History of June Leavitt Olsen
I June Leavitt Olsen was born 31 may 1926 in Cardston, the first daughter of
Matthew Leavitt and Ella Broadbent. After having four boys Deloy, Elvin, Harold
and Ray my mother said I was most welcome. Two more girls came later, Alice
and Ruth. I was to have been born in June but came a day early so mother named
me June.
We lived on a farm east of Grandpa and Grandma Broadbent’s and when mother
and I walked to Primary, we went through their field and right by the house.
I remember Grandma always had tall hollyhocks on the west side of the house.
I stayed at her place sometimes and would be awakened by the chiming of the
big grandfather clock every half hour and hour.
When I was three years old we moved to my Grandfather Leavitt's place, a red
brick house just east of the church about half a mile.
I don't remember much of my growing up years but I went to school in Leavitt
from grade one to grade nine. Pat Matkin and Eleanor Williams were the only
two girls my age and we had our little quarrels occasionally because two is
company and three is a crowd, so quite often Eleanor and Pat would get mad at
me and not play with me, usually for no particular reason. I remember Eleanor
and I going down in the coulee east of our houses with bucket in hand to drowned
out gophers, early in the spring. We spent a lot of time playing back and forth
at each other’s homes. I always had to ask permission to go, but one time
I didn't, so my mother came after me and promptly taught me a sore lesson in
obedience with a willow on my seat and bare legs. It seemed to me Eleanor could
go anywhere anytime she wanted, so I felt restricted, but I know my mother loved
me and wanted me to learn to obey.
A faith promoting incident I remember well was when I was nine or ten. Mother
was doing the washing of clothes in a gas engine washing machine, which had
to have an exhaust pipe out through the window to take away the gas fumes The
wind was blowing hard and the fumes came back in the kitchen causing mother
to faint. I was so scared, I ran for my dad, he came and gave her a blessing
and she soon was revived, but had to go to bed the rest of the day.
I attended school at Leavitt through grade nine then I stayed home a year helping
on the farm. My two older brothers Deloy and Elvin were married, Harold and
Ray were working away from home most of the time. My dad and I milked 18 to
20 cows night and morning by hand, travelling about two miles with a one horse
shay pulled by a great big tall grey horse named John. One day while catching
him I was trying to put the bridle on and he turned his head and nipped me on
the shoulder I carried the scar for sometime, but was always on my guard from
then on to make sure it didn't happen again.
The next year in October 1943 I went to Garbutt Business College in Calgary.
I lived in a small apartment at E.J. Wyricks 2113-17 St. S.W., with Fay Broadbent
my cousin. At that time there was only one ward of the church there, which was
clear across in the north. We rode the street car a few blocks then had to transfer
to another, and it didn't go right past the church so we had to walk up hill
a couple of blocks to get there.
In November 1943 while attending a church dance a young Air Force man, who I
knew was from Beazer, asked to take me home. I couldn't believe it, but I immediately
accepted, which was the beginning of a beautiful courtship. He was stationed
in the south-west area st#3 S.F.T.S. We would walk down the street a few blocks
from where I lived and go to a cinema, then come back to the apartment, if he
happened to stay too long and the street car stopped running, he would have
to walk quite a way across an open field to the station. That field now, is
a mass of houses in 1994.
I completed my business course in May 1944 and returned to Cardston to work
in the Treasury Branch until November.
On December 20 1944 I married Ned James Olsen son of Clarence Olsen and Mary
Jane Broadhead, in the Alberta Temple by Edward J. Wood. We were married in
the evening session, the weather was cold and snowy and we spent our wedding
night in the Spencer Hotel. The next evening we had a wedding reception in the
Card Home on Main Street. After our marriage and seven days furlough we moved
to Calgary in the small apartment that I lived in while going to college, which
cost us $15.00 a month. We had a fun time just like an extended honeymoon until
May 1945 when the war was over and Ned was discharged. We moved to Ned's Uncle
Glen Broadhead's place in the late summer, then in January of 1946 moved into
one room in the upstairs of Uncle Murrel Olsen. Building materials were very
hard to get and we didn't have much money, so we used our cupboard for one wall,
a quilt for another and the other had ten-test board on it. ( Yes, it was, a
three walled room)
On March 8, 1946 a beautiful sunny day we loaded our few possessions into our
1931 Chevrolet which we had purchased from Fred Vair for $200.00. Ned brought
a four wheeled rubber tired wagon with the other things in and led a cow behind,
moving to our present location three miles south west of Cardston, which was
owned by Solon Low. Due to the quick thinking of my father and mother, they
spoke to Solon Low about Ned working for him. There were many people wanting
the place, which he promised to give us first chance to buy if he decided to
sell. A year later in November 1947 we began buying the place through a loan
from the Veterans Land Act, the payments were $199.27 a year for twenty-five
years until it was ours.
We have worked side by side milking cows, raising pigs, sheep, farming and raising
six children. Eric Allan born 6 April 1946; LaRae 26 Feb. 1948; Marvin Ned born
premature 1 Jan. 1951; lived 13 days and passed away. I had a bad fall on the
ice in December. Mervyn Ned born June 1 1952; Thaine born 13 June 1954; Roy
Lemaun born 4 March 1957; Diana June born 18 April 1960. The children have all
acquired a love for music and many hours have been spent around the piano (which
was purchased from Roy Ockey for a $ 350.00 cow) LaRae and Diana play the piano,
all the boys learned the guitar, Eric and Roy played the trumpet in band, Thaine
and LaRae saxophone.
Ned played the drums for dances with his Uncle Glen's bands from the time he
was seventeen until about 1970. Sometimes he made $2.00 a night then later years
it increased to $20.00 depending on where they went and how long they played.
We didn’t have much money raising all those kids so any amount was helpful.
My first church position that I remember was a Sunday School organist in Leavitt
at the age of 13 (that organ being the old pump pedal type). My music ability
was very meager as my parents couldn't afford much for music lessons, but I
did take lessons for two summers from Julia Meacham of Mt. View, who came to
the school and gave lessons to young people. I was secretary of the M.I.A. in
my teens. After I was married, we belonged to the third ward, which was organized
in 1946, Eric was the first baby blessed in the new ward with Alma Wiley as
bishop. I held several positions over the years. Co-ordinator of Jr.Sunday School
in 1950 (it was held in the old Scout House which was located south, across
the street from the Temple Street Chapel on the property where Belle Smiths
home now stands in 1993.) Teacher of the Stars, Top Pilots 1959-61; Second year
Bee-Hives 1957-59: 2nd councilor in the Primary 1961;organist for Relief Society
1961-64; councilor in Relief Society 1964-66. From here on I do not recall exact
dates but have taught Laurels, Bee-Hives, eight year olds and 15 year olds in
Sunday School. In the recent years since being in seventh ward I have been organist
for Relief Society at various times, also for 2 or 3 years played the piano
for Sunday Services at the Grandview Nursing Home. My present job in 1993 is
giving the lesson for Relief Society each Monday at the Grandview.
In August of 1961 my father Matthew Leavitt was appointed patriarch of the Stake
and I was his scribe for most of 990 blessings which he gave, up until his health
failed him in 1974, and was an inactive patriarch. We shared many wonderful
experiences together for 13 years, as many people came from all over Canada
and western United States to get their blessings. There were not many organized
stakes with patriarchs so people would come to the temple for their endowments
and then get their patriarchal blessing at the same time.
In 1966 I applied for a job as a postal clerk at the post office and I started
working there 22 August 1966. I advanced to Senior Assistant in 1982 then when
Deloy Seely retired as postmaster I got his job, also for two years I was a
Supervisory Postmaster over 7 small post offices in the area I enjoyed my work
and had a good staff. It was very challenging at times and required many early
morning hours and some late nights trying to balance books. On 31 May 1991 I
retired at the age of 65, what a happy day that was, my family gave me a surprise
party at the Centennial Hall and many relatives and friends were there to help
me celebrate the occasion as well as my birthday. They had a nice program, lunch
and dance. Glen and Scott came and played. Th family gave me a V.C.R., which
we have enjoyed, and still are enjoying. I'm so glad to be free to spend time
on the farm with my husband or go with my daughters or visit grandchildren,
but I do miss seeing the public every day for twenty five years. Each year we
tried to get away from the farm for a vacation with our family, for a few days
or a week and we had many enjoyable times together. I think the most memorable
vacation was when Ned and I took a tour of eight temples attending one session
in each, Boise, Logan, Ogden, Salt Lake, Jordan River, Provo, Manti and Idaho
Falls. We stayed with relatives along the way and enjoyed our visits.
As I put this history together in November l991, I am nursing a broken leg,
which happened while helping my son Roy unhook a bale stooker off the tractor,
it fell over, knocking me down and breaking my leg in four places just below
the knee. I was taken by ambulance to the Cardston Hospital where they X-rayed
it and then applied a felt brace with Velcro straps from the ankle to just above
the knee, then sent home. Of course, I couldn't take care of myself, nor could
Ned, so LaRae took me to her home where I received much tender loving care for
18 days, then because Diana's home was more convenient to get around in, she
took Ned and I to her home for three weeks, they gave us their bed and took
such good care of us. With the use of the wheel-chair and a walker I could get
about and help with meals, do some quilting and work on my crafts. Each week
for eight weeks, one of the girls would take me to Lethbridge, to the bone specialist
for X-rays and make sure it was healing properly. We came back to our home on
the 9th of November and I'm able to scoot around the house with my wheel-chair
and walker making meals, washing dishes, even mopping floors. I'm so grateful
for my family and all they do for us and we are very proud of them all as well
as our 23 grandchildren.
I am grateful for the talents the Lord has blessed me with and the hobbies I
have been able to do as I can do a variety of things to keep my hands busy.
I love to knit, crochet, work with plastic canvas, and make quilts. I have taught
some of my grandchildren to knit and crochet. Ned and I enjoy playing music
on the piano and the guitar, which we try to spend some time at every day. I
have missed attending my meetings the past seven weeks and hope I can soon resume
my job at the men’s clothing counter in the temple each week.
I am grateful for my testimony of the gospel and all the many opportunities
I have been privileged to enjoy and all because of the gospel over the years,
and I hope I can be of service for many more years to come.
I shall continue now after a year has passed convalescing doing a lot of sitting,
crocheting, knitting and making quilts. (about 35 more or less)
On March 2, 1994 I was able to return to my duties at the men’s clothing
counter, climbing stairs were still a little slow and difficult, but has improved
greatly, although I still take stairs more carefully as well as cautious on
the ice.
Ned's health has improved in the past year but he gets tired easily, and we
found that there were so many things we couldn't do, but on the good days we
could putter around at fence fixing or other small jobs a little at a time.
He has been such good help to me and we enjoy working together.
I enjoy my job of playing the piano for the Grandview Nursing Home, Relief Society
every Monday. It gives me great satisfaction seeing the pleasure my music brings
into the lives of the ladies, many of whom hardly speak, but know the words
to sing them. I've also had the
privilege of playing the organ in the temple a few times.
This summer was a record year for hot weather and we have enjoyed the harvest
of a good garden. We had two good family reunions Leavitt and Olsen. I am so
proud of our families and appreciate them all and the love and closeness we
feel. I hope and pray we can be an eternal family.