Groomsman tribute...

Fishing at Lake Eva!  Nice catch brah!

We just returned from lower Michigan to attend a wedding that Joel told me a lot about...  Flap's wedding is what I mostly remember about it.  Always referred to as "Flap's wedding"!   I would always say, "who?" and then he would say "Matt" which left me even more confused...

Flaps and Cara, a photo from Joel's camera...

Finally I figured out who the legendary "Flaps" was, but Joel would just giggle when I asked him how the heck he got such a nickname...  It was always fun to get to know Joel's friends up at Tech through stories and many tall tales that we would share over the phone or over a brewski.  It was even better when I got to meet the men behind the legends when I would go up to Tech to visit Massy.  I always remembered to bring an extra snowmobile coat just to sleep in because it got a little cold outside the warmth of the fireplace in the great room.

Grasswick and Paul down in Chicago... from Joel's camera.

Speaking of cold, I specifically remember that Joel wore flannel pants under his jeans everyday during the Houghton winters.  The only way you knew if he was in his Pajamas or his street clothes was by the presence of jeans.  Buck would always say "zip zip!" take off his jeans revealing his pajama pants and sloppy-toed socks and jump into bed.  Haha, he would then proceed to make some comment about how it saved time... and was efficient.   Three seconds later he would be humming fast asleep with his eyes open...

Yeah, sleeping kind of like this, right Haus?

I'm getting off track.  Anyway, I wanted to highlight some of the many close friends and relationships that Joel found during his time at Tech, Flaps being one of the many great men and classmates he had the opportunity to get to know closely.  Heck, Flaps celebrates his birthday just the day after Buck!

Another shot that Joel took of Matt and Cara down in Chicago - Curty taught Buck well!

We were so honored to be able to witness and celebrate the marriage of Matt and Cara, and to see what a special relationship and friendship Joel had the privilege of seeing grow in strength and depth over the years.  I had heard a lot about Cara through Joel, and because Joel was not usually a man of many words - this spoke to how much Matt cares for her... It was so wonderful to see their wedding.

Joel "Buck" Marsh, Groomsman

Congratulations!

Cheers to a wonderful life of happiness and strength together - I know Buck joined us all for a shot of Jezynowka during the wedding, the peewee dances, and the many fun times we will have together in the future - Congratulations to you both!

The Marsh's

Wing Night Reunion!

Isaar Inn - Wing Party for Joel's Benefit and Clint's Birthday!

Ashley & Chad - Wing Party Winners!

While I was back in Wisconsin for the first week of summer break, we were able to all get together to have wings at Isaar Inn, just down the road from where Joel and I grew up on Isaar Road!  Ashley had won the Wing Party that Isaar Inn donated to Joel's Scholarship Banquet so it was about time to redeem the coupon and get the family together!  We worked to spread the word and the invitation and sat back to enjoy some wings and great company!

Matt, Ryan and Dan!

Shhhnick!

The Koeppel's made it out to Isaar - so great to see you all!

Clint Bodart was also celebrating his birthday, so it was double trouble on the wing party front!  It was so fun to see everyone and catch up - perfect timing over my trip back to the area as well.  I always seem to miss this little mini-reunions, but fortunately I made this one!  Dan and Katie just got settled into the area and it was excellent to see them out and about - we're so excited that they live close - I know Joel was so jacked that Dan had the interview up Marinette!

Hmmm, honey BBQ?  Can't quite be sure!

My twin - Alysa or as we call her, baby windpants!

Alyssa and I came dressed like twins without prior planning, and Bill showed us just how good the wings are at Isaar by leaving a delectable trail up his shirt!  The proof is in the stain(s)!

It was so wonderful catching up, and we're so thankful to all of our friends and family who made the trip out on a Wednesday night.  It's such a blessing that Joel has so many wonderful friends and family who continue to be a part of our lives.  We couldn't ask for more...


-The Marsh's

Happy Father's Day!

Young Buck with Mom's shoes on - thumbs up to the camera!

I thought it is only appropriate to follow up my Mother's Day post with an equally special Father's Day post!  Most of you who know our family know that a lot of our character, ideas and ambitions are greatly influenced by my Dad.  He keeps us strong, focused, grounded, and... Curty is basically just a blast to be around!  

Joel and Dad bringing the "On the Rocks" through the first set of locks!

Snowmobiling up in Houghton - the whole gang is on the trails!

My Dad has always taken most of the pictures so doesn't have the chance to be in many photos!  However, Curty has definitely mastered the art of "self timer" portraits.  Just a few weekends ago he was showing me how you can use handkerchiefs to balance the lens on the camera.  Skills I don't take for granted anymore!

Well, here's to Fathers Day - we hope you had a wonderful day spending time and reflecting on the importance of your fathers, grandfathers and all the people who have been role models in your life!

The first ground breaking months at Camp Fence in the Silver Streak

Happy FATHER'S Day!

Joel R. Marsh Craftsman Scholarship

We were really looking forward to this year's academic scholarship banquet at Seymour Community High School.  Each year a large crowd of graduating seniors and their families gather into the auditorium for the awards and recognitions that students have worked so hard for.  We were very excited that the Joel R Marsh Craftsman Scholarship was going to be featured as one of those awards. 

In addition to our excitement and appreciation, we are so grateful because this very special scholarship was made possible through the generous donations of the community, and the hard work of Joel's friends and extended family.  The fundraising banquet that was held in Seymour allowed us to increase the amount donated to local graduates each year to support their continuing education. 

To bring the award full circle, we were pleased that some of Joel's friends from High School were able to present it to this year's selected students.  The students chosen were both so deserving of the award, and demonstrated many of the unique, compassionate qualities we were looking for.  We want to thank John Kollath, Robert Jankowski, and the Seymour High School Tech department and administration for making this all come together.  We feel honored to be a part of this event and to sponsor students in Joel's name.

We hope you enjoy the video of the event!

Thank you again for your overwhelming support and generosity.

Sincerely,

The Marsh's

The camera that captured it all...

I'm sure you have seen or will be seeing many photographs that captured so many of our family vacations and times together.  Curty is a great photographer and recently brought out his old film SLR camera from storage.  He was going to donate it to Goodwill - which I quickly intercepted.  I have some friends in Pittsburgh who enjoy shooting film (instead of digital) and jumped at the chance to add another camera and lenses to their collection...

Dad's SLR - captured many memories over the years!

Nancy and Bari the film photography continues!

I had to document the camera that took so many photos of our family and great times with my own obsessive photography habit.  I urge everyone to take too many pictures - they are some of the best keepsakes and memories that I can think of.  To leave you with just a few more of our favorite photo memories, here's two from vacations with took with family.  Joel and I loved the motor home and it was so nice to be able to travel with all the supplies Joel and I needed.  Although we may have spent a few too many hours on the side of the road fixing the motor - it was those incidents that gave so our vacations character!  Joel and I would crawl (because we weren't allowed to walk for safety) up and down the length of that vacation home on wheels!  Such wonderful memories!

Joel in the captain's chair!

Take care - and remember to take photos!


Alyce

Happy Mother's Day!

I was wondering if I should put a post on here about how awesome our Mom is - and I found that I just couldn't help myself.  For Mother's Day I wanted to include some adorable pictures of Joel shortly after our Mom officially became a mother - these are from the summer of 1986.  My adorable brother was only 5-7 months old at the time...

I love seeing photos of Joel as a little one, there's so many features of his face that have stayed the same over the years.  The emotions behind his eyes are priceless - always up to something...  He was such a funny little man always talking and jumping around.  As we like to say it, he was "all trach" back when he was little...

Baby Buck enjoying some solid foods!

Mom and Little Baby Buck during meal time! I think Joel continued to use this chair into his early 20s!

Enjoy the photos - I look forward to scanning in more photos (we just got a new scanner for just that purpose!) and sharing them with you all.

Have a wonderful Mother's Day!

Alyce

Joel showing me how to wave at Curty's camera!

Canvas Prints for Mom & Dad

Joel and I wanted to get mom and dad something special for Christmas last year, so before Thanksgiving I found a deal on the internet that offered canvas printing for cheap!  I sent the deal to Buck quickly in an email and said that we should get one, or maybe two, for Mom and Dad for Christmas.  Joel first asked the practical question, "do they have room for two?"  I told him they did, and then we agreed to buy them as gifts.

I have to say that it was not typical of us to buy a Christmas present before Thanksgiving - but I'm sure glad we took the initiative.  Joel and I didn't have the chance to discuss what photos we were going to put on the canvas, but talked about pictures of Lake Eva and we knew that we wanted the canvas prints to go on the wall at a cabin up north.

I know Joel wouldn't agree with being the center of attention, but I thought he deserved to be on the canvas prints because he was so closely connected to the gifts.  Don't worry Buck, we will indeed hang them up north as discussed - one at Buck's camp and one at Lake Eva.  Here are the pictures I chose...

Joel on the Pontoon at Lake Eva

Joel getting ready for work at Camp Fence...

I look forward to remembering our emails back and forth and planning to buy mom and dad Christmas presents.  Although Joel only ate McChickens at McDonalds in order to save a dime, he didn't ever think twice about the cost when it game to gifts.  It's always - "sure, just buy it"!  The only thing that the presents are missing is being wrapped in brown paper bags from Don's Quality Market - that's how Joel always wrapped his Christmas presents... on Christmas morning!

Take care and enjoy the warm days of summer ahead!

Alyce

The Buck Scholarship Benefit!

The Basket Prep Team! Getting in touch with your feminine side JED!

I'm sure all of you have been waiting for this post - because many of you had the opportunity to come to the benefit, and others want to how it all went down!  First, a little insight into the the planning!  Rickert drove up from Milwaukee early Saturday morning to hit up a round of golf and freeze his hands off before the big benefit - nice!  Later that morning, all those in the preparation party gathered the donations we received, baskets, stuffing, markers, and their creativity and headed over to Bergy's for the party preparation!  We invaded his house and slowly filled it full of sparkling tinsel and signs!  It was the hub of Operation Buck Benefit!

Bergy's Place - Operation Buck Benefit!

After getting everything prepared and inventoried - we loaded up the minivan (man I love Curty's Man Van - so handy!) and brought the loot to Jackson Point!  It was fun to get it all set up for the evening, and time was flying!  We were competing with DJ Skip for stage space and he was running around like crazy - DJ Skip is a busy man apparently!

The MAN VAN loaded up!

Right around 7PM is when the ticket selling began - the boys posted up in front of the baskets and manned the ticket station!  The lady's were running around and selling 50/50 raffle tickets!  Oh, and I forgot to mention - the place WAS PACKED!  The turnout was absolutely amazing!  It was only a week ago that Sam was plastering Seymour with fliers!

Our 50/50 Raffle Team!  Nice waist bank!

The night went by quickly and we tossed in a few door prize drawings of pint glasses and hats for those who came out to the benefit!  The 50/50 raffle winners were so generous and donated some of their winnings back to the cause!  It was just awesome - I can only imagine Joel's reaction to all this!  He probably wouldn't have liked the spotlight, but I am positive he is grateful we all got together to share some laughs, some shnuffka, listen to some country music, and help young bucks in the Seymour Community!  That's a perfect Saturday night in my eyes!

When the time came, DJ Jed jumped on the microphone and started raffling off the baskets!  There was such a variety - so it was fun for everyone to throw tickets into their favorite basket!  You could win pampering at Kapture Salon and Spa, at Sun Drop basket, children's toys and games, and the movie Kindergarten Cop!  There was something for everyone!

We cannot say thank you enough to the local businesses and individuals that donated items for the silent auction, basket raffle, door prizes, and gave monetary donations.  We never imagined the out-pouring of support that arrived for the benefit.  Absolutely amazing - words cannot express how thankful we are.




There are just too many pictures to include in one post, so I decided to include a large photo slide show for you to feast your eyes on!  You can also CLICK HERE to go to the web album of pictures from Buck's Benefit!

You are all so wonderful - thank you for your support!

Thank you from all who made this benefit possible, especially Justin Rickert, Jed Roffers, Kyle and Sam Bergsbaken, Van Gompels, Chris Westerhoff, Marc G, Jackson Point, and all those who contributed to making the benefit a huge success! 

As always, a warm and heartfelt thank you from...

The Marsh's

Thanks for the Wings Buck!

Flying home...

As many of you who follow this blog may know, we had the Joel "Buck" Marsh Memorial Benefit, but it was in Wisconsin... and I live in Pittsburgh.  A small obstacle to get over!  Rickert and I had been in contact about the benefit and were thinking about some dates that would work to host the gathering.  That's when I told him that Buck was flying me home for a little sneak surprise trip for my parents!  (Click HERE to link the blog post!)

Thanks Chris for helping with Buck's flights!

I came home on Wednesday night and surprised my parents!  It was funny because as soon as my Dad saw me he said, "Oh man, I was going to call you tomorrow to say that you should fly home for Joel's benefit!"  Ohhh, great minds think alike, and I was one step ahead of them!  It was fun to talk back in forth with Mom about the benefit and the amazing donations that were coming from every corner of Seymour and the community!  She would call me and say, "We received a beautiful basket today, what should I do with it?!?"  I would always respond and say that I had no idea what was going on, and that I would forward the info to Rickert - hahah! Joke!  I knew all along!  My mom also asked me if I could fly in for the weekend because she had no idea what this banquet would be like and needed a little help!  I said, sorry, I'm too busy with school.  Gotcha!

Wisconsin Springtime...

That week went by so quickly!  Thursday and Friday consisted of getting some odds and ends together for the benefit as well as spending some quality time with my Grandparents in Seymour.  It was fun to relax and have lunch with Grandma and Grandpa Marsh.  I also had the chance to go on daily dates with Lyssa.

It was so nice to be able to fly home, and what a gift that Joel gave me.  Together we surprised Mom and Dad and I was able to get home for some quality family time - the most important time of all.  Thanks BUCK!

A pair of Mallards on the pond Sunday morning...

Joel's Memorial Benefit

I forgot to place the flyer of the recent event on Joel's page - but I think it's definitely worthy of a post in its own to compliment Joel's friends in managing to pull off such an event so quickly!  When people from a small town come together, we can do great things...

My parents and I had nothing to do with the planning and idea of this benefit - Joel's closest friends thought up this fun and exciting event to hold in honor of Joel and to contribute to Joel's scholarship! We feel so blessed that Joel's friends continue to keep Joel's memory, legacy, and mission alive.  I am excited to post more about the benefit and outpouring of generosity and support that family, friends, and Seymour businesses all contributed!  A deep thank you to all those who planned and made this wonderful event possible...

(...there's more to come!)

The Marsh's

Congratulations to our local scholarship recipient!

We were so excited to be able to present this award....

 our first

Joel R. Marsh Scholarship

We invited the Rottier family over on a Sunday evening for pizza and cake because it was Jeff's Birthday!  We were so excited that the whole family was able to come over and celebrate because they were in for a unexpected surprise!  I had called home to the party with Skype to say hello to everyone and be there for the presentation of the scholarship (don't worry, we practiced answering Skype video calls before the big event).  Paul and I were in Pittsburgh, with our Whipp's shirts matching Curt's, and were able to say hello and ask Tony if he wanted to jump into the hot seat in front of the webcam!

Tony - Recipient of the Joel R. Marsh Scholarship! Congratulations!

Once we had Tony sitting front and center, that's when we revealed that it was not only a celebration for Jeff's Birthday but for Tony's achievement and hard work as well.  He was presented with the first Joel R. Marsh Scholarship for his dedication to emergency services in the community and continuing his health care education to further serve our area. In addition to this being the first scholarship awarded, it was also awarded on February 27, 2012 - a very special date of dedication.

Curt, Tony, Deb - The Joel R. Marsh Scholarship

We are very fortunate to have such a close community with dedicated volunteers and professionals.  We, among many other families, have used Seymour's emergency medical services and couldn't be happier with the care and commitment of those who arrive on the scene. We wanted to express our sincere appreciation to all of the volunteers who continue to support the community.

We wish Tony the best in his continued and pursuit of  higher education and training - Thank you so much for all you (and your family) do for our community!

-The Marsh's

This was in the local Times Press - Thank you Tony!  We're so proud of you!

Bucks Birthday Celebration in Seymour!

Fortunately this year, Buck's Birthday landed on Monday - and many from Seymour know that the Petticoat Junction has a nice meaty special on Monday evenings!  Buck was a regular at the Monday special, so we couldn't find a better place to host a meat eating gathering in the name of Buck's Birth!

Mmmmm, meat.

Took down that steak like a champion!

I (Alyce) was having my own meat eating special in Pittsburgh, and sadly order the only thing without meat on the menu at "Meat & Potatoes" - sorry Buck!  (Click here for my blog's post)  It was fun to all get together and relax and do as Buck did, and the Red Solo Cups were plentiful!  I even had a virtual toast with my Pittsburgh Red Solo cup!

Uncle John and Wheezie!

Curty & Marky with their cups - always hard to get the straw!

The Petticoat Junction was hopping!  Many of Joel's close friends and quite a few relatives stopped in for a bite and an "Uncle Buck"!  It was great to see so many faces - and when I called from Pittsburgh, I as pleasantly surprised by the noise and the fun that was going on at the Petticoat!  What a celebration of Joel's life.


We cannot thank everyone enough for joining our family on Joel's Birthday - it's wonderful to have your support. Aunt Hali's friend also made this special gift for us to cherish and remember all the wonderful facets of Joel's life.  Thank you - it's absolutely beautiful!

Another gift we received close to Joel's Birthday was a letter from one of his recipients.  It was a hand written note from a young girl.  The honesty and graciousness in her writing was by far the best gift we could have been given.  She wrote how thankful she was to the angel that walked this earth - and we couldn't agree more.

Dan, Alyssa, Ben & Gosa

Bucks crew!  Thanks for coming out boys, I mean men?

Matt, Curty, Marky, Chris, Wheezie, and Deb/Mum!

-The Marsh's