Volume 29, Edition 1 - Spring 2024

lizzadrofamily
May 20, 2024
10 min read

Updated: Oct 8, 2024

UK Update

Katheryn Sandretto

Driving in the UK is a whole other game. Roundabouts, cars are manual, driving on the left-hand side of the road while the driver's seat is on the right of the vehicle, to name some challenges. The UK driving test is considered to be one of the most stressful events in a person’s life. American drivers are ruthlessly made fun of looked down upon for their driving skills and standards. After months manual driving lessons, I officially passed the UK driving test. It was quite a feat and I’m rather proud of this accomplishment.

We are looking to expand our home and family. We put an offer in for an unassuming three-bedroom bungalow in Nailsea, located 15 minutes west of Bristol and 6 minutes from the Clevedon coast, which has been accepted. If everything goes well, we hope to be moved in this summer. Alongside that news we are also expecting a baby due end of October.

In April, Rory and I made a trip to Florida and visited some cousins. It was lovely to see everyone and get some sun.

Hello Family, From the Andersons on Cape Cod

by Charlene Anderson

We are celebrating two graduations in May!

Charlie is graduating from college with a BS in computer science and a minor in cybersecurity. His Major Qualifying Project was on cybersecurity "Authentication Mechanisms".

Alexander is graduating from high school in the top five of his class. In his spare time Alexander develops video games and composes the accompanying music. He has put his games on the internet platform Steam. People from all over the world have enjoyed and reviewed his games. Recently he won the Silver Key in the National Scholastic Poetry Contest for his poem "Finding The Steps". He also was the principal clarinetist at this years' All Cape Music Festival. Alexander was awarded the Presidential Scholarship at Worcester Polytechnic Institiute and will be attending in the fall, majoring in computer science like his older brother.

Justin, a junior in high school, was recently inducted into the Math, Science and National Honor Societies. He won third prize in this year's Steam Fair for his project "The Correlation Between Age and Memory". Thank you, Grandma, for being one of his subjects! Larry and I are expanding our garden this spring. We hope all is well with you!

Finding The Steps

Poem by Alexander Anderson

Eyelids about to close,

an all-enveloping border to frame

ever-shrinking sanity.

A gaze half shut.

A hope not to be half dreaming.

A heart that hesitates,

missing a beat in a symphony of waning,

dissonant notes.

Blood frozen for a moment.

And a fiery passion to evade death longer.

The moon shot its rays into the soul

For that second?

For that minute?

For that hour?

Reflecting off the midnight water,

casting a shadow on the stone steps,

the fateful archway.

Did it matter who was standing there,

as if part of the moonlit shrine?

Did it matter to be graced by the presence of

anyone?

Did the soul join with the moon,

as the body climbed the twilight steps,

and relinquished its thirst to the fleeting blue?

Two Kelleys Graduate

I'm done! On April 27, I earned my bachelor's in English with Secondary Education, and also minored in Spanish with Secondary Education. On top of this, I passed all the necessary exams and am certified to teach English for grades 6-12 in Michigan! As of right now, I am a long-term substitute teacher for Spanish levels 1 and 3 at the school that I student taught at. I will be completing the school year with them and then beginning my job hunt for my first official classroom. Prayers appreciated. ~Micaiah Kelley

Sophi has graduated from high school! She will be continuing to work and ride at True Vine Equestrian Center, and will start classes at Kalamazoo Valley Community College in the Fall.

New Adventures

Rachel Lizzadro-McPherson

It has been a moment since I have given an update, and there is quite a bit to update. I graduated last spring with my Education Specialist Degree as a school psychologist from UW-La Crosse. I moved back to Baraboo May of 2022, worked a year at a middle school in Madison for my internship, worked half of a year at Sauk Prairie Middle and High Schools, and realized my calling is counseling. I am currently a Mental Health Mentor working on getting my license as a professional counselor.

I am very excited to announce my engagement to a wonderful man, Joshua Jaehnke. Some of you have met him, and some of you still have the pleasure of meeting him! He served in the military for 8 years, primarily working on radar. After his successful career in the army, he worked with the National Weather Service working on radar bases. He moved back to Wisconsin to be closer to his son, Jonah, and where we eventually met in Baraboo. Currently, he is enjoying being a part time stay at home dad with Ember. He is creative, musically talented, poetic, intelligent, and caring. We all adore him and are so grateful to have him in our lives. Ember loves having two dads and a mom that work cooperatively for her and are on the same team.

Ember is growing up beautifully. She is precocious, clever, funny, and

too smart for everyone’s good! She is currently involved in martial arts and once the next season starts, she is excited to begin dance lessons. She loves spending time with her soon-to-be big brother, Jonah, and helping out around the house with the dogs. She is very social and often makes new friends every time we leave the house. It is never a dull moment in this house! To show you what I mean, let me recount a few conversations for you. (For reference, she turned 4 in January)

Joshua to Ember: Going forward, Ember, we’re not eating snacks on the couch.

Ember: Well, we’re not going to do that going backwards either!

Ember to Grandpa: There’s a new animal at the zoo! It’s called a link!

Grandpa: Oh, there’s a lynx.

Ember: No, grandpa. There’s only one, so it’s a link.

Ember to me talking about daycare: Well, Jonathan told me I can’t come over to his house because I am a girl, and no girls are allowed.

Me: Do you even want to go over to his house?

Em: Well, not now I don’t. But it’s okay really. It did hurt my feelings, but I can’t change him. He’s going to do what he’s going to do, and I just have to let him make his own choices. Can’t fault him for that.

Jonah is our other wonderful addition to the family. He is 10 years old, in 4th grade, and a wonderful big brother to Ember. He reaches his limits at times with her, as all siblings do, and he loves going on adventures with her and playing board games. He is well versed in the worlds of Minecraft and Roblox and recently joined an after-school club where they are given a problem to solve and have to create items, out of Legos and such, for a solution. He has a wonderful sense of humor and is starting to try new things out of his comfort zone. Although bugs are not his jam, he loved the UP trip last year and is excited for our next adventure north this year. (August 2-8).

Lots of changes and transitions, and I am grateful for the journey. Many times, our futures do not look like what we thought they should, and if we let things take their course, they often turn out much better than we could have hoped. I hope to see many of you this summer, but if not, love you, miss you, and don’t be a stranger! We love doing phone calls, video calls, and we are even adventuring out into the world and doing visits more too!

Snow Birds

Joe Lizzadro

Our time in Arizona this year was very special. Family! Mya and friend Bella were the first to visit in January. We did the Herb Box and Sugar Bowl in Old Town Scottsdale. They just stayed for a long weekend, but it was fun.

Lou, Chris, Eli and Eli’s friend Hannah arrived in early March for a week of R&R. Baseball’s Cactus League is in full “swing” in March. Eighteen teams including the Cubs and White Sox play in the Valley. I’m not sure how much rest Lou got as he was on business Team Meetings or phone calls every day. The kids did some hiking, and we played a lot of table games. Lou’s favorite restaurant is Preston’s in North Scottsdale.

Niki, Ty, Sarah and Sophi flew in on March 23. The next day we drove to Luke Air Force Base in the West Valley for the Luke Days Air Show. It was a great show in the air, and lots of military aircraft on ground display. Niki, Ty and the kids also did an off-road excursion with the Desert Dogs from their base on Beeline Highway just north of Fountain Hills. And again – we did the Sugar Bowl, where Ty and Sarah each ate an entire banana split.

Arizona is our place to enjoy live theater. Most memorable was Beautiful, the Carol King musical at the Phoenix Theater. We saw Beautiful in New York a few years back and this presentation was just as good. Saw Rita Moreno in person, with clips of her rolls in West Side Story and other productions. She is in her 90s, looked great and sounded great.

Last one to mention was “On the Town” at Arizona Broadway Theater. It was very good. Then we looked up the movie to watch on TV. The movie was not as good.

Wildlife Report: A bobcat used our yard for access to the wild area behind in search of lunch. For the first time we saw a road runner crossing the back yard. And, we encountered a javelina on a walk in our area.

The cactus were just beginning to bloom when we flew home on April 11.

Kelleys Gather to Watch the Lights Go Out

Niki Kelley

After finding out that the total solar eclipse was travelling through my brother-in-law's backyard, we decided to make the pilgrimage to Indianapolis. The Indy Kelleys, Kzoo Kelleys and Grandma & Grandpa Kelley were there. Making a weekend of it, we spent a few days playing games, sampling a new tasty Sangria recipe and giving away most of the 100 eclipse glasses I bought (hey, I got a great deal).

On Monday we spent about an hour and a half staring up at the sky. While my kids were skeptical that it would live up to the hype, they were pleasantly surprised by the experience of watching the sun being covered up, feeling the temperature drop and seeing the daylight fade at 3:00 in the afternoon.

For a few minutes, during complete coverage, we took off our eclipse glasses, watched the ring of fire in the sky and said "wow" a lot while the neighbors played "Dark Side of the Moon" and "Total Eclipse of the Heart".

Such a cool experience.

Taking Flight – Looking Back

Joe Lizzadro

Carol and I have enjoyed ballooning (as passengers) for some time. And it is fun to look back and remember those adventures. One trip with Travcoa in France resulted in an interview and article for their publication, Bon Vivant in 2011.

River Otters Swim Team – 2024

Joe Lizzadro

The River Otters Swim Team completed its American Cruise Line Tennessee Rivers Tour on May 18, 2024. It was an outstanding success! Ty Kelley led the ROST Trivia Competition group to an outstanding win with his answer to the bonus question, “what item by count sells the most at Walmart?” His correct answer gave us a 19 to 14 win, and trophies for the entire team. Well done. Do you know the answer?

Conservancy Update

Bonnie Hay

Join the fun:

GLC Book Club will be meeting via Zoom to discuss “The Forest Unseen: A Year’s Watch in Nature” by biologist David George Haskell. Haskell “sees the world in a grain of sand” as he observes a square meter patch of old growth forest soil. Part natural history, part philosophy, Haskell encourages the reader to take the time to really look closely and deeply at nature. I am listing to the book while I garden. If you would like to join in the discussion, contact me for the virtual link to our discussion scheduled for Saturday, June 22 from Noon to 1:15 Eastern Time.

Dan and Amanda will lead a kayak tour of Gratiot. Bring your own equipment, borrow, or rent. Exact date will be determined soon; contact me with your interest in participating and you will be notified.

GLC will hold its Annual Members Meeting the evening of Tuesday, July 23 from 6:45 to 8:45. Speaker to be announced. If you can help with refreshments or set-up/ clean-up let me know.

Last year’s dark sky viewing at the Open Skies property on Mount Horace Greeley was somewhat disappointing because clouds blocked most of the view. We will try again August 3 with August 10 as the rain date. We will invite Dr. Nemiroff and his astronomy students to join us if they are available. Like last year, there will be a sign up through the Open Skies website so that we can easily share information and possible date change if needed.

Other News:

GLC will soon be announcing details about recent land donation from Lizzadro Farms. It will be exciting to plan for some future trail access to some of the new conservancy land on the more developed side of Gratiot. A botanical survey is already underway on a 13-acre parcel which was the boy scout camp next to the former Dion property.

GLC is in the midst of some other changes. Many thanks to GLC board and officers for helping to navigate these changes. We are restructuring the way our bookkeeping is done. Our administrative assistant resigned in February due to family needs. So, we are searching yet again for part-time programs and membership/outreach assistance. Please reach out if you or someone you know is interested in knowing more about those employment opportunities.

Questions, concerns, ideas... volunteering? My email is bonnie@GratiotLakeConservancy.org.

Museum News

Dorothy Asher

In case you missed it in our Winter Newsletter, the Lizzadro Museum’s Board of Directors is pleased to announce our new Executive Director, Kyle Brill. Kyle is a geologist and received his Ph.D. in geophysics from Michigan Tech University. He is familiar with many Lizzadro family members and grew up with Joe Lytle. He started at the Museum on January 9, 2024. He is assimilating well to his job and is interested in all aspects of museum work. Please say hello to him the next time you visit the Museum.

Captions Left to Right, Top to Bottom:

John Sr & Reva, Cooking Class - Christmas Cruise 2024; John Sr & Family - Christmas Cruise 2023; Justin & Taylor hosting J3, family & friends - Bahamas; John Jr & Family - Christmas 2023; John Sr & Family - Easter in Florida 2024; Tucson Gem & Mineral Show 2024.

Captions Left to Right, Top to Bottom:

Cousins on Cinco de Mayo; Ian's Birthday; Cousins in Copper Country; Kyle Brill Presentation at the Lizzadro Museum; (3 photos); Nicholas Christmas in Pompano Beach (2 photos); More Cousins Eating (2 photos)