This is the ranch my mother and her siblings grew up on. It's up one of the creek roads just north of Cayucos. My mother often told stories of growing up on the ranch and I can still picture her words as if I were there when her childhood took place. I have never been in the house but I have driven up to the gate and looked at it many times, imagining all the life that happened inside those rooms so many decades ago. Tonight, I'd like to share a few stories of two of my mother's siblings, my Uncle Swiss and my Aunt Vic.
Angiolina Vittorina Walter was my Aunt Vic. She is the little girl on the left. Elvezio Walter was my Uncle Swiss. He is the little boy standing front and center.
My Uncle Swiss is the only brother of my mothers that I ever knew. By the time I was born, my other three uncles had passed away. Uncle Swiss served in WW I and WW II. My mother was very proud of her older brother and kept several pictures of him in his uniform in our dining room. I never knew the details of this part of Uncle Swiss' life but how I wish he was here now to tell the stories.
Uncle Swiss was married to Aunt Mamie and what a pair they were. I adored them as a couple when I was a kid. They weren't like so many of the other adults, serious and wanting children to be seen and not heard. Whenever Aunt Mamie and Uncle Swiss were around, there was going to be a lot of noise with all the singing, dancing and laughter they brought with them. I loved them so much. Even the fighting at the dinner table was exciting. Both my Aunt and Uncle had strong opinions on life and they both seemed to enjoy a hardy debate. I vividly remember sitting under the dining room table with my cousin Cher and my sister Kelly, playing with dolls. We would crawl under the table so we could listen to all the ruckus above us without the adults knowing we were there. Uncle Swiss always knew though, and would slip us salami and cheese under the table. Even typing these words brings me back to my hiding spot. I can see my uncles pant legs and his brown leather shoes. His chihuahua, always sitting on one of his knees, ignored us girls until one of my Uncle's enormous hands would slip down below the tabletop, filled with food for us. We would grab it quietly but quickly before his dog beat us to it. Once in awhile, the discussions would get heated and a curse word would be uttered as a hand slammed the table top. Our eyes would grow wide as we stared at one another then covered our mouths to stop any giggles from escaping.
This is Aunt Mamie and Uncle Swiss in the late 1960's/early 1970's in my parents dinette in South Gate. Anytime they would come stay with us meant something fun was going to happen. They had a big station wagon and it would be filled with gifts for my cousins, their grandchildren and a few for us as well. I remember going to their son's home, my cousin Tommy, to visit and playing with his children, my second cousins. All the adults would be talking in the living room while all of us kids ran through the house and backyard. Pretty soon, here would come Uncle Swiss and Aunt Mamie to join in the fun. Aunt Mamie taught us how to do the Charlestons as Uncle Swiss sang. I can still see us all in that backyard, enamored at being in the spotlight of these two wonderful people. They were the perfect grandparents even if you were their niece.
This is Uncle Swiss and I with his chihuahua in Aunt Meta's kitchen. It didn't matter which Aunt's house you went to, eventually Uncle Swiss was going to make an appearance if he knew we had driven up north. I don't remember him ever once showing up anywhere empty-handed. His car would be full of something, toys or clothes or food. He was one of the most generous people I ever met. So many of my mothers siblings were like that. Generous beyond measure.
This is truly one of my favorite pictures of Uncle Swiss. Bob and I were living in Cayucos in a little house we rented from my cousins, Jack and Barbara. It was August of 1978 and we had a week old baby, our first child, Matthew Charles. I was twenty years old and completely in love with my sweet baby but also, exhausted and hiding at home. One morning, there was a knock at the door and it was my Uncle Swiss. He had driven the almost five hours to come see the new baby. As I watched my uncle holding Matthew, cooing and baby talking, I started crying. It was probably a bit of exhaustion but also an overwhelming sense of how incredibly good my life was. My uncle immediately took charge and told me to pack a bag for the baby, we were getting out of the house for the day. As I prepared myself and Matthew for an outing, because who says no to Uncle Swiss, I discovered Bob and my Uncle unloading the trunk of his big, black cadillac with baby gifts and boxes of fruit. That was my Uncle.
Bob, Matthew and I spent the entire day with Uncle Swiss, going from house to house of all the Aunts and Cousins. We ate everywhere we stopped and took little cat naps as relatives commandeered the newest member of the family. We didn't complain. Being dropped off at our little red, rent house that evening, we were bone tired, stuffed to the gills and completely content with life. The day my Uncle gave us was one of the best gifts I have ever received, ever.
Zora Tomasini, Sylvia Silva, Ruth Brum, Elvezio Walter, Meta Thorndyke, Jeannette Martines, Bernice Casas. My mother and her siblings. 💓 I can't remember the exact date of this family reunion at my cousins house. I believe Hank and Yvonne hosted sometime around 1980. They lived in San Luis Obispo and it was a wonderful gathering. That, I do remember. As always, there was enough food to feed armies from several countries and lots of music, laughter and loud talking. That's my family.
This picture was taken in my parents backyard, the day after my sister Kelly's wedding. This is the last picture I have of my Uncle Swiss. He is sitting next to my Dad's sister, my Aunt Mary and across from him is his sister, my Aunt Jeannette. Uncle Swiss passed away a month after this photo was taken. I'm so grateful I had the time with him that I did and I'm especially thankful for the time with him at my sister's wedding and my parent's house. He was a great man and the truth is, I could fill a book with stories about him.
This is a picture taken at my Uncle Swiss's funeral. He owned the trash company in Santa Rosa, California. When everyone came out of the Catholic Church after his service, all the trash trucks were lined up outside to pay their respects to him. That's the effect he had on people that were blessed enough to know him. How blessed were we to call Elvezio Walter our Uncle Swiss.
This is my Aunt Vic and Uncle Benny's wedding photo. I knew my Uncle very well as a child and loved him dearly but sadly, my Aunt Victoria passed away five years before I was born. She was only fifty-one and died of a stroke.
One of the favorite stories my mother would tell was of Aunt Vic owning a restaurant in San Luis Obispo. When I was first married, my mom and I had been out visiting relatives in San Luis and she drove me by the building where Aunt Vic's "Squeeze Inn" once was. It was a cool old building that I believe once was a part of the railroad station. Later in 1981, another restaurant opened in that same spot. It was named the "Del Monte Cafe" and Bob and I would frequently dine there for lunch or dinner. It still had the 1940's feel to it with the old wooden floors and booths. I was so happy everytime we ate there because I could imagine my Aunt behind the counter, waiting on her customers.
One of the best parts of my Aunt Victoria is that her granddaughter, my second cousin Cher, is one of my closest friends and really more like a sister to me. My children call her Aunt Cher. We are one month apart in age, almost to the day. Sometimes, when we're together, talking, laughing, crying, cooking and planning, I picture my Aunt Vic and my mom. I imagine they would be pretty happy to see us carrying on the Walter family traditions. I know I am.
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