Aunt Nelle Rogers:

Our Depression-Years Angel

Beginning 1935 - ?

Miss Nelle Rogers held, for years, the position of Assistant County Treasurer of Osborne KS. She was a maiden lady, rather quiet and shy, but she was in love with our family, and we loved her. I guess one of the reasons for our affection was that every time she came for a week's visit, she made gobs of sugar-covered doughnuts for us. Dozens of them. And they were GOO-O-D! She was a short busy little lady, and I remember she wore a corset, always. You could see the corset slats profiled in her dress.

Aunt Nelle was our Daddy's stepsister. Yep. Her father had married our Dad's mother, and that's how she became our aunt. I have no idea how those two parents ever met and decided to marry. I do know that my Grandmother was a spirited, feisty lady who always seemed to be chasing some man, or they were chasing her. That was after Mr. Rogers died, of course. Our grandfather, David Richard McGuire, had died in about 1908 when our father, Willis Chester, was about 20. Mr. Rogers owned and operated a Mercantile Store in Osborne, and our Dad worked there when he went to high school in Osborne. The store sold groceries, dry goods, pots and pans, and you name it. Mr. Rogers had a good business going. Perhaps our Dad's experience there made him consider getting into the grocery store business in 1935 when he got out of the school profession. He asked us one night at the supper table how we would like to move to California and help him run a Piggly Wiggly store? I remember only that our Mother was not entranced by the idea. Well -

Getting back to Aunt Nelle, dear Aunt Nelle.

She knew we didn't have enough money in our household. There was no money to give children (six of us) allowances. So she decided to send Dad six dollars every month, one dollar per child, so we'd have a little spending money. We each saved some every month and spent most of the money, perhaps on Bit-o-Honey candy bars or Fudgesicles at Mr. Coan's drug store. Bro. Ben was the only one of us that hoarded his take. He simply would not let it go, once it got into his pudgy little hand. I don't know if he is still that tight with his money.

I do know we all wrote "thank-you's" to Aunt Nelle from time to time and she got our everlasting love in exchange.

We all say a collective "Thank You, Aunt Nelle", wherever you are up there.