Christmas Letter 2009

Joys of the season to all of you,

As we wind up the first decade of the 21^st century it’s time again to update all of you on news of the Jonases, McCorrys, Mullinses and Schields in 2009. I hope all of you are doing well, have a great Christmas holiday and a rewarding new year.

First off, an update on Sr. Benedicta, who suffered a stroke in 2008. She resides at Provena McAuley Manor in Aurora, Ill., and is “holding her own,” reports Sr. Aquinice. “She’s starting to talk a little more.” Sr. B even exclaimed, “Oh my gosh,” when nephew Dan McCorry paid a visit in the fall along with his sister Colleen and their mother Mary Ann (see photo). It was a lovely visit, reported Aunt Mary Ann.

Our hearts go out to Jim Jonas and his children Jamie and Katie over the sudden death of Jim’s son Jason, 36, April 7. Jim said death was due to an accidental overdose of drugs and alcohol. I hope they and the rest of the Jonas family are able to deal with that difficult loss as well as they can and trust they’re receiving needed support from family and friends.

Paul Jonas did his part to stimulate the entertainment district in Bay View by opening The Tonic Tavern in June. It’s just a short walk away from his sister Sarah’s Café Lulu. I enjoyed a nice Sunday brunch at Sarah’s Juniper61 restaurant in Wauwatosa while visiting in August. Sarah and her husband Scott visited Spain in October.

UPDATE: This news came in after my original post. Mary Pat informs me that her and husband Michael Groth's son Jeremy has been accepted into medical school at UW-Madison. It was his first choice. Congratulations!

Jane Williams (Jonas) is again spending more time in San Diego with American Design Inc. while husband John T. Williams manages the company mostly from Milwaukee. Jane works with a women’s club that raised money to buy toys for children whose parents are serving in the U.S. military. Son Jonas works as a nurse in San Diego while son Luke works at the architectural firm Elerbe Becket in Minneapolis.

John T’s mother Bertha Miner, 84, moved into an independent living facility in San Diego in March. His son Ryan now teaches law at Western Law School in San Diego, while son Scott moved this year to Milwaukee from San Francisco to work at American Design.

Anna Borden (Jonas) reports her Eleanor is now in middle school and earning a 4.0 GPA; son Paul is in the 3^rd grade and his dad, John, is going to help him build a stand to sell stuff next summer (what, we don’t yet know); and Jamison is in full-day kindergarten, “charming all the teachers,” his mom writes.

This fall, Mullins sisters Kathy, Betty, Mary and Tricia spent a week in Washington, D.C., visiting the White House (just the outside) and the Library of Congress (the inside), among other sites. Tricia brought me a book of cardboard cutout dolls of the Obamas and different outfits for Barack, Michelle and the girls to wear. Congratulations to my brother Bill on landing a full time job as a technical writer in research at the University of Southern California. Our sister-in-law Linda Hirthe, had her fourth child with husband Pete this fall, Conner James. Casey George Mullins is big brother to them all.

I sold my condo in Santa Clara and moved in with Tricia in Oakley in September. We get along great; I’ve introduced her to “The Daily Show” and she’s introduced me to cooking shows. I write for Examiner.com. I went home to attend the 40^th reunion of the Class of 1969 from St. Pius X elementary school in Wauwatosa. Outside of a fresh coat of paint and computers in the classrooms, the place looks exactly the same. Erin Freer, in her third year at Simpson University in Redding, Calif., attended the “Rainbow Gathering” in New Mexico this summer. Maureen Gesley has been teaching in Honduras, arriving there just before a coup that overthrew the country’s president. It was just a coincidence.

Betty (left) and Carroll Schield, in retirement in Florida, are visited frequently by their children. A quorum of Schields gathered at the cottage in Neillsville for a reunion in August. The photo below is of Betty and Carroll’s grandchildren and one great-grandchild, Jonah, who was born to Jim Schield’s daughter Brieana March 20.

Pat Werth tells us that when her sister Wendy visited Santa Rosa, Calif., in September she suffered a heart attack. Wendy has since recovered and is back at work in Boulder, Colo. Pat says doctors “couldn’t figure out why she had the heart attack, but she definitely did because the MRI showed the damage.” Wendy was treated at UCSF medical center near where her daughter Brittany lives in San Francisco. Pat’s son-in-law Nino Rabbaa and her son Justin Werth co-own a restaurant in Santa Rosa called Rendezvous Bistro that opened last spring.

Schield grandchildren (parents) Left to Right: Jessica Schield (David & Rebecca), Brandon Schield (Jim& Shawn), Brieana Schield with Jonah Schield (Jim & Shawn), Brittany Smail (Wendy) Michael Schield (Dan & Bobbi), Grace Schield (David & Rebecca), Miranda Schield, then Emily Schield (in white in front) (Dan & Bobbi), and Jeff Schield (David & Rebecca). (click on image to enlarge)

David Schield began a new job this month running the local office of a small advertising agency that specializes in web design. His daughter Jessica is in Maui for the winter looking to land a restaurant management job, while son Jeff graduated from college and works as a personal trainer in Nashville.

Aunt Mary Ann McCorry moved into an assisted living facility called Marian Village in Homer Glen, Ill., just a short drive away from daughter Maureen in Woodbridge and Srs. Benedicta and Aquinice in Chicago.

I’m not able to produce an Address Book this year as I have in the past because my desktop computer is in storage, but I have new contact information for myself, my brother Bill and Aunt Mary Ann, which I can send you by e-mail if you request it. My new e-mail is mullico (at) gmail.com. I don’t put contact info on the blog for security reasons and have disguised my e-mail address as you can see.

Thanks to this year’s contributors, Pat Werth, David Schield, Jane Williams, Anna Borden and Aunt Rita. Feel free to click on the “Comments” link at the bottom of this post and let me know of any news I’ve overlooked.

Best wishes to all of you.

Robert Mullins