Notes on the children of Joseph and Ida Austill

Margaret

The four children of this family were born over a period of fourteen years. This made for a rather interesting growing-up pattern. Margaret, the second child, was a most motherly girl; she always said, only half joking, that she was the one who raised Juanita and Robert. But she was a very good "big sister". She read stories and played games took the younger ones on "expeditions" . She had some very attractive inborn qualities and talents that made her popular with adults as well as with her contemporaries, and the idol of her younger sister's eye. She had a natural good taste in clothes, and the result was that she was always able to dress well on little money. She had this same eye for room deceration, for flower arranging, and for personal adornment. Margaret was able to see a delicious looking dish pictured in a magazine, and to re-create it from "scratch". Socially she was adept and seems never to have gone through the "awkward age".

Margaret graduated from the University of Kansas with a degree in economics, and before her marriage held several important executive secretarial positions. She worked for several years in Kansas City, Missouri, Until moving to Oregon in 1949, where Juanita was living.

She married Kenneth Walker and they had one son, Paul Kenneth Walker, born in 1954. She lived the life of a happy wife and mother until she developed a colon cancer, and she died at the too early age of forty-seven. She is buried near her parents at Rest Haven Cemetary, Eugene, Oregon.

Maurice

Maurice had a difficult start in life; he was very tiny and frail and had to be carried around on a pillow. This was the source of much family humor after be became a large, heavy-set man. When Maurice began to go to school, he was hit by all the common childhood diseases. He missed the larger part of the school year, and had to repeat the first grade. Maurie enjoyed music, as did all the family; and during his high school years became an excellent trombone player. He was a very shy boy until about his senior year in school; then, it seemed almost overnight, he blossomed out into such a social being that he acquired the nickname "Society Sam" and he has friends that until this day think that Sam is his name.

He loved to make model airplanes and made some prize-winning ones; he was still making beautiful craft when he was in his seventies. In fact, he was fascinated by planes from early boyhood; Charles Lindbergh was his idol. Maurice began to spend all his free time at, the Lawrence airport; soon he was talking to the on-lookers and selling them tickets for short rides. For every so many rides he sold, he was able to have so many minutes flight instruction. It turned out that he had a great natural ability in this direction and he soon began to acquire his flying licenses. He advanced to the point where he was able to instruct pilots and when World War II came along, he entered the service as a captain, teaching flying to young soldiers. He at last wanted to get into the direct action, and was assigned what was then a great plane - the B-19. He and his crew were trained and all prepared, waiting at Omaha, Nebraska, for orders to go overseas, when the war ended. Maurice was disappointed, but his family felt just gratitude.

In 1941 he married Muriel Leach, of Topeka, Kansas. They have had a long and happy married life but also had the sorrow of having no children.

Robert Joseph

All his life, Bob has been a person with a great love of humor, a natural wit. Perhaps this started immediately after his birth, when his parents sent out birth announcements with the name "Donald Eugene Austill". For some reason, they changed their minds, probably to include the family name of Joseph, and sent out corrected announcements, but for many years, it was not unusual for someone to meet us and say "And this is little Donny!". This was a source of embarrassment to Bob until he began to see the humor in it.

Bob did well in school, made friends easily, and indeed had many of the traits of Margaret. He finished high school in Emporia, Kansas, and graduated from the University of Kansas in engineering (mechanical). When his parents moved to Oregon, he lived with them for a while, but moved to California, and worked for many years for the Southern Pacific R.R. He was very good at designing mechanical equipment, such as special-duty box cars, and equipment for working with nuclear material. He worked in the down-town San Francisco office of the S.P. and moved up well in the system. But when he was in his mid-fifties, he resigned, and set up an office in his home in Santa Clara, where he does special order mechanical drawing and planning for individuals and for corporations. He has done very well, and finds the work most satisfying.

He married Patricia Matlock, with whom he attended the University, and they have two children: Joseph William and Suzanne. Young Bill has recently joined the Air Force and is already a skilled pilot.

Juanita

It would be nice to have someone else to write my life story, but I will try to hit just the high spots. I am supposed to have shown early a love for music, being able to sing - the tunes and the words - of several songs when I was one year old. In fact, I was called upon as a young child to sing often, at meetings of various sorts, at church, etc. It was when I was five years old that I discovered that if I didn't want to sing, nobody could make me, and I haven't sung much since! I spent much time at the piano, picking out melodies. My father would sing and play his harmonica to me for hours at a time. I didn't start formal piano lessons until I was ten years old, but picked it up easily, and have beer playing ever since! I loved school and did well, and wanted to be in every activity that came along. I was a most enthusiastic Girl Scout and stayed in the program through my high school years. Some of my happiest memories are of being a camp counselor in the Colorado Rockies during the summers. In high school I played viola in the school orchestra and French horn in the band - and continued piano lessons, giving several private recitals.

In the University, I majored in English, and became a high school teacher. I really loved working with the adolescents, although it is hard and wearying work. In 1946 I received a graduate teaching assistantship at the University of Wisconsin, and earned my Master's degree there. From there, I accepted a position at Eugene, Oregon, teaching in the University training high school, and teaching a few classes at the University.

In 1948 I married Elden Riddle Allen and we have had a long and happy married, life; I became an active member of the Latter-Day-Saints church; gave birth to one wonderful son; adopted a beautiful baby girl; played the church organ for thirty-five years; and worked on collecting the genealogy of my family.

In my life there have been a few hardships, disappointments, sorrows, but it has all been sweetened with love, beauty, excitements, companions, travel, and it seems like more than my share of happiness.