Both Rodney and Rhonda had been
involved in competitive swimming from the second year of our arrival in Canby. In
High School they also competed for the local swim club, “The Gators” and their
high school. They both held held swim records of Canby High briefly, Rod in the
breaststroke and Rhonda in the backstroke.
I tried to be around for all the
swim meets, but didn’t always make it. The kids both earned lifesaving badges
and began working as lifeguards at the Canby pool when they turned
fourteen. Rhonda went on to work
for Canby Grove Conference Center as a lifeguard for several camps through the
summer. She never was a lifeguard at family camp as she always went at a
camper.
A little side note: The Seidel
family was attending family camp from our first year in Canby. They camp with a
large group from Arbor Heights. Their oldest son is Chris Seidel. He and Rhonda
were at camp together for many years together. After high school the both went
off to Simpson College. Rhonda began dating a young man named Todd; She brought
him home for a visit on was long weekend. Neither Della nor I were impressed.
He was nice enough, but lacked clear goals and ambitions.
Before Rhonda returned to Simpson
she told us of another guy who kept after her even though she was dating Todd.
That was Chris. Chris had remembered her from their days at camp together and
was interested back then. Rhonda had no memory of any Chris Seidel.
We knew the Seidel family and
liked them very much. Della and I began to pray that Todd would drift out of
her life and Chris into it. Having been a college professor, I was keenly aware
that most couples met and marriage their college sweethearts. While we didn’t
really know Chris we knew his family and were sure that would be a better
match. When we met Chris we were convinced he was a better match. They married
and have three terrific kids and at this writing I live about twenty minutes
from them.
Rod began to be a problem at home
when he was in eighth grade. As it got worse, I seriously considered leaving
ministry all together, Ralph Shellrude talked me out of it, Around the same
time, Della was beginning to be hospitalized ever year for a weekend because of
pneumonia. It never failed. She would go in on Friday and come out on Monday
all the time. Part of the problem was the she never wanted to go and it seemed
to always take a few days before I could convince he to go or made her go.
Our lives wee beginning to fall
apart. We were only at the front edge of all that we would face and had no idea
how bad it would become.
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