VESTNIK June 22:Layout 1
6/17/11
ˇ ´ VESTNIK
1:34 PM
Volume 99 Number 25
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S P J S T Benevolence
H E R A L D
Humanity
ISSN —07458800
Brotherhood
June 22, 2011
Katelyn Daniel Wins Kraslice Contest
Leaders-In-Training Kick Off 2011 Summer Camps
Leaders-In-Training (LITs) and chaperones celebrate this year’s camp theme - Sailabration 2011 - with a dance and games party held Saturday, June 11 at SPJST Education and Nature Center (ENC) at Cooper Farm. A total of 78 of SPJST’s teen youth club members were trained to assist at camp and in their youth clubs during the weekend workshop held Friday, June 10 to Sunday, June 12.
Congratulations to Katelyn Daniel of Lodge 183, Arlington Youth Club! She is the winner of the 2011 SPJST Czech Easter Egg Decorating (Kraslice) Contest. Katelyn receives a $100 gift card for her efforts. More on page 17.
Lodge 29, Taylor member “Cookie” Valla achieves the Grand Age of 96
SPJST congratulates Brother John “Cookie” Valla, a member of Lodge 29, Taylor, who celebrated his 96th birthday on June 6, 2011. As such, Brother Valla is entitled to all SPJST member benefits with no further dues or assessments required. John Valla was born on June 6, 1915, in Harmony, Texas, located midway between Caldwell and Frenstat in Burleson County. John’s parents, Joe and Vera Valla, immigrated to the United States in 1910 from Moravia with their three children, Joe Jr., Fannie, and Charlie. John and
sisters Rosie and Albina were born in America. Interesting to note: Most everyone who knows Brother Valla, knows him at “Cookie.” Cookie was the name given to him by sister Albina because John just loved cookies and would sneak in and grab a handful — while they were baking! The name stuck. To this day, John’s family, extended family, and circle of friends still know him as “Cookie.” “My daddy was a farmer in the Old Country,” John recalls. “Someone who had been to America brought back a
Interest Rates.......................................3 Important Dates ...................................3 Readers Write ......................................5 Lodge Section......................................7 Reunions ............................................14 SPJST Financial University ..............15
few bolls of cotton to show off. When daddy saw that, he wanted to go to America and grow cotton.” Upon arriving in America, the Valla family worked a farm in the Chriseman community, located between Caldwell and Milano. Growing up on the farm and during the Great Depression, John learned a lot about farming and how to become self-sufficient. “Cotton was five cents a pound, hogs were three cents a pound and you could buy a butcher calf for five dollars. Cheap — but not much money . . . I did just about everything you could to make a few dollars,” John says. One of the “best jobs” was getting a job
Inside This Week’s Vestnik
In Memoriam ......................................15 Youth Section ....................................16 Flag Day Contest Results .................18 Czech Culture ...................................19 Advertisements ............................20-21 Lodge Calendar .................................22
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SPJST Home Office, Veterans celebrate Flag Day
with his brother, Charlie, working to build Highway 36. “We earned 30 cents an hour, 10 hours a day, and six days a week.” An enterprising duo, Brother Charlie and John parlayed their musical talents, playing country music, polkas, and waltzes for house dances throughout the community. Charlie played guitar, and John played the fiddle. “We got paid real well — sometimes 50 cents; sometimes a dollar — split two ways.” John’s love of music extended to the dance floor. Dancing has been a favorite pastime for more than 80 years. He met his wife-to-be, a young school
Continued on Page 6.
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Lodge 162 Iowa Colony gives to Shriners Burn Center
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Lodge 172 Pasadena honors Old Glory