Welcome VanSickle honored at 100th birthday celebration

A small Bourbon County country church held a big celebration for one of its members on Sunday, Jan. 6. Welcome VanSickle, long-time member and long-time church historian, was celebrated with song, visiting, and a small reception for her 100th birthday. During church services, Carol Creager, church pianist, played one of Welcome's favorite songs, "One Day at a Time." In addition, Karl and Joyce Planner and Karen Planner Demm sang a medley of hymns featuring a harmonica solo by Karl.

After church services, Sunday School became a "Celebration in Song" for Welcome. Family, friends, and former students of Welcome's swelled the church to overflowing. Special celebrations in song included an organ/piano duet by Melissa Thompson Payne and Bill Thompson of "0 Holy Night;" the song, "Old Friends," by Karen Demm; a duet of "How Great Thou Art," by Ron Pruitt and Sherry Pruitt Yarick; a piano/organ duet by Mildred Ruble and Corinne Oskee of "Jesus, the Master;"and a rendition of "In the Garden" by the Girls of West Liberty. Enjoyed by all was the reading of a brief review of the birthday girl's life by Nancy Wimmer. The special program also featured reminiscing from former students including Dr. Ron Wimmer, Vickie Beckford Lord, and other former students. After several hymns by the 100-plus congregation, Ron Brown gave the benediction to this service in song.

Pictures of Welcome with over a dozen of her former students followed while cake, punch, and ice cream were served to those who had come to celebrate this woman and her influence on their lives.

Welcome Mae Hinderliter Van Sickle was born on Jan. 7, 1908, on a farm five miles northwest of Hume, Mo., to parents Edwin "Ray" and Inez (Umphenour) Hinderliter. She is the oldest of four children: Winona, who died as a child, was a couple of years younger than Welcome; Leota is seven years younger than Welcome; and her baby brother Raymond is 10 years younger than Welcome.

Welcome grew up on a farm. There was no electricity, no running water, no indoor bathroom. Baths were taken in a galvanized tub; the toilet was an outhouse with a Sears and Roebuck or Montgomery Ward catalog for toilet paper.

Even though Welcome Hinderliter and Vincent Van Sickle grew up within five miles of each other, they did not meet until after she graduated from Hume High School in 1926. After graduation, Welcome went to work for a family in Fulton for $1 a day. She saved her money so she could later go to college. Vincent was a junior in high school, and it was then when they became acquainted. (Yes, Welcome was 2 1/2 years older than Vincent!)

In 1927, Welcome enrolled at Kansas State Teachers College in Pittsburg and graduated in 1928 with a Life Certificate in teaching. She began teaching at a rural school near her home. She not only taught all eight grades but also had to build a fire every day in the coal stove, sweep the floor, and keep the building clean. Although Welcome dated other boys, there were no sparks! She and Vincent began dating regularly and set their wedding date for May 6, 1933.

At that time in history, a young girl lost her teaching job when she got married. So after five years of teaching in South Indian Creek School, she no longer had a job -- a job that paid $80 a month.

On their wedding day, they started out in a 1929 Chevy Coupe that Welcome had purchased. When they were a quarter mile down the road. Welcome began thinking about leaving home and started to cry. Vincent always got a kick out of telling people that if he had been in his car, he would have taken her back home!

Times in the 1930s were really hard because of the bank crash of 1929. Due to the hot, dry summers, farming was difficult. Even so, the young couple was happy -- they had each other and good health. It was then that two very important events took place in their lives: Tommie Ray (named for his two grandfathers) was born on June 22, 1937, and Gary Lee was born on Dec. 27, 1941.

After 10 years of marriage, school teachers became scarce because of the war. Welcome was called back to teaching at the Fulton school. It was during this time that she had her son Gary as a student in both the first and second grades. By this time, Vincent and Welcome had accumulated a Grade "A" dairy herd of Holsteins. All the family worked hard, but there was always time for church, 4-H, school activities, and community affairs.

Welcome, through the years, continued her education receiving her B.S. in Education from Pittsburg in 1966. She continued teaching until her retirement in 1973. In her 33 years of teaching, she touched the lives of many children.

She and Vincent enjoyed seeing the United States and visited every state except Alaska. She says if it wasn't for her own "stupidity" in picking apples instead of packing a suitcase, they would have joined Tom and his sons David and Rob on a trip to Alaska in 1982. Instead, she fell from a ladder, breaking her right ankle -- almost completely off -- and spent five days in the hospital in Fort Scott and another seven weeks in K.U.

Welcome says her eight "beautiful, intelligent grandchildren" are the "light" of her and Vincent's lives. Welcome and Vincent were married for nearly 56 years, until his death in April of 1989. Although never rich as far as money was concerned, Welcome said that the love that she and Vincent had for each other and the happiness they shared far outweighed anything money could buy.

Welcome still lives on the family farm in the Bamesville area east of Fulton where she has resided since 1942 and attends the West Liberty United Methodist Church where she has been a member for 55 years.

-- Submitted by Nancy Wimmer