[Dialogue] [Oe List ...] Another Loss and Archives Find

[Marilyn Crocker]

Dear Colleagues,

 

As Jeanette Stanfield (our house guest here in Maine) and I were chatting tonight after we read Margaret’s e-mail, I mentioned that the Lyman family was referenced with great admiration by poet and author Kathleen Norris, in her early work, Dakota: A Spiritual Geography. I remember the day I read that portion of the book – Joe and I were vacationing with his extended Canadian family in Prince Edward Island in 1996-ish and I almost sent him into shock with my expostulation upon reading the passage:  “I know this family!!!”

 

So Pat, I appreciated your note on this.

 

Although I never met the wonderful couple referenced with such respect by Kathleen Norris, I had the opportunity to meet and work tangentially with both Helen and Addie.  Helen landed in Maliwada in 1977, a sophisticated lady from Brussels Centrum, to “check out” whether she could say YES to spending the next chapter of her life in India.  She and handsome Canadian, Brian Williams, were at least “courting” at the time.  She seemed to fit right in, as a tremendously open and “missional” (as we would put it in those days) person.

 

Right after arriving in Maliwada in 1976 to teach the first HDTS, I was assigned to depart, to help train the next consult team, first stop in Kreutszburg Ost.  While there, one of my roomates was Addie Lyman – such an energetic, positive breath of possibility.  I believe she was a member of the House – or perhaps had been assigned to the auxiliary, once the Consult results were to be implemented.

 

The four Lyman offspring – Helen, Addie and their siblings -- must have been indeed, so deeply blessed by having Esther and Tom as their parents.  I find myself wondering what qualities, practices and attitudes did these parents exemplify that allowed them and their offspring to take such risks “on behalf of” the dispossessed around the world.

 

I would love to talk with Helen and Addie about this.

 

I give thanks in abundance for the extravagant giving of this Dakota family.

 

Grace and peace,

 

Marilyn

 





 

From: oe-bounces at lists.wedgeblade.net [mailto:oe-bounces at lists.wedgeblade.net] On Behalf Of Doug & Pat Druckenmiller
Sent: Monday, February 10, 2014 1:35 PM
To: Beret Griffith; 'Order Ecumenical Community'; Dialogue
Subject: Re: [Oe List ...] [Dialogue] Another Loss and Archives Find

 

Just to be clear: It was Esther Lyman who died; all three daughters are alive, so far as I know. Sue and Darryll live in Lemmon now, I believe.
(My English-teacher nerdiness is showing.)
Esther was a fine woman and of great help to us when we lived in Cannonball. We also saw her and Tom from time to time after we moved to Bismarck. We have all lost a great friend and terrific spirit woman.
(Those of you who read Kathleen Norris know this family was mentioned in her book Dakota: A Spiritual Geography.)
Pat Druckenmiller

--- Original Message ---

From: "Beret Griffith" <beretgriffith at charter.net>
Sent: February 10, 2014 10:10 AM
To: "'Order Ecumenical Community'" <oe at lists.wedgeblade.net>, "Dialogue" <dialogue at lists.wedgeblade.net>
Subject: Re: [Dialogue] [Oe List ...] Another Loss and Archives Find

Thank you Margaret. Helen Lyman was in the Minneapolis House when I was there  in the early 70’s. I recall her as a strong, thoughtful young woman. 

 

And…your note brought up a memory of doing circuits in North and South Dakota. I was on the Fargo to Bismarck run.  I knew there was a young pastor at Cannon Ball who was interested in EI work. I set out to find him.  I headed south out of Bismarck/Mandan not knowing exactly where I was going, except it was  roughly 40 miles south. HDP locations had not yet been selected. I got lost, stopped the car on the highway and along came a state police car. I mentioned Cannon Ball and the Pastor’s name. The policeman knew him, gave me directions and sent me on my way. Found the pastor, we had a cup of coffee and talked a bit. I recall the desolation and desperate feel of the place. Later after the HDP’s were selected I was at the Cannon Ball Consult. The pastor was no longer there.

 

Loving The ICA Global Archives, I looked up Cannon Ball on Explorer.  For the Internet search I entered: 

cannon ball north Dakota hdp

 

A document came up in the midst of a lot of references starting with “Cannon Ball, North Dakota” and one was listed as 

Native American – Wedgeblade.net  I clicked on it and found a document from Golden Pathways,   REPORT ON NATIVE AMERICAN TREK. It starts out, “This is a brief report on an almost 10,000 mile trip to nine states covering 58 days visiting 49 possible sites on 23 reservations among 26 tribes for a Native Human Development.”  It is a good read. There is no attribution. Does anyone know who wrote the report?

 

COLLEGIUM October 1, 1976, CHICAGO NEXUS

http://wedgeblade.net/gold_path/data/worc/101459.htm

 

Beret Griffith

 

From: oe-bounces at lists.wedgeblade.net [mailto:oe-bounces at lists.wedgeblade.net] On Behalf Of Margaret Aiseayew
Sent: Sunday, February 09, 2014 9:30 PM
To: 'Order Ecumenical Community'
Subject: [Oe List ...] Another Loss

 

Dear Colleagues,

I am writing to inform you of another loss to our community.  It may clearly have participated in the strength of the dream I shared.

Esther Lyman of Lemmon, South Dakota, passed on January 19 at the age of 95.  She, along with her husband Tom who died some over ten years ago were great guardians of our mission for many years.  Among other things, they lent our task four of their children and they only had four.  Almost all of us know one or more:  Helen Lyman Williams (in Toronto), George Lyman (Texas), Addie Lyman Holm (South Dakota) and Susan Lyman Marley (who along with Darrell is in Massachusetts).

As far back as the seventies when we didn’t have the money we promised ourselves to have to start new houses in Europe, the Lyman’s gave us what was needed to secure an apartment in Rome.  They were wise and only did it when we all had jobs and enough money coming in to sustain ourselves, but no prospects for a sufficient windfall that would pay our advance rent guarantee.  Addie and Susan came to visit us in that apartment.  Tom and Esther came to visit after we had already moved to Trastevere (remember that was one of the original eight HDPs that we never did).

Probably any one of us in a house with one of the family has memories we could share.  I know that they were a lifeline to Cannonball when a project finally got that close to the family ranch in Lemmon.  Esther always joked with me that she was glad that Esther was my daughter’s name because the pattern of naming children was such that she had feared the use of that name might die with her.

I don’t know what else to say except that it feels necessary to honor those who year after year guarded our mission.  Nancy Trask was  interviewed on Public Radio last week (as the town librarian) about one of the notables of Winterset who was/is one of the characters in the new movie Monuments Men.  The interviewer asked her what was special about Winterset in that it had so many notables (also home of John Wayne).  She said (loosely quoted)that every community had heroes, lots of them.  We just didn’t look for or pay attention to their stories.

Thanks for that good word, Nancy.

Blessings to you all, Margaret

 

 

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