Foreword

Autobiographies are usually written by famous people; politicians, entertainers, sports people, and the like. This autobiography is unique in that it was written by an “ordinary” man who lived in extraordinary times.

Harold Jennings speaks for a generation of people who grew up in rural America during the Great Depression. They witnessed the transformation of society from rural to urban. They went from oil lamps and outhouses to owning personal computers. They used horse and buggy in their early days and now jet across continents and oceans. They lived through the hopelessness of the Great Depression and the horror of a global war.

Harold is a living example of the American Dream. From humble beginnings, his hard work, persistence, and vision of the future have allowed him to improve life for his family. He now lives comfortably in retirement with Helen, his wife of 58 years. They spend the winters in Florida, though they still consider Wisconsin their home. They instilled in their four children the many values that have helped them all to find success and happiness; values like honesty, faithfulness, a thirst for knowledge and, of course, a strong work ethic.

Harold is also an example of the melting pot in action. He is the product of a German father and a Scotch-Irish mother. All four of his grandparents were immigrants. He married a woman of English and Scottish descent, though one side of her family had been in America over 300 years. His family name, Jennings, was adopted by his grandparents in the 1880s because their real name, Janning, was clearly German, and apparently, that was a problem in rural Wisconsin at that time.

While editing, I have attempted to improve punctuation and story flow without disturbing the wonderful flavor of the original work. Any punctuation or grammatical errors are mine alone and all the richness of the content is due entirely to the author.

 

                                                             Hal Jennings

                                                             Proud son of Harold Jennings

                                                             July 2000