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Margaret Vasey: A Life, in Pictures

(Studio picture, about 1996)

A note about version. This is a draft, in computer speak the "Beta version," v.1, created January 4, 2006. The pictures have been drawn from conventional photos only. We've yet to search our digital pictures, or any photos (or text) that others would like to contribute to this project. We'd particularly welcome any suggestions for additions to (or deletions from) the text and the accuracy of its dates, places and names.

A note about purpose and formatting. Although presented as an html (Web) document, this is not intended to be a Web page as such. It is simply a way of providing a little text to accompany this CD of pictures put together for family members on the occasion of the January 7, 2006, memorial service following Margaret's death, December 23, 2005. A few of the pictures are embedded in this document. Most, however, will require a click on the link that will then display the picture described. The pictures were selected by Mary Vasey from an enormous selection, in the course of preparing "picture boards" to be used at the memorial service. Please understand that no one was deliberately left out; any omissions were inadvertent; the only family members named, below, are those for whom pictures are included. The text was written by Nick Johnson (with Mary's assistance). Persons pictured are named from the viewer's (not the subjects') left to right. Complaints, suggested deletions and additions, or revisions in text can be registered with Nick at at njohnson [at] inav.net.

A note about names. "Margaret" is, of course, a reference to Margaret Vasey, born Margaret Ruth France, October 12, 1910, in Oskaloosa, Iowa.

    "Charles" was her father, Charles Washington France; "Janette" her mother, Janette (Smith) France.

    The family included two girls and five boys. "Mildred" refers to her sister, Mildred France Schuerman. The men, all "France," of course, were Howard (deceased), James (Jim), Warren, Keith (deceased) and Richard (Dick).

    "Wayne" refers to Margaret's husband, Wayne Vasey (deceased).

    They had three children, "Mary" (Mary Eleanor Vasey, formerly Grubbe (husband Bill Grubbe), whose current husband is "Nick" (Nicholas Johnson)), "Steve" (deceased) and "Dan" (whose wife is "Greer" and whose children are "Natasha" (Natasha Vasey-Ellis; whose husband is "Tim") and "Gregory." "Kate" (Kate Johnson) is Nick's sister. Nick and his former wife, Karen Mary Chapman Johnson, had three children, "Julie" (Julie Kay Johnson), "Sherman" and "Gregory. Julie's two daughters, "Laura" (Laura Johnson) and "Sara" (Sara Voigt) are pictured, as are Laura's daughter, "Nia."

    Mary Vasey and Bill Grubbe had four children, all Grubbes, "Robin" (deceased), "Joel," "Jason," and "Karl." Jason has a son, "Alec."

Margaret Vasey was born Margaret Ruth France October 12, 1910, in Oskaloosa, Iowa, the daughter of Charles Washington France and Janette (Smith) France. One of the earliest pictures of her is this studio picture at age one (1911) with older brother Howard.

Here's a picture of Charles, with brother Walter, probably taken in a studio in the 1890s. This studio picture of Mildred and Margaret was probably taken about 1917. Here is a studio picture of Keith and Dick, and another studio picture, also probably from the 1920s, which includes Mildred, Margaret, Warren, Howard, Charles, James and Janette. A picture at the farm from about the same time, believed to be in front of the house where Mary was later born, includes Margaret, James, Janette, Warren, Mildred, Charles and Howard.

The France family gathered for this picture, probably in the 1950s: Warren, Dick, James, Charles, Keith, Mildred, Janette, Howard and Margaret. Here's another, probably from the 1970s, taken at the farm. France family reunions brought them together in this photo, probably taken in Oskaloosa in the 1990s: Warren, Margaret, Mildred, Jim and Dick; and in Mary and Nick's living room about 2003: Jim, Margaret, Mildred, Dick and Warren. There's also this picture of Warren, Margaret and Jim possibly in Colorado, sometime in the 1990s.

With a sister and five brothers Margaret has too many nieces and nephews to count, as this 1993 picture showing a sampling of them in Mary and Nick's back yard demonstrates.

She graduated from Oskaloosa High School, attended William Penn College in Oskaloosa, received her B.A. degree from Denver University and an M.A. in education from Rutgers University.

Whether measured by the standards of today or of yesteryear, any male would agree that she was one beautiful woman as these studio pictures from about 1928, 1929 and 1930 vividly illustrate. The photographic proof of her ability to stand on her head, while not quite in the same category of beauty, is a dramatic record of her varied talents as well. Actually, Wayne cleaned up pretty good, too -- at least for this studio picture about 1930.

Margaret’s first teaching job was at a small consolidated high school in Paton, Iowa, where she was immediately handed responsibility for social studies, typing, PE, directing plays and coaching girl’s basketball.

She married Wayne Vasey in 1933, in Oskaloosa. Here they are about that time, and in a studio picture taken about 1944. They lived in Iowa City from 1948 until 1954 where Wayne served as the first Director of the School of Social Work. The well-traveled couple lived in six states and visited every continent except Antarctica. Among their adventures was an escape, unharmed, from a New Guinea tribe that was going to war wearing mud and carrying spears. This occurred during a visit to their son, Dan, who was working in Papua, New Guinea, at the time. Elsewhere Margaret preferred to go by camel.

During WWII the family lived in Oakland, California, at 3933 Patterson Avenue. Here are the three children, Mary, Dan and Steve outside their home in 1943, and in a studio a year later (Dan, Mary and Steve)..

When Wayne "retired" in 1975, he and Margaret moved to Ft. Myers, Florida. It didn't last long. The University of South Florida in Tampa persuaded him to "temporarily" teach social work and gerontology -- which ended up involving a move to Tampa, building a home, and 15 years of his life. Friends (Virginia and Jim Watson) persuaded them to leave Tampa for the Pinellas side of the Bay, where they settled in the Raintree compound, before Margaret later moved to the Pinecrest independent living apartments. At Raintree Margaret was active in the "hat party" (about 1991) and the seniors' "Water Lillies" water aerobic group pictured here -- though not pictured on the occasion of their famed wet tee-shirt contest.

Margaret retained many of their friendships from over the years, pictured here on a Florida pier with Gloria and Henry Dees from Detroit.

Mary and Nick were married at Lake McBride State Park, not far from Iowa City, in 1991. Present on that occasion, in this picture, are Wayne, Steve, Mary, Dan, Margaret and Karl. About 10 years later they vactioned in a little more exotic spot in Switzerland. A Christmas holiday gathering at Mary and Nick's house in the late 1990s included Greer, Natasha, Steve, Gregory, Julie, Alec, Mary, Jason, Kate (behind the tree), Dan and Sara.

In early 2003 Mary and Nick, Dan and Greer, arranged for Margaret to make the move from Pinecrest in Clearwater, Florida, to Pinecrest, in West Branch, Iowa, where she could be closer to family (and where Mary visited her daily during the last three years of Margaret's life.) Here is a picture of Margaret on Mother's Day 2003, with Alec, Greer, Mary, Dan, Margaret and Jason. This picture, also taken that day, shows Margaret as the matriarch of five generations including Margaret, Mary, Julie, Laura and Nia.

There are pictures of Mary's family. Here's Jason, Robin and Joel in Cedar Rapids about 1964, Robin and Karl in Cedar Rapids about 1967, Robin on her 16th birthday in 1980, Joel finishing the "Wharf to Wharf" marathon run in 2000, Karl at Bill Grubbe's home and with Margaret at the Oskaloosa farm, both in the late 1990s, Wayne holding Alec when he and Margaret were in Iowa City about 1989, Jason and Alec in southern California about 1990, and a studio picture of Alec at 13, about 2002.

Steve lived in Taos, New Mexico for awhile. Here is is with Karl, probably in New Jersey about 1962.

There are also a number of pictures of Greer and Dan. Here they are, sometime in the 1970s, at their home in Denver. These pictures, probably from the 1980s, and perhaps taken in Florida, includes Greer, Natasha, Margaret, Gregory and Dan, and another with Natasha, Gregory, Greer and Margaret. This picture of Natasha, Dan and Gregory may have been taken in Papua, New Guinea, a few years earlier. Here's Natasha with Margaret at home following Natasha's high school graduation about 1993 and Gregory on the occasion of his graduation from Luther College. It wasn't many years later before we were attending Natasha's wedding to Tim Ellis in the Virginia wine country, about 2000.