The people pictured here with my grandfather are only a small fraction of our family...
My grandfather is a very quiet man whose eyesight nowadays reminds me of Mr. Magoo. Once he realizes who he is seeing his memory oftentimes astounds me. He has been sharing information with us for as long as I can remember about the places and people of our region. When his health started declining he told me how his mom died when he was around two due to the flu epidemic. He would look down and put his hand in a sweeping motion in front of him and say, "I can still see it when they put her in the mud. My auntie Qiatguq- the first Qiatguq behind me, and behind her my other three aunties." He said that his aunt that took him in died shortly after his mom, then he was adopted by the couple he calls his parents - Peter and Nastasia Nick. I once asked him what was his mom's name, he did not recall only knowing her as mom. His biological father was not in the picture, being a Caucasian miner by the name of George Fredricks who later moved to Sleetmute. By the time he was a teenager both his adoptive parents died and he lived with his uncle and cousins. One of my dreams is to have some kind of documentary of his stories. I have some written notes and had one video but they are only a small peek into the treasure of stories he can tell us.
2 comments:
Hi,
Long time ago I met your grandfather. I knew him as Peter Nick, and at the time I was married to Olga Takumjenak (Wigley now). I lived there from 1968-71 until Olga, Rob and I moved to Dallas, Tx. I was one of the few white people to live in the village and probably was not widely accepted but Peter accepted me for who I was and we had nice conversations. I also knew the couple he lived with and saw many babies born which perhaps you are one of them. Olga and I separated when she and Rob returned to Alaska in 1976. Sometime after that, we were divorced. I just wanted you to know that Peter Nick is a great person to me and that is why his name is still in my memory. Perhaps he remembers me. My name is Bill Barry. We used to live in a little cabin (which is now gone I'm sure) near where Pete Peteroff had his store, perhaps about two or three cabins down. The cabin used to be a place to store flour. I have many fond and unique memories from living in Russian Mission and I thank you for bringing one more to light. My memory is just not like it used to be. You can write if you like, and please send pictures if you can. My email address is overdrv@earthlink.net Every year I visit Rob Wigley and his family in Michigan.
Peter Nick is My Great-Grandpa.As long as i can remember He use to tell me great stories about what they use to do back in the old days. How they would do things right, and they wouldn't do anything wrong that would hurt someones feelings. Know a days people have changed. Using unreliable words. Which i don't even want to name. But my Great-Grandpa is a great person that cares about everyone and cares about everything. I have learned a lot of things from him and how to do things i never would imagine what i would do. He is a great person to hang around with and is a person that tells good stories from the old days. I am glad i grew up knowing my Great-grandpa Peter Nick is a wonderful person.
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