Siblings Visiting Ancestors, Helmus and Teune families ~ October 31, 2018

Forest Home Cemetery, Forest Park, IL

We first visited the resting place of our mother's parents. Both of them passed away long before any of us were born.

Their parents, our great-grandparents, also rest in peace nearby.

There were other relatives we could have looked for but no one was quite sure where to look.

Before we stopped our 'Helmus' search, we spotted some 'Teune' gravestones here, Henry (Hendrik) & Ida Teune. Henry was the son of Jan, who was Johannes' older brother. (Johannes is our great-grandfather and his grave was found in our next stop.) More interesting is the grave here of Jacob Teune, one of Henry's sons. When we saw the year he died, we assumed it was in the war. But our geneology-studying brother informed us that Jacob was killed during his armored car robbery attempt. This makes his tombstone epitaph all the more interesting.

Henry and Ida had five other children and we found one more in the next cemetery. Before we left Forest Home, we visited the historic Haymarket Martyr's Monument. The martyrs are not relatives by blood but by spirit.

Here is a link to a complete Haymarket Monument summary:

Haymarket Tragedy Monuments

Mount Auburn Cemetery, Stickney IL

Another son of the aforementioned Henry and Ida (and brother of Jacob) was found in the 'Teune' section.

We were looking for more directly related family members, however, and found our great-grandparents on our father's side, Johannes and Grietje (John and Grace).

The daughter, Alice, while listed on this side of the gravestone, belongs to the parents on the reverse side with Daniel (son of Johannes) and his wife Alice, who also lost a baby Daniel. The baby grave sites are always the saddest.

Vader Johannes, and yes we joked about the 'Vader', had nine children and we found another one of his sons nearby, Herman (Harm).

But the son we were looking for was Edward because he is our grandfather. He died in 1968 so only the older siblings have clear recollections of him. He was married three times; his first two wives died but he and his first wife, Helen, had six children, the youngest of whom was our father.

When I was young, our parents frequently took us to visit family graves (usually on Sunday afternoons) and this gravestone of my grandmother used to freak me out since 'Helen Teune' was my name. But visiting this grave with my brother Ed now was so much more meaningful, namesakes and look-alikes :-).

We then visited our parents' grave, Rose and Garret.

All five of their children were there together and I know they would have liked that.

Before we parted ways, we found two more graves to which to pay our respects, two sisters of our father, along with their husbands, our beloved aunts and uncles.

There are other cemeteries to visit and more respects to pay but this afternoon was time well spent with family.

Looking For Ghosts In Nunica, Michigan - 11/12/11

The West Michigan Ghost Hunters Society (yes, it exists) claims the Nunica Cemetery is one of the most haunted in Michigan. The town has closed the cemetery at night due to its popularity but cannot keep everyone out, particularly around Halloween.

A friend and I drove to Nunica on a Saturday to find the cemetery.

We checked google locations and google led us down a drive called Woodland but it was a dead end. A new search found us heading into Spring Lake. No longer being in Nunica, we presumed we had taken a wrong tack and stopped at a local gas station for directions.

The clerk told us there was a Spring Lake cemetery straight ahead. Ah...it’s not just any cemetery we’re looking for, I’m afraid.  She asked a fellow employee but two customers spoke up and told us to go back toward the highway and take the small drive on the left just before the Mobile gas station at the highway. 

We found a Marathon station (close enough, it starts with M) by the highway and took the drive to the left, and then took a road to the right - both no good. 

We then pulled into the gas station to ask the clerk for directions. She promptly directed us to head back towards Spring Lake. *Sigh* 

While waiting around outside scouting out the entering customers, we asked a man who appeared to be a local if he knew where the cemetery was. He pointed to a tall, spindly pine tree and told us the road in was right there. Sure enough. There was a set-back sign and fence, and a small drive that we had missed at least four times.

So we drove in, parked in the back, and started to walk around. We’re not sure about

ghosts but can say that there are many unusual grave markers. 

Some people pre-plan, and others remember their pets.

Wood decays, 

and pinwheels spin. 

If you enjoy history more than ghost-hunting, you may want to visit the grave of military veteran Henry E. Plant, who was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor in 1896 for his efforts in North Carolina during the Civil War. 

Other veterans can also be found, 

along with sad photos and fallen angels.

And back in the day, some gravestones made you do your own math.

The grounds are full of atmospheric, knotty trees,

and it must be incredibly eerie at night.

A visit to a cemetery is always a poignant reminder that while everything and everyone eventually crumbles and disappears, nature carries on.

No actual ghosts were encountered during our visit, just a few from things past.