My wonderful family

L to R

Sister Chris, Uncle Bill, Dotty (Mom), Jack (Dad) Mike behind Jenny, Uncle Fred, Aunty Jo, Cousin Marc

Not pictured Aunt Rete who took the photo

Sister Chris, Cousin Marc, Jenny

This is my sister Chris

It is tradition that when the family gets together we always have Home Made Ice Cream. If you want Ice Cream you have to take your turn and crank the old fashioned Ice cream maker.

Beautiful Day at Apple Tree Golf Course

Mom & Dad ( Dotty & Jack Cooper) anxious to play 18 holes of golf at their favorite golf Course.

Apple Tree Resort in Yakima WA

Mom & Dad had already booked a Tee Time before we went to the reunion. So I walked around the area taking photo's , had a nice lunch ( thanks again Mom...her treat) and sat and read a good book while they had a good time on the golf course. Beautiful Golf Course, perfect day! I need to take lessons so I can golf there!! I know Dan wants to golf there too some time soon. Hopefully this winter I'll take Golf lessons.

Practice putts

Dotty & Jack putting before it is their turn to go out to the 1st hole.

Mom's "Yorky" golf club cover, I guess it is the rage to put goofy puppet like characters on your clubs.

Jack & Dotty in the middle golfing

Condo's overlooking the 17th hole. The Condo on the 3rd floor corner is on Mom's Wish List.

Flower garden below is in the shape of a Apple with Red Petunias

View of the Apple Tree Golf course

Beautiful Iris's

Charlie's Service in Sunset Utah

This is Charlie's service in Sunset Utah and belongs to our good friends Charlie & Vicki Dubose.

Never have we found a better company than Charlies. Best Mom & Pop service who are honest, hard working, great on their prices and friendly and Love Alfa customers.

Our dear friends Vicki & Charlie DuBose of Charlies Service in Sunset Utah.

If you want Honest great quality work with a friendly Smile , this is the place to come to!

Charlie is authorized to repair Alfa Seeya Motorhomes. They are also Alfa motorhome owners themselves.

Inside Charlies Service in Sunset Utah, Vicki
" The Real Boss" and crew.

As you can see we are not the ONLY Alfa here to have work done on.

Gilberto & Gilbert

Charlie's finest workers at Charlie's Service Inc.

Dan doing his own project, insulating the front door so it isn't as noisy as we drive down the road.

Robert Goble, Vicki & Charlie DuBose, Barb Goble heading to Gilberts campsite at Willard Bay state park

Gilbert and Betty's great campsite at Willard Bay above Ogden Utah. Campground was packed that weekend.

Breakfast at Gilbert & Betty's campsite at Willard Bay campground

Gilbert George Mallow & Dan heading down to Willard Bay fishing. Gilbert caught one catfish.

Walking The Paths Of My Ancestors

When Dan and I left Arizona we did not realize that exciting news was right around the corner from us. I had Genealogy paperwork of my great grandparents and some History of my Great Great grandparents as well , who were Morman pioneers. I thought it would be a long time before I traced alot of knowledge about them.
We decided to stay at the St. George Resort in Harrisburg Utah for 3 nights and noticed on the back of the campground map there were points of interest. To my surprise we were REAL close to where my Great Great grandpa & Grandma lived and Issac Riddle discovered Pine Valley!!

I was shocked and delighted to actually not only read but to see and touch history! My heart was pounding because I have always wanted to find them, just never knew when I could. Dan and I were both amazed at what we found!
I seriously think the spirit of my Grandma Dora was there with me to find these areas because it directed me to her parents.

It was a awesome day traveling around to the St. George area and going through the beautiful city with Red cliffs around it. The St. George Temple was beautiful and neat to know that Issac had helped build it.
Interesting going to Jacob Hamblin home and hearing the History there .

We drove through the Snow Canyon and drank in the beautiful view of the rock formations and learned that the canyons were formed millions of years ago and that the Anazasi Indians used to call home from A.D.200 to 1250
Then it was on to Pine valley and I knew the white church in the distance was the church we were looking for. Ebenezer Bryce ( who Bryce Canyon is named after) built the church and was also built by Issac Riddle and the people from Pine Valley. We were so excited about the whole day and soon realized we were starving. Just down the road from the Historical marker of Issac Riddle was the Brandin Iron Steakhouse and Saloon. As we were looking at the menu I flipped it over and to my surprise there was a write up about Issac Riddle discovering the
valley for the Saints. All from a wandering cow getting lost.

To find all this by chance or by higher intervention .....you decide. I believe in Angels so I know we were suppose to be there!

Historical Marker in Pine Valley

PINE VALLEY In 1855 this valley was discovered by Issac Riddle, an Indian Missionary, while searching for a lost cow. The first sawmill South of the Rim of the great basin was built on this site in 1855-1856 by Robert Richey, John Blackburn and Issac Riddle.

The first homes in the valley were erected around the mill.

Pine Valley become the source of much of the lumber used in early towns of Southern Utah and Nevada.

Pine Valley Chapel

All Winter, the little white church stands empty in the pines. But as soon as the snow melts the people of Pine Valley return from their Winter homes in St George and make the church their center of their lives as it was for the settlers who built it.

When Issac Riddle first came into the valley the grass was as high as his horses belly. He was caring for the Mission cattle with Gunlock Bill, Jacob Hamblin's Brother. One of the cows strayed away and could not be found. Issac like a good Shepherd was bound and determined to find her and bring her back to the fold. He found her nibbling on the grass and saw all the trees and remarked that this was the most beautiful place on God's green earth.

He had found what the settler's needed from St George...Timber! Wood was like Gold to the settlers.

Pioneer Home Of Jacob Hamblin in Santa Clara Utah

Pioneer, Missionary, Peace Maker

Jacob and his family lived in this house for seven years. The Pine lumber came from Pine Valley. He lived in Pine Valley before Santa Clara.

Jacob was my great great grandfather's missionary partner. Brigham Young sent them on to the Indians to make Peace between the whites and the Indians.. He was trusted by both sides and won respect though his honest dealings. One of his most remembered accomplishments as a peacemaker was his negotiation of the Treaty of Fort Defiance, New Mexico in Nov 1870.

Hamblin stated" I never talk anything but the truth to them, Always listen to them when they wish to tell their grievances....I never submit to any unjust demands".

Jacob was the father of 24 children by four wives. The wives raised their families as one, in peace and harmony

Photo of Brigham Young

Brigham Young brought all the Latter Day Saints to Utah to find a place where they could live and not be persecuted.

My grandma Dora's Cousin was the great granddaughter of Brigham Young.

Brigham Youngs Winter Home

Brigham Young expressed the desire to move to St. George in the winter to help his Rheumatism and frequent troublesome colds. He bought the property from James Chesney in 1871 and added a front section in 1873. He had a appreciation of pioneer building skills and had some fine pieces of furniture made by Utah craftsmen.

Most of the home was built out of Pine from the Pine Valley Mountain 35 miles to the North. Brigham Young spent four Winters in this lovely home prior to his death in Aug 1877.

Brigham Young took over the Morman church when the Prophet Joseph Smith was killed. To avoid the persecutors in Nauvoo Illinois, Brigham started the Exodus of thousands of people in covered wagons crossing the plains to Utah. It was a epic of human industry and endurance unexcelled in American History. Never before had such a large mass of people braved the hostile wilderness and attempted to cross the prairies to the Rocky Mountains.

George Bernard Shaw was later to say to him" Brigham Young lived...to become immortal in history as an American Moses by leading his people through the wilderness into an unpromised land"

This is the ST George Temple in St. George Utah. It was the first Temple to be made in the State of Utah.

Issac Riddle was proud to have helped build this Temple and the one person who gave the most money towards tithing to the Church than any other member. He also helped build the Manti Temple.

Construction started in 1871 and dedicated in 1877

Issac Riddle moved his family to Provo Utah so that his children could go to the Brigham Young Academy. He loved his children and wanted them to have a good education.

Issac was still working on helping to build the Manti Temple and doing temple work. He invested about $15,000 into it.

The Y on the hill is for the Brigham Young University. Snow can be seen at the tops of the mountains.

Issac built a home in the Third Ward in Provo and intended to spend the rest of his life there.

Holdaway family grave site

Names on the front are Great Grandpa Shadrick Holdaway or spelled Shadrack at times

Shadrick also has a separate grave to show he was a war veteran

His wives Lucinda and Eliza

On the back are the names of some of their children

George B, Timothy, Eliza M, Syntha M, Nancy E, Louisa D, and Levi S.

Many other graves were in this section that were Holdaways and Riddle's.

Jenny standing behind her Great Great Grandfather Issac Riddle's grave in Provo cemetery. Notice that there is snow on the mountains behind at the entrance of the cemetery

Provo City Utah Cemetery

Most of my Holdaway and Riddle family are buried here.

The very large headstone belongs to the Holdaway family.

London Bridge in Havasu City Arizona

The Man who brought the London Bridge to Havasu City was Robert McCulloch. Mr. McCulloch is now known for his chainsaws, he also started building outboard motors competing with Briggs and Stratton and Everrude. He was flying over the area and thought it would be a great area to test his new outboard motors in Havasu City. He built his outboard motor factory and decided to develop the area more but needed a centerpiece to put the city on the map.

About the same time the city of London realized that one of their bridges was falling down and sinking a little bit each year. So London put the bridge up for auction.

Robert McCulloch put in a bid of $24 million dollars. McCullochs bid was not the highest bid but the city of London liked where Lake Havasu was so McCulloch got the bridge. It was taken apart piece by piece, block by block and put on ships and shipped to Long Beach California. It was then loaded on semi trucks and trucked to Havasu City.

The first load arrived July 8th 1968, they began to put it back together on dry land. They mounded up sand and built the arches on the mounds of sand. They saved money and time because they did not have to deal with water. Once the bridge was completed they dug a one mile canal and named it the Bridgewater channel. Total project cost around 7 million dollars and was completed in 1970 and dedicated in 1971

numbered bricks that were brought over piece by piece, brick by brick of the London Bridge

Jenny on the London bridge

The London Bridge

The Dragon Arch so called by the local people because it resembles the eye of a Dragon. One of the biggest Arches in the area between Bullhead City and Lake Havasu City

Here is Joe and his Jet Boat . Joe came to Laughlin back in 1998 with a great idea to take folks from Laughlin to Havasu City along the Colorado River to the London Bridge. He bought a tour boat and set up his business. The coast guard suggested he have a deck hand and so he hired Jenny.

Little did Joe know that this was the beginning of a wonderful life.
He hired Jenny, then they fell in love and had a dog (lucy).
Now Jenny has her own tour boat ( the one we were riding on) and life has been good for them ever since.

Waterfront property is expensive in Bullhead City. Riverfront lots start at $100,000 to $250,000. Houses on lots are $500,000 to $600,000 and some up to a million dollars! All had docks and many had Party boats tied up to them.

One of these days I'm going to rent one of these and have some fun out on the water.

Laughlin Nevada was created by Don Laughlin in 1960 when he built the Riverside casino. The area began to grow and Mr. Laughlin paid for the building of the bridge that crosses the Colorado river to Bullhead City from money out of his own pockets. Both towns expanded because of the bridge and in the last 10 yrs the area has exploded in growth. The Tri-state area has more than 100,000 people now and employs 20,000 in the casinos.

View of the Colorado River on the Nevada side

Pool area at the Ridgeview RV Resort in Bullhead City AZ

Laughlin Nevada

Tuesday May 1st we arrived to the Ridgeview RV Resort in Bullhead City AZ, we have been here before and it's a nice park with a great pool. We were in site 142 this time and backed up to the cliff and over looked Laughlin Nevada.

We no sooner got there and friends Jim & Barb Sweeney pulled in and parked in the same row as us. The four of us went across the bridge into Laughlin and had dinner at the Riverside casino and then played on the slots for one hour. They were staying only one night.

Wed morning we said goodbye to the Sweeneys and crossed over into Laughlin to go on the London Bridge Jet boat tour to the London Bridge in Havasu City.