I spent some time visiting with my Aunt and Uncle in North Fort Myers, Florida back in 2016. They let me record the conversation, and I later clipped it into a video. Uncle Tuffy was born in Bettsville in 1928, the first-born to Vernon and Marietta Bramel. He grew up alongside some of his Semer uncles, so I asked a lot of questions about them since they had all passed away and I never knew any of them.
Uncle Tuffy joined the Army and went to Korea for a couple years where he cooked meals for the officers. When he got home, he completed his high school coursework and married Madonna Henderson in 1949. They raised four kids in Bettsville, similar ages to me and my five siblings, and they were practically next door neighbors to us for many years. They later moved around for career purposes, to Meadville, Pennsylvania and then to Upper Sandusky and Bryan in Northwest Ohio. They retired to Florida.
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| Tuffy and Madonna in Bettsville 1950s |
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| Tuffy and Madonna in 2011 Orlando, Florida |
Uncle Tuffy's health began to fail not long after my visit, and he and Madonna both went to an assisted living facility in Punta Gorda, Florida. Tuffy died in 2018 and Madonna in 2020. They were very close to my parents, and I treasure my memories with them as well.
Here is the interview:
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