My Grandparents

The other day I went over to my Grandmother's house to see if she could help me with a project I am trying to put together. We pulled out old pictures and laughed at old times. I found so many adorable pictures of my grandparents that I decided I should post them so you could know a bit about them. This picture was taken the day my grandparents, Patricia Ellen Cook and Sam Allen Beard were married. They were married on August 1, 1952 in Star, Idaho. In fact the house that they were married in still stands and is just down the road from where I live.
My grandfather Sam Allen Beard was born on August 29, 1927 in Meridian, Idaho. He had 3 brothers and one sister who passed away when she was 10 because of a heart condition. He has one brother who is still alive and he looks alot like my grandpa. My grandfather was not a member of the Church. He started smoking and drinking at a young age and was a roudy guy. He fought in the Korean War and always had stories to tell. In all the pictures I have ever seen of him there is always either a cigarette in his hand or a drink of some sort. But he was a good man. He loved my grandmother and his children very much. He supported their church attendance and other activities, but he would never attend church. My mother keeps a picture of him on her wall. It is my most favorite one of him. He worked for the Boise Police Department and he is with other men on the back of a fire truck with a guitar in hand. Some of the others are dressed up as clowns and etc. They were in a parade. It is such a neat picture. I wish I could have posted it. My grandma tells us stories about him every now and then it they are so fun to hear. I don't remember a whole lot about him because he died when I was fairly young. I always remember him watching Hee Haa, mixing drinks and an oxygen tank. He passed away peacefully in his sleep. My mom said that at his bedside he would talk to people as if they were right there withm him. He talked to his mother and said that he was coming. My mom said it was a neat experience to be present and hear him talk. He was not conscious while he was talking to those whom must have been present then. I can't wait until I can meet him, talk with him and get to know him better. I think that somewhere up there he is taking care of my sweet Madalynn. I am sure he already has a nickname for her like he did for every single one of us. We love and miss him so much.a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIkIvBBSmwc_-jOLMx-Mj73MUrGIhI0b26bcxlFo7VQY5qkEkeomD2_rOYO_ohkrMic6eNkIR6dEiD6wopzuoEC4dx8UMOJNTMZLso_sQGLD4XLQUcmtwDey9GtfZA22Cb6L5Vn-iffhk/s1600-h/scan0028.jpg">
My grandma Patricia Ellen Cook was born on October 22, 1932 in Dingle, Idaho. She was born and raised there. She was born a member of the church and has a few siblings who are still active in the church. Her mother passed away when she was still young. I believe she was 12 yrs. old at the time. She helped her father take care of the house and children. She was a brave woman. She has many generation of members on her side of the family that she has done the temple work for. She is still alive and is still going strong. When my grandfather passed away she gave us land next to their house to build on. So I have lived next to my grandma since I was young. My parents still live in the same house and help take care of grandma. She is very hard working. She takes great pride in her yard and garden and every year it is very beautiful. She is enjoying a lot of great grandchildren now. She is one of my best friends. We love to go over and visit her. We love you grandma. We are so happy that we live so close.
I am so grateful to grandparents who have lead and continue to lead the way by example and friendship. They have truely left a legacy in our lives. Because of them we are who we are. We know where we come from and I am so thankful for that. I hope to get started on our Family History work. We have been invited to attend a special class about this very subject each Sunday for Sunday School. This work is rolling forth and it will not stop until every soul has had their work done for them.
I went with our youth group to the temple this afternoon to do some baptisms for the dead. I haven't sat through one of those for a very long time. I was sitting there as the names were read and a young man/woman was baptized in behalf of those who have been gone a long time. I can only imagine at their rejoicing that someone had found them and performed their work. This is an ispired work. I feel so blessed to be a memeber of the church.