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My grandfather Daniel Brost was born May 17, 1892 in Alt Posttal, Akkerman, Bessarabia, South Russia to his parents Friedrich Bross born 13 November 1840 in Alt Posttal and Anna Maria Irion born 22 September 1852 in Alt Posttal. Anna Maria was Friedrich’s second wife. Daniel was confirmed in 1908 in Tarutino, Bessarabia at age 16.
My grandmother Martha Maria Kalmbach was born 1 January 1894 to her parents Adam Kalmbach born 16 September 1854 in Alt Posttal and Katharina Widmer born 11 January 1858. On April 26, 1909, Martha Maria was confirmed at age 15.
No stories have been told of their childhood. They like all kids would have played with their sisters, brothers, cousins, and neighbourhood friends after getting their home and farm chores done. They would have enjoyed swimming at the community reservoir.
Daniel and Martha Maria both came from large families and so had many sisters, brothers, cousins, uncles, and aunts. Daniel came from the Bross and the Irion families and Martha Maria came from the Kalmbach and the Widmer families.
Daniel’s paternal grandparents were Adam and Anna Maria (Sauter) Bross. Adam died young at age 30 in a stone quarry accident and so Daniel would never have known him. Neither would Daniel have known Anna Maria’s second husband Johann Georg Mogck as step grandfather who died at the young age of 29. Anna Maria had moved to the Dakotas long before Daniel was born along with other relatives.
Daniel’s maternal grandparents were Friedrich and Louisa (Heidinger) Irion. There is no known date of death for Friedrich who died in Alt Posttal. Louisa died when Daniel was a baby.
Daniel’s father died when he was 18 years old. Daniel was 30 years old when his mother died.
Martha Maria’s paternal grandparents Christian and Anna Barbara (Schlenker) Kalmbach died before she was born.
Martha Maria’s maternal grandfather Georg Widmer died when she was almost 7 years old. Her maternal grandmother Justina Magdalena (Ziegler) died long before she was born.
Martha Maria’s father Adam Kalmbach died about a year and a half after she moved to Canada on 25 November 1930 in Alt Posttal when she was almost 37. Her mother died when she was 17. My dad heard a story from his parents that I think related to his Mom’s dad Adam. The story was told that on that very day that Adam died the oil lamp glass globe quite suddenly burst for no apparent reason.
When I was young the subject of language came up and in asking my grandfather how many languages he knew and understood he proclaimed he knew seven and listed them off. I forgot what some of them were but with my dad’s help we made the following list:
High German (Swabian) and Low German, Russian, Romanian, Hungarian, Jewish, Gypsy and English.
Swabian (Schwäbisch) is one of the Alemannic dialects of High German, spoken in the region Swabia. Swabia covers much of Germany’s southwestern Land (state) of Baden-Württemberg (including the capital Stuttgart and in the rural area known as the Swabian Alb) and in the southwest of the Land Bavaria.
The dialect ranges from a ‘standard’ Swabian, spoken in Stuttgart, to slightly differing and ‘thicker’ forms found in smaller towns in the countryside.
Another question I asked my grandfather when I was in my teen age years was how the Brost surname was originally pronounced. He pronounced it for me which sounded much like Brotz which had a long sounding ‘o’ similar to the ‘o’ in post or boast. There was also a roll of the tongue which he helped me practice. It was spelled as follows:
‘Broß’
Among the old pictures that my parents had given me was a photo of my grandmother Martha Maria Kalmbach with one of her brothers and one of her sisters. I had noticed old German hand writing on the backside which had been covered over with hardened paste. Very carefully I removed the paste to reveal a message beneath. It was a surprising discovery.
I emailed to Dr. Horst Fode of Germany a scanned image of the backside of this photo which included my grandmother Martha Maria Kalmbach with her brother and her sister. Dr. Fode emailed back to me the following:
“I have tried to decipher the old text on the backside of the Martha Maria Kalmbach photo with their siblings. The script on the left side is very faint and hard to read, there seems to be a little part of the card missing (about three letters). The text is divided in a left and right side.
"The left side seems to be a religious text (from the Bible?), some words I can read from the top to the end: Card , friend, you in God, God with you, whereever you are, you are with me,
"The right side is more clear and seems to be a poem:
Es ist (ganz?, hard to read) alt, doch ist es wa(h)r, der Mond scheint für uns Liebespaar. Drum lad ich beim Mondenschein . Auf morgen zum Spaziergang ein.
an Dich Daniel von mir Martha
nur eine liebe nicht ….
(unreadible)
"Translation:
It is very old, though it is true
the moon shines for us pairs of lovers
Therefore I invite you with the shine of the moon
tomorrow for a walk
to you DANIEL from me MARTHA
only a love not …
(then an unreadible word)
"This seems to be a very romantic invitation of your grandmother to your grandfather before they were married. There are only the names Daniel and Martha, not given are the names of her siblings (unfortunately!).”
On the 1st of March 1918 my grandfather Daniel Brost married my grandmother Martha Maria Kalmbach who was the daughter of Adam Kalmbach born 16 September 1854 in Alt Posttal and Katharina Widmer born 11 January 1858 in Alt Posttal in Tarutino, Bessarabia. This was just before the war with Germany ended by the March 3, 1918 Peace Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. Daniel and Martha had four children, Daniel Frederick, Erna, David, and Hugho Clarence.
“In the late summer of 1914, the ancient monarchies of Austria, Russia and Germany plunged their countries into a world war which engulfed Europe in one of the bloodiest conflicts in history. The Eastern Front of that great war had a profound impact on the remainder of the 20th century, even though the Western Front with its British, French and American combatants achieved somewhat greater fame. The statistics for the Eastern war are grim. More than three-million men died in the fighting, more than nine-million men were wounded, and every major country which participated lost its form of government. One of them, Russia, collapsed so completely and catastrophically that the ensuing consequences still resonate in today’s world. It was into this conflict that the soldiers of 1914 marched, with an eagerness and confidence which has not since been repeated.”
Daniel at almost age 22 was conscripted into the Russian Army and served in the First World War. He started as a regular soldier on the battle front. He totally hated having to be behind a gun. Daniel had no desire to take another life. Spotters would call out on radio how to set up the sites on his gun.
Daniel had learned some medical skills of which he mainly knew how to set broken bones from his oldest half brother Friedrich. This knowledge of his medical ability was related to the officers in charge that “this guy knows some medical skills” and so he was pulled from the battle front. He was placed in a field hospital and was sent after battles as a stretcher bearer to bring in the wounded. He was relieved to be taken away from the front line of fire. He served for four years in Russia’s battles. I asked my dad where grandpa Daniel served during the war and was told that he served throughout Russia.
The war conditions were very hard. When fighting was heavy even the medics were ordered to take up arms against the Russian’s enemies.
During a battle, Daniel and his comrades were trapped in a low area and resorted to eating killed horses. I remember my grandfather Daniel telling me of the deep mud he and his comrades had to live with.
Another story I had been told by my uncle David Brost was that Daniel and three others were chosen to go to a shelled area to aide injured soldiers. Daniel was ahead of his comrades by a good distance on a horse leading a pack horse with medical supplies. At one point he heard gunfire behind and when he looked around he saw his three comrades being shot and killed. He was then fired upon and made a run for his life. His pack horse was shot and was being dragged so he cut the line and managed to escape to his destination where he reported what had happened.
Daniel Brost was one of 250,000 German soldiers who served in the Tsar’s armies. He fortunately survived.
My uncle David had told me that my grandfather was in Siberia when the war broke up. But I think that he may actually have been in the Caucasus in the conflict with the Turks. The grass was just turning green. He and a friend spent the whole summer returning home by wagon and horse team. This may have been in the spring of 1917 when the regime of the Tsars came to an end.
On the morning of June 8, 1927, Martha and Daniel Brost’s first son Daniel Frederick Brost was born in Alt Posttal, then known as Malu Mic, Romania. In accord with the Evangelical Lutheran faith Daniel was baptized on June 26.
Following on November 17, 1928, a daughter Erna Brost was born but sadly she died on January 14, 1929 having only lived one month and 26 days. The family record in Daniel senior’s Bible states that she died from gout. ‘Geschtorben an Gicht’. The death date in the Bible record shows the date of death as 12 January (1928) and the date of burial as 15 January. The numbers have been written over indicating Daniel was uncertain of the correct dates. Church records show that on December 2, 1928 she was baptized.
Around this time Daniel was again in danger of military conscription into the Romanian Army.
Daniel and Martha were fed up with all this conflict and fear. How could they hope to live a family life? They decided to leave their wonderful Alt Posttal home.
Once, in my teenage years, I asked my grandparents about their home in Alt Posttal and my grandfather spoke glowingly by describing the richness of the vegetables, the fruit and the wine they produced. In response to his words I exclaimed, "I would like very much to someday visit Alt Posttal." But grandma looked at me with shock in her face saying, "You can not go there! That is communist country!" In later years with my historical studies I came to understand what she meant.
Daniel’s oldest half brother Friedrich had lived in the United States and Canada and had returned to live again in Alt Posttal. They would have therefore been able to learn first hand from Friedrich of what a new life in Alberta would be like. As well letters likely sent from their Canadian relatives told of the great promise of peace and freedom in a new life.
The outlook in continuing to live in Bessarabia must have looked grim.
In April 1929 Daniel and Martha Bross with young son Daniel Friedrich Bross immigrated to Canada. Some of Daniel’s siblings and their families had earlier moved to Canada and so they went to join them to hopefully build a new life and a new home. Their departure from their loved families and friends must have been a tearful event. Daniel was 37 years old and Martha was 35 years old. Son Daniel was just under age two.
Daniel Brost and Wilhelm Heller had been issued their passports on 3 November 1928 in Bucharest, Romania. Daniel’s passport was number 47744. On 21 March 1929 Daniel’s passport was stamped by the German consulate in Czernowitz. These families must have journeyed by train westward through southern Poland as they had a ‘wiza tranzytowa‘ (transit visa), and onward to the port of Hamburg. On 9 April 1929 they and their families were in Hamburg, Germany. On April 9 the Canadian Department of Health and the Government of Canada civil inspection cleared their way to proceed to Canada. From here they travelled across the North Sea to Grimsby, England where they continued overland by train to the ocean port in Liverpool. Both men and their families travelled together (third class) on the S.S. Cedric. They sailed from Liverpool, England on 13 April 1929 and arrived on 21 April 1929 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Each father landed with $250 in their possession. They traveled on a Canadian National Railway train to Walsh in Alberta where they met with family. (Note: There is a great account of travel from Hamburg through Grimsby and Liverpool to an ocean voyage in the Fall 2000, Volume 23, Number 3 Journal of the American Historical Society of Germans from Russia. The story is called, “My Trip to America, The Diary of Evangeline G. Rempel 1922-1923”)
The immigration record shows that Daniel gave the name of his brother Mr. Friedrich Bross as his nearest relative in the country from which he came in Malu Mic, Romania and the Heller’s gave the name of Wilhelm’s mother Mrs. Barbara Heller (born Esslinger) as their nearest relative.
The Heller family they travelled with consisted of Wilhelm and Martha with children Martha, age 6, Elsa, age 4, Wilhelm, age 2, and Oscar, age 6 months.
The Hellers stayed on the Jacob and Christina Salomina (Brost) Heller family farm while the Brosts went to the Christian and Christina (Heller) Brost family farm at NW1-10-1-W4 in the Graburn area south of Walsh where they stayed for a short time in their spare house. Salomina was Daniel Brost’s sister. Unfortunately she died 8 November 1918 from epidemic flu in Maple Creek, Saskatchewan. (Dakota Freie Presse as per Dr. Horst Fode) The Daniel Brost family remained there until land in the Rosebeg district was located where they could begin farming. The Wilhelm Heller family found a homestead northeast of Walsh in the Golden Prairie area of Saskatchewan.
South of Medicine Hat and Seven Persons which is west of the Black and White Trail, 159 acres of land in the Rosebeg district at NW32-9-6-W4 was found for Daniel and his family which had been homesteaded by an Englishman by birth, George Tuggy, who had moved away.
Taxes appear to have been in arrears for $10.23 due to a S. G. (seed grain) lien owing to the Crown. Certificate of Title shows that Daniel’s brother David Brost took possession of the land on April 17, 1930. Daniel Brost, with help from his brother moved out to Rosebeg. The Christian Brost family gave the Daniel Brost family some food and supplies to help give them a new start.
For the first while the Brost family lived in the existing shanty. It was loaded with the previous owner’s clutter. Daniel dug a large hole and buried all these things that were not wanted. A better house was later built which became their home. The construction was designed and organized by one of my dad’s elderly uncles who brought two workers to help in the construction. The house was up in two or three weeks, the lumber being obtained in Seven Persons.
To the west and south their home looked into a coolie with a creek which flowed northwest to Seven Persons which later joined up with Seven Persons Creek. A cart track dropped down into the coolie and crossed the creek. To the south is Peace Butte and to the east a small lake with Bullshead Creek a few miles east of the Brost home.
Two more sons were born during the time the Daniel Brost family lived in Rosebeg. David Brost was born on September 3, 1930 in Medicine Hat. Hugho Clarence Brost was born on January 11, 1933 in Rosebeg, Alberta.
On May 15, 1936 Daniel Brost was issued his naturalization certificate making him and son Daniel Frederick Brost British Citizens. Daniel’s certificate showed that he was 43 years old, 5 feet, 9 inches tall with a dark complexion, hazel eyes, and dark brown hair. He had no distinguishing marks. Martha Maria Brost was issued her Naturalization Certificate on October 7, 1936. Her certificate showed that she was age 42, 5 foot, 6 inches tall. She had a dark complexion, brown eyes, dark brown hair and a scar on her body.
My Brost grandparents, Daniel and Martha, spoke to each other in both the German and Russian languages around the home speaking which ever they chanced to use. When my dad, Daniel Frederick Brost and his brother David first went to school they could not speak any English.
The Brost boys attended the Willow Lake School which was located at the SE 1/4 of 23-10-6-W4. It was a one room country school house which had been built in 1913 or 1914. From the Brost home it was a few miles northeast over rolling prairie. In the local history book, "Plains, Trains and Wagon Wheels" published by the Dunmore South History Book Society, on pages 143 to 146 is the story of the Willow Lake School District #2356. One of the teachers, Doris (Spencer) Worden, served as teacher at Willow Lake School in 1937. She listed the names of her students. They were Wallace Seitz; Bert Webster; Jean and Jim (twins), Elmer and Edwin Weiss; Sidney and Florence Stuber; and Daniel and David Brost.
My dad told me that on one occasion when he was very young and new at school a wayward rock he threw smashed through one of the school windows and he was pretty worried that he was now in big trouble. As a result a school authority visited his folks asking for payment to cover the broken window. But unfortunately they had no money to pay. However, the offering of farm eggs were offered and this was accepted as payment. It was just a little episode my dad remembered from his boyhood days.
My dad remembers that in the winter time his dad would take him and his brothers to school by a sleigh pulled by a team of horses. He remembers that his mother would heat rocks which were placed down by their feet under a blanket to keep them warm.
When my young Dad (Daniel Frederick) was yet living at home with his family my grandfather (Daniel Sr.) used to tell his sons that he used to play music in a band. They always thought he was telling them a mythical story. One day young Dan came home after doing some trading and one of the things he brought home was a button accordion. When grandpa Brost saw it his eyes opened wide and his whole face lit up. He snatched it out of young Dan’s hands and immediately began to skilfully play it. Brothers Dan, David and Hugh were astounded as they watched him play.
Livestock on their farm consisted of various numbers of cattle and horses, 150 to 200 sheep, chickens and turkeys. They had their own eggs and milk. Twice a year the Daniel and Martha Brost would travel to town to pick up supplies such as sugar and other basics. They did their own butchering and sausage making and stored meats in the well. Daniel made his own sheep cheese which was prized by his customers. They grew acres of potatoes which were stored in a ten foot deep pit. They stored their carrots in sand. They also grew apples. Daniel worked his land by horse and plough. He broadcast the seed by hand.
Daniel Brost often had visitors who would come to him for his ability to reset broken bones. He always kept on hand special wooden roofing shingles which he used as splints.
The 1930’s were a tough time and life was not easy. The 1930’s were in the depression with the worst years of 1936 and 1937 when severe drought conditions tested people and livestock beyond endurance. Dark clouds of dust blew across the land wiping out seeded crops and leaving drifts of soil around any obstacle in the way. Russian thistles were virtually the only plant that could survive and it was harvested by farmers to feed their stock. My Dad remembers harvesting thistles.
About this time the Brost family’s well dried up and gardening was tough. My dad remembers how he and his brothers had to haul endless bucket loads of water to keep the garden from drying up.
During the drought Daniel and Martha had around seventy cattle which were very thin. A buyer offered $5 per head but backed out. Another buyer offered $9 per head for the hides. Daniel and Martha could not afford to buy bullets. He had a shot gun and was able to obtain ball bearings from a neighbour’s old tractor. The shot shells were repacked with the bearings and so he was able to shoot his cows which were left in a ravine. The coyotes dined well on their carcases, leaving the bones to bleach in the sun. Later, on another occasion a buyer asked where bones could be bought and my grandfather declared he had some to sell.
In 1938 the Daniel and Martha Brost family moved to the farm at the SW ¼ of 6-12-6-W4 where son David later farmed. The Land Title at NW32-9-6-W4 next went to Rudolph Boschee on September 28, 1938. On November 10, 1944 the Land Title was transferred to Gustav Boschee.
My dad Daniel Frederick Brost told me that when he was a young guy he would ride out on a saddle horse to join up with two buddies on their horses and would ride out to the South Saskatchewan River to go swimming on Sundays. They had no cars but got around by saddle horse. I think this would be about 1940 to 1942 when my dad was about 13 to 15 years old.
One day about 1940 when Daniel Frederick Brost Jr. was about age 13 a couple of brothers from a nearby Italian family farm offered to sell to the Brost family a Model T Ford truck. Their family had bought a newer vehicle and this one had been in storage in a garage for a few years. They figured that the Brost family who had none could use one. Grandpa Brost was against motorized vehicles thinking they would never replace horses. Cars were troublesome to repair and often had flat tires. However he agreed to buy it if young 13 year old Dan could figure out how to operate it. Young Dan practised for a few days and so Grandpa Dan bought it for $35. Young Dan then was the driver in the family. The truck had wooden spokes and a truck box.
A few days after my dad told me this story on July 2, 2006 my family visited the farm of my wife’s sister Nancie and brother-in-law Tom on July 5. Of all things to see, there in their garage, was a 1926 Model TT Ford truck in excellent shape. The extra T stands for ton, the larger version of the Model T. It had the optional 8 foot x 40 inch x 13 inch high steel express box with custom made wood stake racks. The truck had wooden spokes just the same as my dad had described it to me. The appraiser who thoroughly examined the truck reported his opinion that the truck was of 1926 vintage with a 1920 vintage motor installed.
The next day Tom took me for a ride in it up the country road a few miles and back. Rosy and Naomi were also taken for a spin.
The truck which was made in Canada was loaded with options: battery headlamp, electric starter, windshield wiper, and demountable wheels. It had been stored under cover for the past 25 years and auctioned as an estate sale which Tom bought.
I took pictures of it and sent emailed copies to my dad to see. He reported that it was identical to the one his family had except for the colour of the spokes which were black.
I was quite thrilled to not only hear my dad’s story but was amazed to actually go for a ride in a Model T very much the same as the one my grandparents family had as their first vehicle. The truck must have gone a whopping 25 miles an hour!
Daniel and Martha Brost had a regular business going in bringing milk, eggs, vegetables, corn, and all kinds of farm products to the city of Medicine Hat. Everything was delivered direct to each household which they had been doing on a Monday or Tuesday of each week by horse and wagon. Now they put the Model T Ford truck to work and Grandma Brost was very impressed with the little time it took to get to town and to make her deliveries. Young Dan was paid 25 cents per week for his driving services. The money he made was spent on buying electronics books so he could learn about radios which he was so keenly interested in. From the sales of all these farm products the Brost family were able to buy their needed groceries.
In conversation with my dad I was told that about half of the family meat supply was wild. They ate rabbit, antelope and other animals. Grandpa Brost had an old 3030 western rifle. He himself did not care to use it. When meat was needed it was young Dan’s job to do the hunt. The pronghorn antelope were easy to hunt simply by sitting by the house and waiting for them to walk by. I think that years later my dad was dubbed “Boone” as his name was Daniel and his hunting excursions reminded people of the frontiersman Daniel Boone.
Once the meat was gained it had to be worked on all day into the night as necessary and processed into jars because they had no refrigeration. Often the antelope was mixed with pork which my dad said made good tasting sausage. My dad told me that their life was both easy and tough. Money was in very short supply.
Daniel and Martha retired from the farm in 1954 and moved to 445-4 Street SW in Medicine Hat. He continued working with his son David Brost who received Title to the land on October 8, 1969, with the exception of the radio site containing 3.67 acres. David took out a mortgage from the Farm Credit Corporation for $21,000 at 8% interest on September 20, 1969.
On August 5, 1956 Daniel and probably Martha were baptized in the South Saskatchewan River.
In about 1960 Daniel and Martha moved to their new built house at 2422-16 Avenue SE up in Crestwood. My brother Larry and I learned to know our Brost grandparents as “Grandpa and Grandma up the hill” in contrast to our maternal grandparents, the Retelbach’s who lived in the lower river flats, as ‘Grandpa and Grandma down the hill’. I once asked grandpa Brost what this house cost him. He replied that it cost twelve thousand dollars.
My grandparents enjoyed gardening, friends and attending church during their golden years.
I remember that during the years my parent’s family lived in Wetaskiwin we would make regular visits to Medicine Hat. Larry and I especially enjoyed Easter and the goodies we would receive. On one Easter occasion Larry and I happened to look through the basement window and saw grandma and mom preparing our Easter goodies. We knew then who the Easter Bunny was but we kept our mouths shut to be sure we would not lose a good thing. I remember finding on Easter Morning, a toy dump truck filled with candy for each of us.
Grandpa used to serve his homemade wine at mealtime. Even Larry and I at boyhood ages received a glass. One day we got one too many refills and got into a game of floor hockey in the attached garage/workshop. Dad and grandpa realized we got more wine than we should have which they could tell by the way of our behaviour. Dad then offered us a deal. For each time we ran to the German church at the far end of the block and back, he would give us five cents. We took up his offer but soon found ourselves fast asleep on our grandparent’s living room chairs.
Grandpa and grandma attended the German Church at the other end of the block of 16th street on which they lived. Grandpa was a church elder. I remember that they felt it was important that we must attend church. Larry and I got mighty bored in the church where only the German language was spoken. My grandfather Daniel and several other men had put up the money to build this church. He and the other partners constructed the church. Eventually they were to be reimbursed for the money they borrowed but this did not come to be.
Around Christmas I also remember going to the German Church of God with my brother Larry and our grandparents. Every child got a bag with an apple, an orange, peanuts, nuts, a chocolate bar or two, and candy. In their home, grandpa tried to teach us to sing O Tannenbaum which he encouraged us to practice.
“O Tannenbaum, o Tannenbaum,
Wie treu sind deine Blätter.
Du grünst nicht nur zur Sommerzeit,
Nein, auch im Winter, wenn es schneit.
O Tannenbaum, o Tannenbaum,
Wie treu sind deine Blätter.”
He was good at entertaining us. If we were bored he knew how to keep us occupied. He would give to each of us one of grandma’s sealer jars. He would poke holes with a nail in the metal lids, add in some green grass and send us down the alleyway to catch grass hoppers. On one occasion we each got a hammer and lots of nails. When we were done grandma had a new design on the floor of her clothesline stand.
Larry and I enjoyed our grandparent’s rocking chair which was a novelty to us. Grandpa and grandma had a console stereo record player and a collection of 33 rpm gospel records. One catchy tune was “Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho” and that rocking chair went into full swing!
He would take us along to trade in his empty Pepsi bottles for full ones which we thought was great. We always enjoyed visiting. We knew where to find all the treats which were strategically hidden for us in the house or be they strawberries, raspberries or peas in the garden. Of course he had taken us for the grand tour to show us where to find the treats.
He taught us how to drink coffee. We would each receive a teacup and saucer. We would tip the cup, fill the saucer, set the cup aside and sip the coffee from the saucer. We figured that was cool.
In 1968 a Golden Wedding Anniversary was organized for Daniel and Martha. Many of their friends and family attended. A cake was cut and numerous gifts were received. Certificates of congratulations were received from the Premier of Alberta Ernest Charles Manning and the Lieutenant Governor of Alberta Grant MacEwan.
When I grew old enough to make my own travels in my late teens I would find my way from Wetaskiwin to Medicine Hat to visit with my grand parents. They showed me all their old family photographs in their photo album and on the walls and told me who each family member was. Regrettably, the names were never written on the backsides. One photo I remember very well was of my great grandfather Friedrich Bross with the gold neck chain which was given to him as his badge of office when he was the district mayor.
Another clear memory I have is of sitting together with grandpa, grandma and myself at their table reading aloud both our English King James and German Bibles.
Grandpa Brost was a very gentle man with a very soft heart. He was a grand old man. I cherish his memory.
In 1976, we learned that grandpa had cancer and that he was in the hospital. I thought right away that his life was coming to a close. I said a little prayer wishing that I would remember him with a big smile on his face. I decided to visit him and caught a ride to Medicine Hat with my friend Gary Mock whose mother and sisters, Wendy and Tracy, lived across the alley from my grandparents.
On my twentieth birthday, Saturday, April 3, 1976, I chose to walk all the way across the city of Medicine Hat to visit him. I was a little shocked to see how thin he looked. I was surprised to see his smile which reached from ear too ear. He was unable to speak and so was I. It was a powerful feeling that flowed between us, just he and I. All I could do was to grip his hand and all I managed to say was, “Grandpa. I love you”. It was too much for me to stay and so I left after only five minutes.
His health improved after this visit and I was able to visit him and grandma at their home one more time where we enjoyed a wonderful last supper together.
On Friday, October 22, 1976 Daniel Brost passed away. He was buried in the Medicine Hat Hillside Cemetery on October 27.
It had been my great wish to live in a milder climate and to live near grandma during her last years and so I moved my family down to Medicine Hat. We often visited her when she lived in the Sunnyside Care Centre at 1720 Bell Street SW. Here she was able to get to know her great grandsons, Kevin Daniel Brost and Joshua Adam Brost. Unfortunately, it was hard for us to understand grandma because she only spoke German. We could not understand her.
Martha Maria (nee Kalmbach) Brost passed away on Tuesday, July 26, 1988. She was buried in the Medicine Hat Hillside Cemetery next to Daniel.
THE SPACE OF BRYAN BRADLEY BROST 