with
bodily harm as she chased him. Clarence, being no fool, immediately
started to run out of the house, jumped the fence, with Vida in hot
pursuit. Clarence was lucky he could run faster then Vida and he
escaped by running down the road. This was not one of Clarence's
best decisions in life as Vida made him pay for that little tomato
incident in many different ways, ways which shall not be enumerated here. 6. SOME FINAL REMARKS I will always cherish the memories of knowing and being around my Aunt Vida and my Uncle Clarence. No one has ever had a better uncle or a better aunt than these two wonderful people. I only wish that I could have been more like Uncle Clarence and Aunt Vida. They are truly remarkable people. I will never be able to walk in their foot steps and will never equal their achievements in life, but I consider my self to be one of the luckiest persons around, because I have spent many wonderful days with them and other Wall family members, ever since I was a young child. And you know what a good job Clarence and Vida have done in this world when you look at their children and see what their children have accomplished in raising their families. I attribute Clarence and Vida’s children’s and grand children’s success, in large part to the parenting skills of Clarence and Vida and the wonderful life-time examples exhibited by Clarence and Vida. What a great family the Wall family has become over the years. A large part of the success of the Wall family can be directly attributed to the life-time examples set by Clarence and Vida. And I consider it to be a great privilege to be a part of this family and to have a chance to interact with other Wall family members. I hope that all members of the family can continue to strive to become like Clarence and Vida Wall. Then the whole world will be a better place. Clarence and Vida, I will close this tribute to you by saying that you have been a truly outstanding Uncle and Aunt and I love both of you. I will always remember you long after you are gone, assuming that I am still around. I will always cherish the wonderful times we have spent together. No one can take those wonderful memories away from me. I hope and wish you have many more healthy, happy and productive years on this earth. Bob Wall- May 2002 |