It is great grief that I post this. Our precious 26 year old son, Josh, was killed Friday night. He was riding his motorcycle and a car turned left into his path. There was not enough time for him to avoid it. He died instantly. He leaves behind a wife who is expecting their first child in June. We covet your prayers at this very hard time. For those who wish to know, these are the arrangements:
Arrangements for Josh Rothgaber
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Reception and viewing 12 noon to 3 PM
Service at 3 PM
Gundel Funeral Home
415 North Duke Street
Lancaster, PA 17602
Telephone: 717-393-1776
Burial at the Millersville Mennonite Cemetery, Millersville, PA
We would invite you to join us for a buffet dinner. We would appreciate knowing (but it is not necessary) if you plan to join us for the buffet meal following the interment so we can make accurate arrangements. Please RSVP to nadachap@gmail.com.
Many of you know we travel and live in our motorhome (with a mailing address in South Dakota) and so you have asked how to reach us in Pennsylvania. CHAP has graciously allowed us to use the office address as a home mailing base while we are here in Pennsylvania. We will be camping somewhere near the CHAP office. The CHAP office address is:
Doug and Nada Rothgaber
c/o CHAP
231 N. Chesnut St.
Palmyra, PA 17078
It is hard to express our feelings - our grief is so overwhelming. As I write this we are in our second day of driving back to Pennsylvania. Praise God for email and cell phones! The outpouring of everyone’s love and prayer has just overwhelmed us. We felt we needed to drive home as we plan to stay for quite awhile and we knew Vicky had the support of her loving parents. We have been back and forth on the phone and email with her frequently as she makes the arrangements. It seems God is slowing our journey as we dealt with extreme weather (high winds, sideways rain, and tornado warnings) in the Dallas area yesterday which slowed our travel to 30 MPH for almost 2 hours and today our emotions are just over-flowing as the reality of the situation starts to over-take us. We have had to stop several times as the grief just overcomes us and we need to pray and cry out to God. We have been blessed with a daughter-in-law, who even though she is in distress, is able, with the help of her parents, to know what she wants and to make the arrangements for Josh.
If you are so inclined, CHAP is setting up a Memorial Fund to help with the many needs the family will be facing in the coming days. Cards & Gifts can be sent to:
The Josh Rothgaber Memorial Fund
c/o CHAP
231 N. Chestnut St.
Palmyra, PA 17078
About Me
- Nada and Doug
- Welcome to the travels of Doug and Nada. We love the Lord and are traveling full-time in our motorhome with our German Shepherd, Homer. Homer is the star attraction wherever we stop and he gets us talking and sharing with many people. DON'T FORGET: YOU CAN ENLARGE EACH PHOTO BY CLICKING ON THE PHOTO! The newest blog post is at the top and they go back in time as you scroll down. If you want to see each photo larger, you can just click on the photo and it will enlarge. If you decide to leave a comment, don't forget to sign it so we know who left it. ;-) Folks: This site is under continual construction as we travel and see this beautiful country. Check back for more updates and photos. Thanks for visiting with us! May God bless your day!
Monday, October 25, 2010
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
10/13/2010 - Traveling to San Marcos, TX
We are traveling to San Marcos, TX today. I'll post more once we get there. I am having trouble with the map showing our route so I will need to work on that once we are settled.
Friday, October 8, 2010
Titantic – Branson, MO
We went to see the Titantic Museum today. It was quite interesting and quite moving. Each person is given a boarding pass with the name of an actual passenger. You look for your passenger as you make your way through the museum.
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Branson, MO
We are now in Branson, Missouri. We'll be here for another week and a half. This place is a lot like Pigeon Forge, TN - a family oriented entertainment and vacation location - but Branson is SO MUCH more hilly than Pigeon Forge! We feel like mountain goats going up and down. The traffic was horrible today on our way to church as many folks were apparently leaving after being here for the weekend. I'll post some photos in the next couple of days.
Our winter friends from Mission, TX, Eddie and Ann, have a summer home about 2 hours from here in northwest Arkansas. They are going to drive over to Branson on Tuesday and we'll enjoy catching up since we last saw them the end of February. Doug and Eddie play softball together in a Winter Texan league.
Our winter friends from Mission, TX, Eddie and Ann, have a summer home about 2 hours from here in northwest Arkansas. They are going to drive over to Branson on Tuesday and we'll enjoy catching up since we last saw them the end of February. Doug and Eddie play softball together in a Winter Texan league.
Chateau on the Lake, Branson
The Chateau on the Lake, the location for next year's HSLDA conference, is a beautiful location and looks to be a very elegant hotel. Here are some photos of where we will be a year from now.
Above, driving up the hotel's entrance road.
Below, the view from the hotel's parking lot looking out over Table Rock Lake.
Above, driving up the hotel's entrance road.Below, the view from the hotel's parking lot looking out over Table Rock Lake.
Windermere Baptist Conference Center, Roach, MO
We made a quick trip through Windermere Conference Center on the Lake of the Ozarks to see where next year's Alliance Conference will take place. It sure is out in the country! Here are some scenes from around the Camp.
Land of Lincoln - Springfield, IL
On our way south from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, we stopped in Green Bay for a night and then drove to Springfield, IL. This was Lincoln's home town when he was elected President. The town in also the capital of Illinois so there is the Old Capitol and the New Capitol. They have done a tremendous job of restoring the town and it is quite quaint.
Above is the train station and below is the entrance to the Lincoln Presidential Museum. This is a tremendous museum with lots of high tech features. Wear a sweater, though, because the temperature is always kept at 70 degrees for the artifacts. Brrrrr! for us humans!
The museum takes you through 2 phases of Lincoln's life. First, is his childhood through to the election and second is his presidency and assassination.
Note: That is Doug standing with Lincoln and his family in the photo above. Below, the Old Capitol where Lincoln served before becoming President.
Above is the Lincoln home as it looked when the Lincolns lived there. Below is formal parlor where the Lincolns would have welcomed guests.
Above is the dining room and below is the family room. All furnishings are authentic to the Lincoln home and are either the actual furniture they left there when they moved to the White House or are reproductions of the authentic furniture. Note how busy the wallpaper and rug is.
Above is the Lincoln bedroom where Abraham Lincoln set. That is his actual wardrobe and dresser. In the photo you can see Lincoln's desk where he many times worked into the night. It was common at that time to have a bedroom suite with separate rooms for the husband and wife. The younger children slept in the mother's room.
Above, you can see a special feature, a potty chair, that Lincoln had made for his wife who did not like to use the outhouse. Below is Mary's bed.
Below is Lincoln's tomb.
Above is the train station and below is the entrance to the Lincoln Presidential Museum. This is a tremendous museum with lots of high tech features. Wear a sweater, though, because the temperature is always kept at 70 degrees for the artifacts. Brrrrr! for us humans!
The museum takes you through 2 phases of Lincoln's life. First, is his childhood through to the election and second is his presidency and assassination.
Note: That is Doug standing with Lincoln and his family in the photo above. Below, the Old Capitol where Lincoln served before becoming President.
Above is the Lincoln home as it looked when the Lincolns lived there. Below is formal parlor where the Lincolns would have welcomed guests.
Above is the dining room and below is the family room. All furnishings are authentic to the Lincoln home and are either the actual furniture they left there when they moved to the White House or are reproductions of the authentic furniture. Note how busy the wallpaper and rug is.
Above is the Lincoln bedroom where Abraham Lincoln set. That is his actual wardrobe and dresser. In the photo you can see Lincoln's desk where he many times worked into the night. It was common at that time to have a bedroom suite with separate rooms for the husband and wife. The younger children slept in the mother's room.
Above, you can see a special feature, a potty chair, that Lincoln had made for his wife who did not like to use the outhouse. Below is Mary's bed.
Below is Lincoln's tomb.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Michigan's Upper Peninsula - Soo Locks
I have been remiss at posting - Having too much fun and very poor upload speeds in the wilds of northern Michigan. After spending two and a half rainy windy days in Petosky, Michigan, we were finally able to head north to the Upper Peninsula on a beautiful sunny Sunday. Crossing the Mackinaw Bridge was beautiful! I told my friend Mary Ann who doesn't like going up and down mountain roads that I will take mountain roads anytime over crossing high long bridges with very low guard rails!
The Mackinac Bridge is the 3rd longest bridge in the world and the longest suspension bridge in the western hemisphere. Below is one of the water taxis which take you to Mackinaw Island.
We arrived at our campsite along the northern shore of Lake Michigan. We are just two miles west of the bridge. It is a beautiful view out our front window over Lake Michigan. Shortly after setting up our campsite, a freighter steamed past.
Doug and Homer had to go checkout the shoreline.
After setting our camp, we headed to the Soo Locks in Sault St. Marie on the northern edge of Michigan's Upper Peninsula where Lake Superior empties into Lake Huron. There is a 21 foot drop in St. Mary's River between the two lakes and so the locks lower and raise the ships between the lakes. The "Lakers" are freighters up to 1000' in length and they travel what is referred to as the "Upper Great Lakes." The "Salters" are ships up to 800' which travel the whole way to the ocean. The Lakers are too long to go through the Welland Canal between Lake Erie and Ontario.Below is a relief map of the Upper Lakes showing the depth.
Unfortunately, we just missed a large freighter going through the locks and none were due for about 8 hours so we watched this tour boat go through the locks and left.
Above, the boat comes into the lock from Lake Superior and then the lock doors close behind it.
In the photo above, you can see the water has been removed from the lock and the gates to St Marys River are opening. The tour boat exits the lock below.
Above they close the gates and the lock begins to fill again with water in preparation for the next ship coming from Lake Superior.
Above is our view out the restaurant's window where we ate looking from St. Ignace toward Mackinaw Island. Below you have a beautiful sunset view from our motorhome campsite. Tomorrow we are going to drive up to Whitefish Point on Lake Superior.
The Mackinac Bridge is the 3rd longest bridge in the world and the longest suspension bridge in the western hemisphere. Below is one of the water taxis which take you to Mackinaw Island.
We arrived at our campsite along the northern shore of Lake Michigan. We are just two miles west of the bridge. It is a beautiful view out our front window over Lake Michigan. Shortly after setting up our campsite, a freighter steamed past.
Doug and Homer had to go checkout the shoreline.
After setting our camp, we headed to the Soo Locks in Sault St. Marie on the northern edge of Michigan's Upper Peninsula where Lake Superior empties into Lake Huron. There is a 21 foot drop in St. Mary's River between the two lakes and so the locks lower and raise the ships between the lakes. The "Lakers" are freighters up to 1000' in length and they travel what is referred to as the "Upper Great Lakes." The "Salters" are ships up to 800' which travel the whole way to the ocean. The Lakers are too long to go through the Welland Canal between Lake Erie and Ontario.Below is a relief map of the Upper Lakes showing the depth.
Unfortunately, we just missed a large freighter going through the locks and none were due for about 8 hours so we watched this tour boat go through the locks and left.
Above, the boat comes into the lock from Lake Superior and then the lock doors close behind it.
In the photo above, you can see the water has been removed from the lock and the gates to St Marys River are opening. The tour boat exits the lock below.
Above they close the gates and the lock begins to fill again with water in preparation for the next ship coming from Lake Superior.
Above is our view out the restaurant's window where we ate looking from St. Ignace toward Mackinaw Island. Below you have a beautiful sunset view from our motorhome campsite. Tomorrow we are going to drive up to Whitefish Point on Lake Superior.
Whitefish Point on Lake Superior
On Monday, we headed north again this time to Whitefish Point on Lake Superior to see the Shipwreck Museum. Apparently, there is hundreds of shipwrecks in this area of Lake Superior. The most famous one being the last one to go down in 1975, the Edmund Fitzgerald. All but a few of the shipwrecks happened in November as winter storms created havoc with the shippers trying to get one last load through before winter freeze set in. There was a beautiful ballad composed and sung by Gordon Lightfoot in the year following the sinking of the "Fitz."
Below is the bell they were able to raise from the Fitz as a memorial to the crew that went down with her.
If you click on the photo below and enlarge it, you can read the details of her sinking.
Doug is point to the end of the boardwalk at Whitefish Point, Lake Superior looms in the background. It is the second largest fresh water lake in the world.
The lighthouse at Whitefish Point.
We drove a scenic route along Whitefish Bay and came to the Iriquois Lighthouse as we got closer to the Soo Locks. If you click on the photo below, and look on the hillside on the right side of the lighthouse, you can faintly see a wind generator farm that is across the bay in Canada.
by Gordon Lightfoot
The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
Of the big lake they call Gitche Gumee
The lake, it is said, never gives up her dead
When the skies of November turn gloomy.
With a load of iron ore - 26,000 tons more
Than the Edmund Fitzgerald weighed empty
That good ship and true was a bone to be chewed
When the gales of November came early
The ship was the pride of the American side
Coming back from some mill in Wisconsin
As the big freighters go it was bigger than most
With a crew and the Captain well seasoned.
Concluding some terms with a couple of steel firms
When they left fully loaded for Cleveland
And later that night when the ships bell rang
Could it be the North Wind they'd been feeling.
The wind in the wires made a tattletale sound
And a wave broke over the railing
And every man knew, as the Captain did, too,
T'was the witch of November come stealing.
The dawn came late and the breakfast had to wait
When the gales of November came slashing
When afternoon came it was freezing rain
In the face of a hurricane West Wind
When supper time came the old cook came on deck
Saying fellows it's too rough to feed ya
At 7PM a main hatchway caved in
He said fellas it's been good to know ya.
The Captain wired in he had water coming in
And the good ship and crew was in peril
And later that night when his lights went out of sight
Came the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.
Does anyone know where the love of God goes
When the waves turn the minutes to hours
The searchers all say they'd have made Whitefish Bay
If they'd put fifteen more miles behind her.
They might have split up or they might have capsized
They may have broke deep and took water
And all that remains is the faces and the names
Of the wives and the sons and the daughters.
Lake Huron rolls, Superior sings
In the ruins of her ice water mansion
Old Michigan steams like a young man's dreams,
The islands and bays are for sportsmen.
And farther below Lake Ontario
Takes in what Lake Erie can send her
And the iron boats go as the mariners all know
With the gales of November remembered.
In a musty old hall in Detroit they prayed
In the Maritime Sailors' Cathedral
The church bell chimed, 'til it rang 29 times
For each man on the Edmund Fitzgerald.
The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
Of the big lake they call Gitche Gumee
Superior, they say, never gives up her dead
When the gales of November come early.
Of the big lake they call Gitche Gumee
The lake, it is said, never gives up her dead
When the skies of November turn gloomy.
With a load of iron ore - 26,000 tons more
Than the Edmund Fitzgerald weighed empty
That good ship and true was a bone to be chewed
When the gales of November came early
The ship was the pride of the American side
Coming back from some mill in Wisconsin
As the big freighters go it was bigger than most
With a crew and the Captain well seasoned.
Concluding some terms with a couple of steel firms
When they left fully loaded for Cleveland
And later that night when the ships bell rang
Could it be the North Wind they'd been feeling.
The wind in the wires made a tattletale sound
And a wave broke over the railing
And every man knew, as the Captain did, too,
T'was the witch of November come stealing.
The dawn came late and the breakfast had to wait
When the gales of November came slashing
When afternoon came it was freezing rain
In the face of a hurricane West Wind
When supper time came the old cook came on deck
Saying fellows it's too rough to feed ya
At 7PM a main hatchway caved in
He said fellas it's been good to know ya.
The Captain wired in he had water coming in
And the good ship and crew was in peril
And later that night when his lights went out of sight
Came the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.
Does anyone know where the love of God goes
When the waves turn the minutes to hours
The searchers all say they'd have made Whitefish Bay
If they'd put fifteen more miles behind her.
They might have split up or they might have capsized
They may have broke deep and took water
And all that remains is the faces and the names
Of the wives and the sons and the daughters.
Lake Huron rolls, Superior sings
In the ruins of her ice water mansion
Old Michigan steams like a young man's dreams,
The islands and bays are for sportsmen.
And farther below Lake Ontario
Takes in what Lake Erie can send her
And the iron boats go as the mariners all know
With the gales of November remembered.
In a musty old hall in Detroit they prayed
In the Maritime Sailors' Cathedral
The church bell chimed, 'til it rang 29 times
For each man on the Edmund Fitzgerald.
The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
Of the big lake they call Gitche Gumee
Superior, they say, never gives up her dead
When the gales of November come early.
Below is the bell they were able to raise from the Fitz as a memorial to the crew that went down with her.
If you click on the photo below and enlarge it, you can read the details of her sinking.
Doug is point to the end of the boardwalk at Whitefish Point, Lake Superior looms in the background. It is the second largest fresh water lake in the world.
The lighthouse at Whitefish Point.
We drove a scenic route along Whitefish Bay and came to the Iriquois Lighthouse as we got closer to the Soo Locks. If you click on the photo below, and look on the hillside on the right side of the lighthouse, you can faintly see a wind generator farm that is across the bay in Canada.
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