I’m sending out Mom’s Christmas cards this year and wanted to add a special note to the Foltz family. We are connected by birth (Lottie Foltz and my grandpa Luther Miller were children of Louis Miller along with Herb who was one of my all-time favorite people), by location (neighbors in Limestone Township), and by choice (have remained friends with each other over the many years). My grandparents, George and Etta Arnold, lived just north of the Foltz place in the 1930’s-40’s on the Taylor place that Luther Foltz purchased years later. My other grandparents lived a few miles SE from there. Adel told me that sometimes the Foltz kids would stop by and join with the younger Arnold girls and go on to their one room schoolhouse, the Dunn School. Luther was teased by his classmates about his first name, Herbert. They would chant things about Herbert Hoover at him so he went to his mother about it. From then on he went by his middle name and the name of one of his uncle’s, Luther. She told the schoolmarm and it was done. This was in the early 1930’s before the Arnolds moved there. Mom met and later married Dad who was named after both of his grandfather’s, LaVerne Henry (Nacke) Louis Miller. Welty married Martha Howard who lived across the road from the Foltz family and was a cousin to Ray Howard, Adele’s husband. Buck worked for Grampa Miller as a hired man for a while. He told me he didn’t like it when after a big lunch the Millers would take a nap, but he had to go to work. Dad had big cars even back then. He would speed through Bonfield on his way to pick Mom up and again to take her home. One night the local cops set up a two-car roadblock waiting for him just south of the intersection where they later built the school. He drove down into the ditch on the east side of the road to go around them, through town, past the Foltz place, dropped Mom off at home and then sped east to go home with the cops in pursuit. As he drove up the very long lane to his house his Dad heard the roaring cars and went outside with his shotgun to see what was going on. Dad told him and Grampa fired a few rounds into the sky and the cops turned around and left. Mom and Dad married in August 1938 and their first home was in Bonfield. It is the oldest house in town, not far from Mike Foltz’s home. They paid $15 a month rent. They later moved to a Henry Kleen farm NE of Bonfield and farmed it and he worked hauling milk. During WW2 Dad went up to Chicago to pick up Buck. Kankakee was a wide open town then and they went out for a good time there when they got back. Buck was on leave from the army and wasn’t making much money, and he later told me that Dad had spent over $300 that night (I assume some of it was gambling losses). I can remember going out to the Foltz’s for get togethers and cookouts as a youngster. I also remember working there picking up rocks from the field just east of the house. After graduation Luther went to work on the railroad and stayed at our house in West Kankakee and would go home on his days off. He met our neighbor, Loraine Guiney, and I believe they dated for a while. Adel and her husband Raymond Howard lived in West Kankakee (607 Small), Arvella and her first husband lived nearby at 368 S Foley then later she lived alone at 476 S Cannon, we lived at 368 Tanner Ave (1943-83). Buck was over once and gave me a pinch of snuff when I was just a kid and I got sick and have NEVER had it since. We went to Kankakee High School with Sonny, Charlene, Loretta and the others. Dad was Democratic Committeeman in the early 1960’s for West Kankakee and worked with Melvin trying to get him city contracts. My folks introduced Buck to Arvella. The four of them went out together, played cards and such. The last time I talked with my Dad was in Buck’s front yard just two days before he was killed. Buck’s grandson married my sister Phyllis’ granddaughter. Kendra was just two when she learned a few cuss words from us Miller boys. Mom and I always enjoyed seeing the Foltz’s at family lunches, stores and sometimes at wakes. Mom was so happy to see them at her birthday parties and was always thrilled to be invited to the Foltz lunches even though she had divorced Dad! Mom always enjoyed riding around. We have probably been on every road in Kankakee and Iroquois counties. We usually started near Bonfield. She would tell me stories from the past. Once we drove to every place they had ever lived, took pictures and wrote down notes. Hope you and your family have a great Holiday Season!
Richard Miller
980 Willow Drive
Geneseo, IL 61254
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