John M Mahler, the 18 year old, was the half brother of my grandfather, Richard John (usually referred to as RJ)  Mahler. As I mentioned before, John Joseph’s first wife, Lovina Fremouw, died giving birth to my grandfather, RJ. John M Mahler’s mother was John Joseph’s second wife, Margaret Sadie McIntyre.

I have been in contact with Ellen, John’s daughter. As I figure it, she is my half first cousin once removed. I wanted to send her the info that Dale, my 3rd cousin, sent as I thought it was pretty cool.

Oddly enough, I was chatting with someone earlier this evening, and we wandered into talking about history and genealogy. It’s a small world.

I pointed out that in addition to whatever other issues might exist, the initials might not be optimal. Kelly is an incredibly sweet and kind person, so I really don’t think that decoupaged holders for a burning cross or adorable stuffed Klan teddy bears in hand sewn white robes with swastikas embroidered on their tummies was the sort of thing that she was going for.

However, part of the way through the ritual, the central candle sort of melted and lost over. Ruth, Jaeme and I sort of giggled and I said something about “Spirits of viagra and cialis, be with us now.” The candle hadn’t started out looking phallic, but towards the end, my first thought was “It’s okay. This sort of thing happens to ritual objects all the time. Maybe you’re just tired.”

And yeah, when the circle was closed, we did end with “Merry meet, merry part and merry meet again!” and the usual suffix of “Oh Mary!” Because it’s a tradition, damn it! It may be silly, but it makes me feel happy.

There was a very nice feast afterward, and I had a great time. The Covenant of Brighid’s Haven also now has a Facebook page. Cool for them.

Today, I went to the viewing of Mary Ellen, whom I knew years ago as Rannveigr when I was in the Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA). She was a deeply kind and calm person. I can’t remember ever hear her say a harsh word. She was also very dedicated to helping others.

This is a very old photo. Her children have grown into talented and wonderful adults. (Oddly enough, the man kneeling at the right is now my brother-in-law.) Even earlier, I remember sitting on the floor of the armory in Buffalo at Ice Dragon when she was pregnant with the twins. When her husband, Alexander, won Coronet Tourney (Aethelmearc was only a Principality then, whereas it is now a Kingdom), I remember that her daughter asked her, “Mommy, are you going to be Queen now?”, she responded with “No, Mommy is just going to be Princess. And she can just barely deal with that.” It had been kind of a long day, and I think she was kind of tired.  It was good-natured. Several friends of ours got to be in their retinue at court, and that was a very great honor.

This is how I would like to remember her – smiling and surrounded by her family and people who cared about her. She was truly a class act.

Because of her service to the Society, she was made a Companion of the Order of the Pelican. For a brief time, I was her protege. (Knights have squires, Laurels – awarded for excellence in the arts and sciences – have apprentices and Pelicans have proteges.) At the time, I was Chronicler (newsletter editor) for the Shire of Stormsport and later for the Principality of Aethelmearc. This newsletter thing seems to be a very long-standing tradition for me.;) It might be getting close to half my lifetime now for doing a newsletter or being involved with some kind of periodical.

After I drifted away from the SCA, I bumped her into again when she was on the board of the AIDS Council of Erie County. Mary Ellen was a very skilled and compassionate doctor. She touched many lives in important ways and was unfailingly gracious and serene.

When I stopped at her coffin to pay my last respects, I thanked her for having been kind, for having been a shining example of service to others. Even though we hadn’t been in close contact for years, I felt that the experience of having known her added something important to my life that I hope I can pass along to others.

May she rest in peace and hopefully she knows how much folks appreciate her giving and selfless nature.

A blogger friend in Germany has been very kind and helpful in trying to get more info.

A cousin found this and sent it my way. This is a page from the 1880 census.  On line 42 is my great-great grandfather, John Mahler, who was a blacksmith. He was born about 1844 or so, and died about 1888. His wife was Anna Mahler, and the census lists their 3 kids (as of 1880) - Frank, Ferdinand and Anna.

My great grandfather, John Joseph Mahler, was born in 1881.  (Hmm, just realized that meant that he was 7 when his dad died.)

John Joseph married my great grandmother, Lovinia Fremouw, who was born in the Netherlands. She died giving birth to my grandfather, Richard John Mahler. Lovina's dad, Cornelius Fremouw, died in a mining accident before she was born.  I never really knew my paternal grandfather, or very much about Dad's side of the family. Hmm, interesting that I have photos of my great grandparents, and no images of my grandfather, nor any real memories of him. There does seem to be a history of parents and children on that side not being close.

I also got the Google AJAX Feed implemented on the Erie Gay News page for News from Other Sites. I have gone back and forth about implementing it for the individual feeds versus grouping them by category.

I also had some last minute futzing for the code that sends tracking emails for contests. I think that is now working.

McCain strategist: Palin thought candidacy was mapped by God

Yahoo! Buzz

Sarah Palin believed that Sen. John McCain chose her to be his running mate in the 2008 presidential race because of "God's plan," according to a top political strategist in the Arizona Republican's campaign.

In an interview with the CBS news magazine "60 Minutes," Steve Schmidt described Palin as "very calm -- nonplussed" after McCain met with her at his Arizona ranch just before putting her on the Republican ticket. McCain had planned to name Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman (I-Conn.) as his choice until word leaked, sparking what Schmidt called political blowback over selecting the 2000 Democratic vice presidential nominee.

McCain strategist: Palin thought candidacy was mapped by God - washingtonpost.com