The Legendary
LOVE
of Dewey and Inez By Lisa Sydnor
Dewey looked at all the heavy machinery and tools and then thought about the manual labor involved and said, “I’m a cook.” He had to learn to cook in a hurry. Talk about On the Job Training (OJT)! Apparently, that worked out okay, as he still likes to cook his breakfast every morning and he loves his bacon, eggs and waffles.
D
ewey Muirhead was a young man just minding his own business in 1941 when he went to a Church pie supper and he saw the most beautiful girl selling her pineapple cake. He bought it. One year later, they married. And, as they say, the rest is history.
In July 1942, Dewey shipped out to serve in the Army Air Corps. He recalls his bride crying as she ran beside the tracks calling his name as the troop train took him from Ft Smith Arkansas to fight in World War II. Muirhead said, “We knew we were going to Europe and into combat.” Dewey served as an (MP) in the Military Police Corps and loved his motorcycle. He served primarily in Germany
When I learned Inez’s father literally sold a cow to buy her a wedding dress, I envisioned a white lace gown. But back in 1942, farmers were struggling to keep a roof over their heads and food on the table. Inez got a wedding dress, but it was a sensible shirtwaist, multi-purpose blue and white dress. Definitely, not the “wedding gown” I envisioned. She was proud of that dress and told the story often, as she stood beside her husband, Dewey; he describes his bride of 79 years as the “sweetest, most beautiful woman I’ve ever known.” Dewey worked for the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) from 1939-to 1941. The CCC was one of the New Deal programs that built infrastructure projects in Oklahoma and across the entire country. The program was designed to relieve the economic hardship caused by the Great Depression in 1929. They asked if anyone could cook.
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CAREGIVER Magazine
Issue 19
CaregiverOklahoma.com
