ROCKWOOD LANE
SEPTEMBER 2017
PAGE FOUR
Resident Profiles by Marianne Torres
Meet Kay and Mikel Stevenson Kay and Mikel Stevenson’s journey that found them here at Rockwood Lane last summer has been an interesting one, following separate paths until they came together here in Spokane 24 years ago. Kay’s started in Wisconsin, though she lived primarily in San Diego, where she married her first husband. Raising her four daughters after their divorce, Kay knew she had to find a reliable way to support her children, so she returned to school as a young mother, obtained her degree as a Licensed Vocational Nurse, and later, when they were grown, returned to earn her license as a Registered Nurse. Kay worked as an R.N. in a variety of fields, but primarily as a psych nurse. She worked with children and adults with acute psychiatric issues in San Diego, Coeur d’Alene and Spokane. In an interesting turn of events, long before she met Mikel, Kay became good friends with Dorothy, a woman in San Diego who would become step mother to … you guessed it….Mikel Stevenson. He was in training with the Marines in San Diego when he and Kay met at dinner at Dorothy’s house. Ten years after discharge from the Marines, Mikel was back in San Diego, where they became better acquainted. Mikel started his life in Chewelah, WA, but while an infant his family moved to Spokane Valley where he lived until joining the Marines at 18. He served for three years, 13 months of that time in Vietnam. That time in Vietnam was formative for him, he said, putting him on the road to both a ministry of 13 years (three of them in Mexico) and to becoming a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with the Veteran’s Administration, where he worked for 16 years. Before the ministry, Mikel farmed in the Post Falls area. Kay said her most satisfying achievement was raising her girls, frequently alone, and having returned to school during that time. Mikel’s greatest achievement, he said, was marrying his best friend. They have 12 grandchildren now and 10 great grandchildren. Two daughters and one granddaughter are here in Spokane and the other two are in Arizona and California. They’ve had an interesting and active life together, with their work lives, their faith and related journey, and the traveling, camping and hiking they love to do. They are active in social issues and support human and civil rights. Mikel belongs to Veterans for Peace and they both volunteer at Union Gospel Mission. A month after they moved in, they took their longest trip, driving 15,000 miles around the States in three months. The trip included Prince Edward Island in Canada, where they found his great-great-great grandparents’ gravesite and met a third-cousin. A stop in Kenosha found Kay’s first home, and they met Kay’s niece and nephew she did not know she had until recently! While in PEI, genealogical research found they each have a “Linkletter” in their distant ancestry.
UR TO JULY’S HISTORICAL TO THE “SNAKE PIT” D N A ” N O SI IS M LD “O
red over to Idaho for an od Lane recently ventu wo ck Ro m fro up gro A th lunch at the famed “Old Mission” ending wi the of r tou ve ati orm inf “Snake Pit.” r d’Alene Indians 19th century, the Coeu rly ea the g rin du t tha ing with them a We learned n” in black robes carry me e icin ed “m l rfu we their own. They heard of po some of these men for ve ha to ed sir de e trib book. The r Pierre-Jean De uis, and in 1842 Fathe Lo St. to ers mb me Fr. Nicholas sent some and came to the area. st ue req ir the to ed nd k a mission Smet respo came and helped to pic o als et Hu es arl Ch Br. to flooding, the Point and St. Joe River, but due the ng alo s wa t firs e location. Th on. 1846 to its current locati mission was moved in valli took over in 1850 ary named Antonio Ra ion ss mi it su Je lian Ita An sure the building was ssion building. He made mi w ne a d ne sig de d an y could feel a part of the eur d’Alene tribe so the Co the by d cte tru ns co d Heart of Jesus and s named after the Sacre wa ion ss mi e Th h. urc ch d Mission State Park ed the Coeur d’Alene Ol am ren en be s ha ot sp the ly referred to as “The be. Although common Tri e len due d’A r eu Co the by This term came about is a bit of a misnomer. s thi ” ion ss life Mi his do of tal st Ca ent mo useppe Cataldo who sp to the fame of Father Gi University. a ag nz Go ed ity and found un mm co er nti fro the in s techniques e the church, ingeniou rat co de to ials ter ma d rated with fabric With limite or. The walls were deco eri int the tify au be to ainted newspaper were used Company and hand-p y Ba ’s on ds Hu the m il). Tin cans bought fro lli had received in the ma va Ra Fr. at (th hia elp en statues were from Philad chandeliers. Both wood of a ide an ate cre to d made to were used th nothing but a knife an wi alli Riv Fr. by nd ha carved by od was created by loring of the interior wo co e blu e Th e. rbl ma look like erries in to the wood. pressing local huckleb , al landmark of Enaville ake Pit, has been a loc the at d ate loc is Our lunch stop, the Sn n. It d has a history all its ow ID for over 135 years an a boom-town bar, a as d rve se s ha e River and fork of the Coeur d’Alen d the starting point for , a house of ill repute an railroad layover, a hotel yesteryear. loggers and miners of
When they were ready to downsize, they chose Rockwood Lane, having friends who were already here. They are very sociable people and have made many friends here.
Welcome to Rockwood Lane, Kay and Mikel!
!
hurch. Inside the c atues o st Note the tw er Ravalli. th a F y b carved
Standing on the steps outside of the church. A stunning landmark!
A BIT OF
HISTORY
A hungry bunch ch Standing by the bell owing down structure used to ring s on a good tasting hom emade ng rni wa es, tim ss for ma meal at the Snake Pit. and celebrations.