Pete's review of The Boys in the Boat, a book by Daniel James Brown

 The Boys in the Boat tells the true story of the amazing American rowing team in the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games. The pinnacle moment, of course, is the big medal race under the watchful eyes of Adolph Hitler and his minions, along with thousands upon thousands of screaming German fans. The more compelling story, however, is just how these young Americans got to the Olympic level, these college boys from the University of Washington.

Rowing was a more popular sport in the early part of the 20^th century than it is today. But it was seen as an ‘elite’ sport, more fitting for Ivy League schools than for country boys from the northwest corner of the country. This particular team of 9 came together during the worst part of the Great Depression. Money was tight and jobs were scarce -- or non-existent. It was astonishing to read about what some of the guys had to go through to find odd jobs, to eat, to study, to pay tuition, and to row, day after day, faster and faster, battling fatigue, battling the elements, to keep winning, to keep going…

The thrust of the story concerns rower Joe Rantz. In the thick of the Depression, when he was just 15, Joe spotted his family packing up the car. After asking where they all were going, Joe was told he wasn’t going anywhere. The family was leaving him behind as he was getting too big and there were too many other mouths to feed. Things like that happened back then. Pets were often abandoned, some people too. But with gumption nearly impossible to believe, Joe maintains his schoolwork, works a myriad of odd jobs, poaches fish from a stream to eat, and yet a couple years later somehow gets himself enrolled at the University of Washington. Joe’s tall and muscular body grabs the attention of someone who suggests he try his hand at rowing, and the rest, they say, is history. It’s funny how one of the best sports books I’ve ever read is about rowing. I never would have guessed that, but I’m so fortunate to have picked up this very special book about an incredible team of very special individuals.  

Pete has a new book review

A Review of Erik Larson’s In the Garden of Beasts

By Pete Schulte

In the year 1933 a US Ambassador was needed, but interest in the esteemed position was scant. For the position was US Ambassador to Germany, Nazi Germany. William E. Dodd wasn’t anyone’s first choice for the job, probably not even second or third. But somebody had to do it, and Dodd did study for a time in Germany and knew the language. Ambassadors in those days were usually men of wealth and extravagance. Dodd had neither of these attributes. He had a teaching background and was thrifty nearly to a fault. His American cohorts didn’t particularly care for him, and the Germans weren’t too impressed either. By all accounts, one would think Dodd was exactly the wrong person for the job. But there was a strength Dodd possessed that cannot be disputed. He had a vast historical knowledge, and based on this knowledge he knew that something had gone very wrong in Germany, and it was just going to get worse. Would anyone listen?

In contrast to Dodd’s reserve and thrift was his daughter, Martha, who came with the family to Germany. Martha was up for any party and dated a Gestapo officer, a Russian agent, as well as a variety of writers, bankers, diplomats, etc…She even had her hand kissed by Hitler himself.

Martha, dizzy from all the attention and excitement, took a long while to understand the gravity and seriousness of what the Nazis intended to do. But as ambassador, Dodd was hearing about people imprisoned without a trial ‘for their own protection,’ Jews being mistreated and subject to cruel new laws, and even visiting Americans being pummeled for not using the Nazi salute.

In those dark days, Americans were in the midst of the great Depression and had little interest in what was going on overseas. The government, too, had more interest in Germany repaying its debt than hearing about ‘isolated instances’ concerning the disappearances of Jews, Communists, or other perceived enemies of the state. The book’s author, Erik Larson, does an incredible job of bringing these ominous and dangerous pre-war times to life. You may not like Dodd after reading this, and likely not Martha either. But any shortcomings they had pale in comparison to the dark Nazi hearts In the Garden of Beasts.

Schulte Family History by Peter Schulte Sr.

A Schulte Family History
By Pete Schulte Sr.

Schulte is a common name in Germany. The name is generally associated with a trade or occupation. The original meaning is a " head man" of the village.  This is one who was responsible for collecting dues or taxes and paying them to the lord of the manor. Other translations are tax collector, mayor and magistrate. The Schulte family this blogster is related to originated in the western part of old Germany.  In the latter part of the nineteenth century, Germany wasn't actually a country but an amalgamation of provinces and municipalities most of which were known as Prussia. My great great grandfather was born in the Westphalia province in the town of Eslohe. Because of political unrest and widespread unemployment, many Germans picked up and moved to other countries to find opportunity.  The United States was a popular destination and my great great grandfather, Anton, emigrated to the US and settled in Detroit, Michigan. One of the Schulte family members did extensive geneological research and determined that Anton's trade was owner of a match factory.  Anton was 28 when he arrived in the States and, in short order, found another German immigrant, Theresia Rehnart and married her.  Unfortunately, Theresia was to die of tuberculosis at age 29. They did have one daughter from the marriage, also named Theresia, and she too died of the same disease at the same age of 29. Anton then married another woman with the Schulte name, Christina, and they had nine children but only five of them survived until adulthood. Anton eventually died at 78 of diabetes and Christina lived to be 84. My great grandfather, Joseph, was one of the five surviving children.  He was born in 1864. Joseph held a variety of jobs, one of which was a Detroit city policeman. Joseph married a French woman, Christine Hardoin, who emigrated to the States from the Alsace-Lorranine province of France. They were both in their 20's when they married and they had eleven kids.  One of the eleven was my grandfather, Raymond who was born in 1895. Sadly, Christine died at age 46 of cardiac asthma. Their children all survived to adulthood.  Joseph never remarried and lived to the age of 85 when he died of pneumonia.  We're told he had 53 grandchildren.

Little is known about Raymond's early life.  We think he completed high school and attended a business college in the Detroit area. This was in the early 1900's when very few kids went to college. We have a picture of him in a baseball uniform with a few teammates so we know he liked sports.  At the time, baseball not football was the king of sports. When Raymond was in his late teens, he decided to strike out on his own. It was quite unusual for someone to do this in those days and we heard his father was not pleased with the move. He was the only one of his family to leave the state. He headed out to California and got a job with the Imperial Sugar Company and based in Huntington Beach in Orange County. While in California, he tried the acting profession and joined the Pasadena Playhouse players in Pasadena. Live plays were still the most popular form of entertainment at that time but the film industry was about to make it's debut.  Raymond also served in the U S Army during World War One.

He stayed in California for nearly ten years and then relocated to New York City. He took a job with the Burroughs Corporation as a sales representative. While in New York, he met and fell in love with an Irish girl from Brooklyn by the name of Peg Ryan.   They married (he was 31 and she was 26) and had five kids (one died at five days old) and one of the kids is my father. Raymond had a stroke when he was 54 and died four years later at 58. Peg died a few years later. 

So there's a snapshot of the Schulte family from Anton to Raymond.  This Schulte family was quite prolific in Michigan. It is estimated that there could be as many as 100,000 descendants of Anton in the United States. If there are any other Schultes out there related to Anton, let us hear from you.

An Old Poem

Postcards from Germany
by Michelle Atencio

Cutting through cities
like a wall of wildfire
all near are burned and scarred.
The poisonous smoke is not clearing.
Red eyes well up
at the sight of fading stars.

Rapidly, the fire spreads
taking generations in its path.
Brick by brick, disaster marches on.
Victims look upon the crimson
crosses, listening to their numbers called.

Expecting relief, surprised screams echo
in steaming showers.
All hope inhales, sorrow
streams down red earth.
Nauseating smells of rot and singe fill
the air like the breath of death.

Thunderous protests began
approaching, extinguishing the flames,
while trails of boot prints
on the muddy earth show remnants
of the fallen reign.

Rising in the west, the lost sun beams.
Again there is a heartbeat, the few remaining
survivors begin to heal.  Scarlet scars grow faint,
souvenirs of their pain.