Family

Photos

Grandmother Swenson was born in this house in Sweden.

Nösslinge Church (the Red Church) dates from 1100 AD. Behind this church, set back in a grove of trees, is the house that Clara Carlson was born in. Nösslinge Church was Clara’s home church. The church is called the Red Church because it is painted bright red!

Clara Anna was born in Nösslinge, Holland, Sweden on 11 April 1888 Her parents were very poor and they lived on a rented farm in Nösslinge. Clara’s father worked for the landlord every other day to pay the rent. The soil was poor and rocky on their farm. Clara had few toys and little variety in her food while she was growing up. Clara and her sisters used pine cones for cows and pretended that a large flat rock in the yard was their farm. Clara Anna Victoria Carlson died on 22 September 1969 in the hospital at Devils Lake, North Dakota.

This month's feature family is the

Evans Family,

take a look at the

Carl & Clara Swenson Family

too.

Swenson Family in Sweden. This was taken during June of 1995 on the family farm near Varberg, Sweden. Included in the photo are (starting at the top left) Erik, Berta, Anna, Signe, Karin, Bo, Bo's wife, Arvid, Althild, Al, Fabian, and Valborg. Anna, Signe, Berta, Karin and Arvid are brothers and sisters, Anders and Selma's children.

Bennie Morris Kaeding.

Bennie was born at Penn, Ramsey County, North Dakota on 12 July 1902. Bennie was born on the family farm north of Penn, where he grew up. When his oldest brother, Edgar, married, he and his other brothers bought the Frank Gessner farm, one and a half miles south of Penn. This was on November 1, 1927. Bennie was involved in his community as an officer of the Penn School Board for 12 years, on the St. Paul's Church board for more than 25 years a 4-H leader for 2 years and manager of the Penn Telephone Company for 17 years. Bennie and Olga raised their 5 children on the farm and sent 4 of them to college. During the years the children were growing, the family traveled throughout the United States, almost always camping in a tent during the trips. Altogether, the family visited 34 states and visited Canada and Mexico during these years. Bennie also bought the Jim Doyle and the Kaiser farms. In June, 1959, the family house burned to the ground. With the help of all of the neighbors, all of the contents of the house were saved. A few days after the fire, the neighbors returned for a plowing bee and worked the summer fallow. Bennie began immediately rebuilding and by Christmas a new house was ready to move in. Altogether, Bennie raised 42 crops before he retired in the fall of 1967. After his retirement, he built a new home in Devils Lake and another house in Penn as a hobby. Bennie died June 28, 1995 in Devils Lake, North Dakota.

Olga and Nicole Kaeding

My mother and my daughter.

Olga was born in Warwick, Benson County, North Dakota on 12 October 1920. Olga married Bennie Kaeding on 30 October 1945. Olga was born on the Swenson family farm and grew up there. The family was poor and she took jobs as a housekeeper around North Dakota working as far away as Kindred, North Dakota at one time. She eventually took a job for the Kaedings and married Bennie on 30 October 1945. Olga collects things as a hobby, such as shells that she has gathered herself on the beaches of the Atlantic and the Pacific. She has also learned to paint and has done a number of oil paintings.

Jessy and Mark Crabb at their wedding. That's my daughter and my son-in-law, in case you don't know! Jessy was born in Fargo, Cass County, North Dakota on 12 January 1970. Jessy was secretary of Students of Texas Against Narcotics and Drinking (STAND), the Dulles High School branch of the Texas War on Drugs. She graduated from Dulles in the spring of 1988. Jessy was the student manager of the Girls' Basketball team at Dulles for three years and lettered two of those years. She attended college at Houston Community College. Jessy was married to Mark Crabb on May 12, 1990 at New Hope Lutheran Church in Missouri City, Texas. Jessy and her family moved to Ormond Beach, Florida where they now live and work. Jessy is now the office manager in the same office as her father. Jessy has two children, Casey and Jordan.

Mark's father is Steve Crabb. Mark grew up in Ohio and later moved to Missouri City, Texas. He graduated from John Foster Dulles High School in Missouri City and then joined the US Navy. Mark was stationed on the USS Midway, an aircraft carrier based in Japan. He had spent about one year aboard the Midway before flying home on leave for his wedding. Mark arrived in Texas only four days before the wedding and returned to the Midway about two weeks after for about one more year at sea. After completing his time in the service, Mark returned to Texas and then moved to Florida. He is now working with a heating, ventilating and air conditioning company installing ductwork in buildings and doing other HVAC work. Mark also has been going to school at night to learn more about heating and air conditioning.

Swenson family reunion. Carl and Clara's ancestors at a family reunion during the summer of 1995.

The Swenson reunion held at Lakewood, North Dakota. Over 130 relatives gathered at the Lakewood Bible Camp for a Swenson family reunion Aug. 4 & 5 1995. The reunion, Clara and Carl’s Clan consisted of descendants of Clara and Carl Swenson, formerly of Warwick. All 7 remaining sons and daughters of the Swensons attended. They are Esther Trevilion of Chester, Texas, Harold Swenson of Dickenson, Dorothy Lilleman of Wellsburg, Evy Forde of Warwick, Gladys Erickson of St. Michael and Olga Kaeding & Charles Swenson of Devils Lake.

Thirty of 38 first cousins attended as well as several second cousins. Special guests included Gun Karlsson and Margaretta Johansson of Sweden and Ebba Soderberg of Rhode Island, cousins of the Swensons. Relatives attending came from North Dakota, Minnesota, Florida, Washington, Rhode Island, Colorado, California, South Dakota and Louisiana. Family pictures dating back to the late 1880s through the 1990s were on display as were various family histories and the family tree. Carl and Clara (Karlsson) Swenson immigrated to the United States from Sweden in 1904 and were married in 1913. They moved from Rhode Island to their farm in Minco Township near Warwick in 1919 where they raised their ten children. They moved to Warwick when they retired.

Harold "Ben" Kaeding family.

My brother's family. Pictured are Ben's children, Chris, Jeremy, John and Tara; Harold, John's wife and their two children and Ben's youngest child. They live in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. John and Chris are both married and have their own families now.

Ben Kaeding

Nicole Kaeding, my daughter, at her confirmation. Also pictured are Jan and I and Pastor Sublett of Grace Church. Nicole was confirmed at Grace Church here in Ormond Beach. She is now a sophomore at Seabreeze High School on the beachside at Daytona Beach. She's been involved with yearbook editing for the past two years.

Jordan Albert Crabb, my newest grandson, of course!
Jordan was born on June 24, 1996 at 3:36am in Ormond Beach, Florida. He weighed in at 8 pounds, 4 ounces and was 20.75 inches long. He's pictured here with his BIG brother - Casey (5)!

Mark Crabb with his new son. Picture taken at the hospital before mother and baby went home. Jordan is now an almost two terror around here and home. His favorite food is cucumbers - fresh from the garden. He's also been known to eat an entire pea crop before it gets out of the garden (but not from a can - please!).

Joy Kaeding at her graduation. Joy graduated from Seabreeze High School in Daytona Beach in June of 1996. Joy is nearly finished with her second year at college. She's leaning towards elementary or preschool teaching. Joy is a Tupperware representative too. Joy likes country/western and going mudding with her boyfriend, Dave. Don't ask! It’s a popular pastime locally where you deliberately try to get your favorite 4-wheel drive vehicle stuck in the mud.

Bennie Kaeding, my son and the oldest of the five children. Bennie is a quality assurance technician for a local manufacturer. He's also been a co-manager at Sbarro's Resturant in the Volusia Mall here in Daytona. He married on July 27, 1996, to Gayla Thomas (not pictured here yet). She's a native of Jacksonville. Her two girls, Amber and Mia, will give him an instant family of four. Bennie and his family live down in Daytona. Amber has been studying the violin and is the third Kaeding to attend Ormond Beach Middle School.

April is a graduate of the University of Florida in business. She works locally a local manufacturing company and lives in the Orlando area. Her and Dwight were married last fall at Grace Lutheran and honeymooned in Jamaica, Dwight's ancestral home. April and Jessy are working together on a gift basket-making business. They're starting to have some success and have some really neat stuff put together.

Dwight, my son-in-law. He's a becoming a junior executive at an appliance warehousing company in Orlando and a computer guru. Dwight has gone to school to learn CAD drafting and works with me on some odds and ends of projects. He and April make a great couple and a great team.

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revised 5/29/98