It has been on my mind for some time - none of you Grand Children knew your Great Grand Father Tomas Gower Rosenberg. You would have liked him I am sure. He was a very quiet man, but a bit of a tease. That was pretty much the nature of the Rosenberg men. He was called "Slim" because he was so skinny. He wasn't all that tall, but with his lean looks, he appeared to be taller than he was. I believe he stood about 5' 11". Just a shade short of 6'. He was about the neatest man I have ever known. Even when he was in his work clothes, he was as snappy as a man could be. He always wore a hat of some kind. Winter and Summer, Dad had a hat on. When he worked in the yard it was always a straw hat. He wore gloves when he worked. I guess it was because his hand were sensitive and he would break out with a rash. I guess the thing that was most interesting about him was he was a great cook. When he was very young he use to go out with his older brothers and herd sheep. While they were in camp, someone had to do the cooking, and Slim was eager to learn. Those camps must have been lonesome and hard work, but then the boys and men of Southern Utah were pretty use to that. When the First World War was being fought in Europe, Slim was drafted and entered the Army. It was during this time the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ordained their male members when they went into the service so they could care for thier brethern. I don't think Dad had been all that active when they ordained him an Elder. In fact I don't believe that Grandma Rosenberg was very active, or brought the family up to be. If any of them were married in the Temple, it was usually after they were married and got active with their own families. Anyway - Dad didn't have to go overseas. He served his time in the United States - what time it was, the war ended before he had much of a chance to be envolved. His older brother Harvey had gone to France and was seriously injured from exposure to Mustard Gas. A brother-in-law was killed and buried in France. So the war was very much a part of his life.
I don't recall hearing about how he met your Great Grand Mother Itha Harris. They were married in Cedar City, Utah and lived in a very small house behind Grandma Rosenbergs home. Work was very sparce in Utah so Dad and Itha moved to California where Slim found work with little pay, but back then, there was little opportunity for unskilled laborers. Itha worked in the home and Slim finally found steady work at Owens-Illinois Glass Company. He held a number of different jobs at Owens. He was head of the Quality Control Dept. for a time. As he got older, he stayed on as one of the Company Custodians. He retired from Owens after about 30 years I think it was.
Everyone liked Slim. As I said he was quiet and had a great sence of humor. I always marveled that he could set for hours and give the family genealogy from memory. He knew everyone in
Cedar City on a first name basis. It was always fun to go to Cedar City with him on vacation. We would go up town and he would be able to tell us about everyone we met. Who they were related to and how they fit into the family. It was marvelous. He went to Utah almost every year as I recall. Visited his Mother and his siblings. They were a close family even with the miles which parted them.
When we would go over to the house for dinner, Slim would do the cooking. He could put a Pot Roast on the table that nearly melted in your mouth. His gravy was to die for. He was the only cook I ever met that made beef gravy with milk. It was soooooo good. His days cooking in the sheep camps was not wasted.
I met Slim before I met your Grand Father Jay. We use to shoot pool in the recreation room at lunch time. Slim was quite a pool player. We became very great friends. He would look for me when I came to work in the mornings. He was having his coffee - I would set with him for awhile and then get to my desk for the days work to begin. His younger brother Magnus worked at Owens at that time as did my cousin Charles Smith. Both sides of the family were part of the Owns crew it seems.
When Jay and I got married, it seemed to be the time had come for Itha to move on in her own way. She divorced Dad the year after our marriage. Dad was lonely and lost. He was adopted by my parents for Holiday Dinners. I think he found a home with the Smith Family. After a brief marriage to Cora, he was divorced again. Then he had some health problems that landed him in the hospital where he underwent two operations pretty close together. When he was ready to come home, we brought him into our home to get back on his feet. It was at this time my parents were in an auto accident that took my Dads life and put Mom in the hospital for quite a long stay. When she was finally able to go home and be on her own again, it was Slim who took time to stop by and see if she needed to go shopping or have him help her in the yard. They had been friends for sometime, so it was natural for him to look after Mom. They went to the movies, and horse races. The end result was they were married and had 11 happy years together before Slim passed away from cancer.
I wondered if he ever really knew how much we loved him. I can still picture him in his fresh and clean outfit. Dress shirt, dress slacks, smartly shined shoes and his hat. He cut quite a figure for a farm boy from Utah. He would go to Church with Mom, but never really got too envolved. The great story was one Sunday he went to Church and put his hat on the hat rack in the voyer. When he came out his new hat was gone and a dingy old hat was left in its place. A few weeks later he saw an old man wearing his hat. He walked up to the man and told him he had his hat on. The old man argued it was his hat. Dad pulled the hat off his head and showed the old guy the brim was filled with paper so it would fit his head. When the paper was removed it fit Dad. There was no more discussion.
You don't see men wearing hats anymore. In fact, I don't see hats anymore. There was a time when they were part of any well appointed mens store, but not now. Times change. One thing won't change for me however and that is I will always remember with love and appreciation the tall, slim fella I loving called "Dad". (He was as dear to me as my own father, and that is saying quite a lot.)
Written this 18th day of July, 2009
by Eileen C. Rosenberg
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