She Has Worn Many Hats: Saluting Loujine Young Shuler on Her
Birthday April 10
THROUGH
MOUNTAIN MISTS
Early Settlers of Union
County, Georgia
Their
Descendants...Their Stories...Their Achievements
Lifting the
Mists of History on Their Way of Life
By: Ethelene Dyer Jones
She Has
Worn Many Hats: Saluting Loujine Young Shuler on Her Birthday
April 10
Loujine
Young Shuler (left) is shown with two of her Class of 1947, Union County High
School, classmates
at their golden anniversary class reunion June 14, 1997 at Blairsville.
Loujine traveled from Walden, CO to be
present for the event; Elbert Dennis Wilson from
Wales, Michigan, and
Ethelene Dyer Jones from Epworth, GA (where she lived at that
time).
Friends in high school--friends in the "golden" years!
Something as simple as
telephone calls can
renew an avalanche of memories and launch a simple project that will
eventually
result in much happiness.
I speak of recent telephone calls, one
from a mother and one from her son.
Neither knew the other was calling me.
Both calls precipitated this column about my Union County
Classmate,
then Loujine Young, now Loujine Young Shuler, who went out from Union County
and did well as wife, mother, grandmother, great grandmother and
professional
woman.
Let me quickly note that neither
Loujine nor her son Carl remotely suggested I write about Loujine. They are too humble and unpretentious to seek
publicity at all. To write about her is
my own idea, my choice. But let me get
on with the subject at hand, that of noting some of Loujine Young
Shuler’s
accomplishments and why Union
County can be
proud of
this just-about-to-turn octogenarian.
And if you are a friend to Loujine,
know her now or knew her in the past when she lived and grew up in Union County,
will you please take the time to send her a birthday card.
Loujine’s son Carl Shuler and her daughter
Gwendolyn Shuler Hanson are both hoping a virtual “shower of cards” of
good
wishes will be sent to their beloved mother on or before her 80th
birthday on April 10. Right now, Loujine
is temporarily in Arizona
with her granddaughter Jodie and may be addressed at Mrs. Loujine Y.
Shuler, 21875 West Casey
Lane, Buckeye, AZ 85326. Loujine will be returning soon to her home in
northern Colorado
where she spends the “warm” months of the year and may be addressed
there at P. O. Box 296,
Walden, CO
80480-0296.
Loujine Young was born April 10, 1930 to Joseph
Benjamin Ezekiel Young (Dec. 18, 1891-May 3, 1931) and Birdie Maybelle
Ingram
Young (Sep. 25, 1896-Jul. 15, 1997). She
was the youngest of five children. Her
siblings were Ray Alan Young (1920-1941) who married Juanita Thomas; Clara Pauline Young (1922 - 1999) who married
Howard McCarter; Joseph Benjamin (J. B.) Young (1924-1994) who married Dortha
Pauline Henderson; and Floyd James Young (1927-1984) who married Alice
Kathleen
Freeman.
Loujine’s father, Zeke Young, died
when Loujine was just a year old. Her
mother worked hard to keep house and home together and rear the
children to be
solid, productive citizens during the hard times of the Depression,
World War
II, and the children’s “growing up” years.
I met Loujine first when we both
became students of Union
County High School, Blairsville, in our
“Fabulous Class of
1947”. I was a country girl who had gone
to Choestoe
Elementary School. Loujine was a “town girl,” having grown up in
Blairsville, attending Blairsville Elementary.
We enjoyed having classes together and developing a lasting
friendship. Loujine stated in memoirs for
the Class of
1947’s 50th Reunion Book distributed when we had a grand
reunion in
1997 that she liked mathematics best of all her subjects, as “it helped
her
much in her later work.” We both have
the late Mrs. Dora Hunter Allison Spiva to thank for our love for and
whatever
proficiency in math we have. Loujine was
also athletic in nature, and played on the Union County
girls’ basketball team.
In those years from 1943 through 1947
when we were in school, any basketball we played was on an outside
court, for
our school did not then have a gymnasium for our practice, games or
athletic
gatherings. In recalling those days of
playing basketball, Loujine wrote, “When we went to schools with
hardwood gym
floors, our ball did some strange things.
It was a challenge, but we still won games.”
Loujine and Vester Eugene “Gene”
Shuler,
son of Murphy Jane Fortenberry Shuler and Marion Shuler, were married July 17, 1948. The young couple settled down in northern Colorado in a
town
called Walden. Eugene worked as a maintenance
supervisor and
Loujine began her career as a postmaster at Walden in 1959, continuing
that job
for 33 years until her retirement on October 4, 1992.
Loujine and Eugene had two children,
son Carl who married Patty Hines (a teacher) and Gwendolyn Shuler who
married
Kirk Hanson. Loujine delights in her
grandchildren, Matthew Allen, Joie, and Adam Shuler and Jodie and
Deanna
Hanson. I haven’t a current count or
names or number of great grandchildren (sorry, Loujine!).
Eugene, Loujine’s companion of more
than sixty years, died October 30, 2007. Eugene was known
for his hunting trips, they
both liked to travel, and Eugene
played his fiddle for many a gathering, especially the famed “Georgia
Picnic”
in Eaton, Colorado
the last Sunday of August each year.
As postmaster at Walden,
Colorado
for 33 years, Loujine was well respected in the community and earned
many
rewards for her service as both postmaster and citizen.
In 1990, the great Christmas Tree that was
taken to Washington, D. C. to be placed on the White House lawn was
gathered
from near Walden. Loujine assisted with
fundraising to get the tree transported and was able to go to Washington for
its placement and
lighting.
She also was active in preserving
local history in Walden and received recognition for the special
stamps, dyes
and other items she promoted to help Walden be known throughout Colorado and
even in the
United States.
This lady, well-reared by her beloved mother Birdie Ingram Young, and
well-grounded in principles of faith, family and work ethic, went out
from Union
County and lighted up another place, a town called Walden. She and
Eugene were
active in Walden
Baptist Church,
and reared their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. In talking to Carl, their son, I find that he
and his wife Patty enjoy providing music at worship services, Carl on
guitar
(having perhaps inherited his father’s love for producing instrumental
music)
and his wife Patty playing piano. So the
talent goes on from Gene (and maybe Loujine, too) to the next
generation.
<>
In giving advice to the Class of 1947,
Loujine said: “Enjoy life to the fullest
each day you live. The golden years will
be so full of fond memories you won’t have time for sadness.” My life has been enriched since 1943 by
knowing Loujine Young Shuler. I am glad
to call her friend, and happy for the fellowship we have enjoyed at
class
reunions and through other means in our “golden years.”
Congratulations, Loujine, on reaching the
milestone of 80 years. Best wishes for
good health and continued happiness for you and yours.
(And, as a reminder, remember to send Loujine
a birthday card; we want to “shower” her with cards on her 80th!)>
c2010 by
Ethelene Dyer
Jones; published Apr. 8,2010 in The Union Sentinel, Blairsville,
GA.
Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
[Ethelene Dyer
Jones is a retired educator,
freelance writer, poet, and historian. She may be reached at
e-mail [email protected];
phone 478-453-8751; or mail 1708 Cedarwood Road, Milledgeville, GA
31061-2411.]
Updated April 23, 2010
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