Editors Note: Below is a brief biography of my father and mother. It contains a bit of information about their lives, from the perspective of their son. I wish that more of the information below was "first person" and autobiographical. At one point in time I had suggested to my father that he might want to write a "life history," as his father had done -- but he indicated that he wasn't too interested in such things. As such, many details of his and mom's life are kind of general -- probably the way they would like to have it recorded.

Charles Grant Burdett and his family moved many times while he was young, as his father pursued employment. The table below will give you a rough idea of how often the family moved and how old Charles Grant Burdett was when he lived in the various towns.

The above biography was written by Charles Lorenzo Burdett. It was his "life history." It provides more details on the moves and jobs changes noted above and the life of his family (below) during those times. One of the more interesting sections tells how the family survived the Influenza epidemic of 1918, after the family moved to Butte, Montana.

Editors Note: Within the family:

• Charles Lorenzo Burdett was "Lon"
• Charles Grant Burdett was "Grant"
• and Lorenzo Worth Burdett was "Ren".

Charles Grant spoke fondly of his days in Pocatello, Idaho, where he lived during the "roaring twenties." Based on the apparent ages of the kids, the picture below may have been taken in Pocatello in 1920.

In the latter part of 1933, FDR authorized the Fort Peck Dam project to provide jobs for a depression-plagued workforce and provide flood protection on the Missouri River. Thus, FDR was a savior whose mere signature put nearly 11,000 depression-bled workers on a payroll, thereby allowing thousands of families -- not to mention thousands of merchants, landowners, and saloonkeepers -- to eat once again.

One of those merchants was Charles Lorenzo Burdett. In October of 1934, he was made manager the Buttreys department store in Fort Peck, Montana.

Note: Buttreys was a well-known brand name in the Rocky Mountain States and North Dakota. Buttrey properties included department stores, food and drug stores and even KFBB radio in Havre, Montana. Subsequent mergers and acquisitions have swallowed up many of the properties. By 1988, the Buttrey food and drug stores in the Rocky Mountain states had become a part of American Stores, along with Jewel-Osco in the Midwest, Acme in the northeast, Lucky on the west coast, and Alpha Beta, Food Basket, and Sav-on Drugs in Southern California. Albertson's in turn, purchased American Stores. Most if not all of the department stores were also apparently eliminated over the years.

One of the other people to move to Fort Peck, Montana, around that time was Charles Grant Burdett. He would also find employment at Fort Peck.

I'm not sure what kind of job(s) Charles Grant Burdett had while he was in Fort Peck. He may have worked at one of the government warehouses that supported the dam construction project. That is the type of "civil service" work that he would do later in his career with the Corps of Engineers.

The Fort Peck dam was amazing in many ways:

• It was and is the largest embakement dam in the United States
• It was and is the largest "hydraulic fill" dam in the world.

Some dam statistics:

• The dam is just under four miles long and over 250 feet high in places.
• The dam's width ranges from 4,900 feet at the base to 50 feet at the top.
• A sheet steel cutoff wall, weighing 34 million pounds, runs along the center of the dam from one end to the other. It was driven into the shale below the dam, to an average depth of 100 feet.

Some dam dates:

• Work on the dam began just ten days after its authorization in October of 1933.
• The Missouri River was cut-off less that four years later on June 24, 1937.
• The dam was completed (the first time) in the early days of September 1938.
• Unfortunately, on September 22, 1938, five million cubic yards of the dam slid back into the Missouri River, killing eight workers.
• The dam (redesigned and wider at the base) was completed (the second time) on December 11, 1940.

Fort Peck City was designed by the Corps of Engineers to support the construction of the dam. A number of warehouses (where Charles Grant Burdett may have worked) were erected adjacent to the town site. Several proprietary concessions were included in a commercial cluster near the Town Hall, including the Green Hut Café, Kinch’s Tailor Shop, Vornholt’s Drug Store and Buttreys Department Store (the store that Charles Lorenzo Burdett managed from 1934 to 1937).

I am not sure when Charles Grant Burdett first moved to Fort Peck, nor when he moved out of Fort Peck. What I do know is that he was part of one of the major engineering projects of the 1930's.

As noted above, the dam was completed (i.e., the last load of dirt or rock dumped out) on December 11, 1940. There, however, was still more to do. Some of the construction (e.g., powerhouse, electrical distribution, landscaping) extended on for many more years. The Fort Peck warehouse was most likely still open when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Charles Grant Burdett enlisted in the US Navy on March 11, 1942, shortly after the US joined the war and shortly before his 30^th birthday.

In his later years, Charles spoke fondly of his time in the navy. He apparently received his early navy training at the Great Lakes Naval Training Center in Chicago. He was trained to be an aviation mechanic but, for whatever reasons (e.g., training), he never got too far from the shores of the USA during his military career.

During his 3-1/2 years in the service, he was assigned to many of the nicer stateside navy facilities, including Bremerton, Washington; San Diego, California; and Pensacola, Florida. He was also on duty in the northeastern USA for awhile (e.g., Brooklyn). He was discharged from the navy shortly after the war ended (December 17, 1945). His final rank was Aviation Machinist Mate - First Class.

Just a year before, on December 22, 1944, the US Congress authorized the Flood Control Act of 1944. This act became better known as the Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program, after the co-authors of the act: Colonel Lewis A. Pick (US Army Corps of Engineers) and Assistant Director, W. Glen Sloan (Bureau of Reclamation).

The Pick-Sloan act authorized a series of dams (below Fort Peck) on the Missouri River. The first dam to be constructed was Garrison Dam, which was to be built on the Missouri River about 75 miles upstream of Bismarck, North Dakota.

After the war, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers set up offices at Fort Lincoln, which was located just to the southeast of Bismarck, North Dakota, to serve as the planning center for the Garrison Dam Project. Charles Grant Burdett would find work with the supply branch located at Fort Lincoln. A local girl named Elizabeth "Betty" Senger would also find "office service" work at Fort Lincoln during those days.

Elizabeth "Betty" Senger was born on September 9, 1915 in Bismarck, North Dakota. She was the oldest of twelve children born to Joseph and Theresa Senger.

The above biography provides some information on Senger family and the life they led as Elizabeth grew up in Bismarck. The Senger family grew quickly and by the time Betty was nine years old she had four brothers and two sisters. For the most part, her life was then centered on her family and St. Mary's parish. As the oldest child in a large family, she was expected to help take care of the family, first with her time and later financially.

Elizabeth graduated from St. Mary's High School in Bismarck during the Great Depression and went on to attend Capitol Commercial College.

North Dakota was not a great place to live during the Great Depression. Depression hit the entire country; but because of the drought North Dakota probably suffered more than any other state in the nation. Consider the following statistics (from Bismarck 100):

• In nine of the 11 years from 1929 to 1939 there was less than average rainfall.

• Relief rolls in 1934 (Betty was 18-19) increased to new high marks -- 233,271 persons, or 34.26% of the population of North Dakota, was on some type of relief program.

• The year 1936 (Betty 20-21) was the coldest, hottest and driest ever reported with only 8.8 inches of rainfall.

The above statistics, to some extent, caused Betty to move to Portland, Oregon for a couple of years during the 1930's. In a letter she wrote to me much later in her life, she noted that, "[during] the 2 years I lived in Portland …I always got such SAD letters and calls from my mother. Finally went back to Bismarck, had the leg accident, got a job and was again able to give them [money and help with the housework]."

The "leg accident" (noted above) did not heal properly and it apparently became infected. The resulting gangrene proved to be difficult to control and it left a very large and visible scar on her leg, which remained for the rest of her life.

Cecile Senger Memory: About Betty's leg, before she was married her friend Ida had a birthday and wanted Betty to go out with her. They went to this bar on Main Street. There were two doors: one said "Mens" and the other nothing -- so she assumed that the unmarked door led to the "Ladies" room. When she opened the door she found an unlit room, which she stepped into. Instead of stepping on to the expected floor, however, she unexpectedly stepped into an unlit stairway that led to the bar's basement. She fell down about four or five steps and broke her leg. "She only had taken a few sips of her drink and said, 'If I would have had more to drink, I never would have hurt that bad!' She was on crutches for a long time … and couldn't work. She had pain in the leg all the time. She suffered so much with that leg. I miss her too, her and I and Ann always had so much fun, laughed at everything…."

Betty returned to the West Coast during the war and worked for awhile for the U.S. Army at Fort Lewis, Washington. She was 30 years old when World War II ended. She had returned to Bismarck after the war and found "office service" employment with the US Army Corps of Engineers at Fort Lincoln.

Sometime (during 1946 and/or 1947) Charles Grant Burdett and Elizabeth "Betty" Senger became acquainted, probably through their work at Ft. Lincoln. On January 17, 1948, they were married.

The newspaper account said that the newly weds were going to make their home in Bismarck but this was only for the short term, as the US Army was completing the construction of Riverdale and the Fort Lincoln "Garrison Dam" offices were being transferred their. The newlyweds would be living in Riverdale on October 14, 1948, when their first son, Robert, was born.

Charles and Betty Burdett would live in Riverdale, North Dakota from 1948 to the summer of 1961. They would be some of the first people to occupy Riverdale in 1948 and, comparatively speaking, one of the last couples to leave the town after the dam construction was completed.

Riverdale, North Dakota was an unusual town. At the end of World War II the town did not exist -- the town was farmland. After the Pick-Sloan Act was signed, the United States government bought the farmland and constructed Riverdale to house the men and women that would be working on the Garrison Dam.

Riverdale was very much a planned community. The streets were laid out on a semi-circular arc from First Street (with the Corp of Engineer and military officers' homes) to the trailer pads out on the edge of town. First, Second and Third Streets were designed to be somewhat permanent (e.g., nicer brick homes, Town Square, school). The other streets contained a mix of single and duplex houses that were more temporary in nature. In true military tradition, your rank and position dictated the street you lived on. That is probably why we moved from 220 Eighth Street to a virtually identical duplex unit at 224 Seventh Street, before moving to our final Riverdale home on Fourth Street. Charles Burdett never did make the big time in Riverdale (a larger house on Third Street or a brick house on First Street) -- or maybe he just got tired of moving.

As noted above, Robert Charles Burdett came into this world on October 14, 1948. Because the Riverdale Hospital was still under construction or just getting going, Robert was born at St. Alexius Hospital in Bismarck. A daughter (Marianne) would be born at the Riverdale Hospital on June 27, 1952.

The first shovel of dirt at Garrison Dam was turned in 1947. The earth moving work was completed in early 1953 and the river was plugged. The only water that passed by the dam after that was the water that the government wanted to pass the dam. On June 11, 1953, President Dwight David Eisenhower came to Riverdale for the ceremonial closure of the dam. At that time he declared that it was "frightening" to fathom what Garrison Dam would bring in 50 years.

Charles Grant Burdett worked at the warehouse in Riverdale that was constructed to support both the town and the dam being constructed. A railroad spur had been built up to the warehouse and the nearby dam site. The warehouse employees were responsible for receiving the incoming supplies and safeguarding them until they were used. Two large warehouse buildings were located on Dakota Avenue, near the water towers. Charles became the foreman of the warehouse as he moved up the "GS" levels.

To relax, Charles liked to garden during the summer and bowl during the winter. The government made available garden plots on the east edge of the town. Charles would get one or two garden plots each year. He was especially proud of the tomatoes that he grew. He enjoyed watching boxing on TV (e.g., Gillette's Friday Night Fights).

Betty was involved with the kids and St. John's Catholic Church. She was a member of the church's Altar Society, a Cub Scout leader and "room-mother" for whatever school grades the kids were in. She enjoyed having "coffee" with the other young mothers in town.

On weekends the family would often drive south to Bismarck to visit relatives and shop, or drive north to Minot to see Marianne's eye doctor. Summer vacations would usually take the family west, usually via Yellowstone Park, to visit Charlie's parents in McCall Idaho or (later) Ogden, Utah. McCall was a summer resort town north of Boise and it was a fun place to visit during the summers.

Sometime around the start of 1961, Charles had a decision to make. The work at Riverdale was continuing to wind down and the warehouse did not require as much manpower to maintain it. Jobs were going away, people were being surplused, and people were probably being "bumped" from one job to another.

Charles probably had three main options:

1. Try to stay in Riverdale by bumping to another job and/or lower "GS" level,
2. Look for another civil service job (e.g., at one of the other Missouri River dam construction projects still ongoing in South Dakota), or
3. Take an early retirement from the government and pursue other employment.

Charles chose the latter. He rolled up all of the government time that he had worked (e.g., Fort Peck, Navy?, Riverdale) and took an early pension from Uncle Sam. I am not privy to what employment and/or relocation choices he might have been considering at that time. He and Betty apparently wanted to stay close to Betty's family as that it was they did when they moved to Bismarck in the summer of 1961.

When the Burdetts moved back to Bismarck they rented a small house on the southwest corner of Twelfth and "F" Streets (i.e., 930 N. 12^th Street). After a year or so at that location, they purchased a house at 710 N. 13^th Street, directly across the street from what was then the Richholt Elementary School playground.

Phillips 66: The first job that Charles had in Bismarck involved a Phillips 66 gas station at 14^th and Boulevard Streets. He apparently (see below) "owned" the station through some arrangement with what in the petroleum industry is referred to as a "jobber." The jobber was kind of a middleman (wholesaler) between the oil companies (such as Phillips 66) and the individual gas station owners that they supplied. Jobbers would buy fuel at a major oil company's terminal rack and distribute it to their customers.

Charles spent some time (i.e., a month or so) at a training facility that Phillips 66 ran in Minneapolis, learning about car repairs and the gas station business before he took over the station on Boulevard Avenue. I suspect that his aviation mechanics training in the navy helped him somewhat.

The Phillips 66 gas station at 14^th and Boulevard was typical for its day (e.g., gas pumps; two service bays - for oil changes, tire repairs and minor tune-ups; and a small sales floor - a place to pay). There were a few candy, cola and cigarette vending machines in the sales area. As part of the package came a fairly old and beat up tow truck. These were the days when "service" stations still gave "service" (pumped the gas, checked the oil and tire pressures, washed the windows).

The previous "management" of the station had apparently drove the station into the ground and Charles' first challenge was to regain the lost neighborhood customers. The gas station was located along a fairly busy residential street and it was, for the most part, surrounded by houses. There were no other gas stations or many other businesses in the area immediately around the gas station. The Boulevard entrance to the North Dakota State capital building was seven blocks to the west.

Bob's Memory: Dad worked very hard trying to build up this business -- and he was successful over time. He worked virtually every day, mostly because he couldn't afford not to. He also suspected that one of his employees -- his key repairman -- was stealing from the till when he wasn't around the station. Dad's "day off" was Sunday when the gas station closed early (like 5 PM). After putting in a hard day at the station, he came home and did the books (added up the cash, checks and credit card receipts; broke out the sales (e.g., gas, tires, repairs); got the money ready for the bank; and determined if he had made any money that day). He would get to bed late and repeat the process the next day. I was around 14 years old at the time and I would try to give him some help with the bookkeeping part of the business. Along with stealing employees, dad had his share of bad checks to deal with.

Bob's Memory: Selling gas was and is not a way to make a lot of money. The trick now days is to make money on groceries, food and confections. The trick in those days was to make money on oil changes, tires and repairs. That is the part of the business that the previous managers had destroyed. That was the part of the business that dad had to build up to make some money. Over time those kinds of sales became a bigger part of the income statement, which led to greater profits.

Bob's Memory: Frigid and blustery days in North Dakota were terrible to work but great for the bottom line. Starting a car when the temperature was below zero back in the 1960's (i.e., before fuel injection) could be tricky. On the really cold days the phone would ring off the hook and the tow truck would be out for hours jump-starting cars. Some cars got towed in for new batteries and tune-ups. These cold days were miserable to work and physically very demanding -- but they were profitable. As noted above, dad's tow truck was a junker and on at least one occasion he had to dispatch a competitors tow truck to jump-start his. It was kind of embarrassing.

Bob's Memory: Do you remember reading above that dad "owned" this gas station. Well it apparently wasn't quite that clean. The jobber "kind of" still owned the station -- or had some rights to repurchase the station -- or whatever. Anyway, after dad operated the station for a year or so and built the business back up, the jobber decided he wanted to "fully own" and operate the station and dad was out. I don't know all of the ins and outs of this issue but the bottom line was that dad was out. It was probably a blessing in disguise because dad was working very hard and very long to make very little.

The gas station (fall of 2004) is still at 14^th and Boulevard. It is, however, no longer a Phillips 66 station and a mini-grocery store is now located where the two repair bays once were. As noted before, there is more money in candy, cokes and cigarettes than there is in pumping gas.

St. Alexius Hospital: After losing the gas station dad got a job as custodian at St. Alexius Hospital. I am guessing that this was around 1963, give or take a year.

Bob's Memory: This actually isn't much of a memory but I don't recall dad working at "St. A's" very long. For the most part, dad kept his temper under control, but he could get riled up at times (e.g., April 15^th each year). About the time that dad left his job at the hospital, he apparently exchanged a few words with one of the nuns that he worked for. I don't know if these words were said before or after he quit or before or after he was fired -- but in any case, dad didn't work at St. Alexius Hospital very long.

Bob's Memory: It was around this time that we moved to house at 710 N. 13^th Street. The house on 13^th Street was the nicest house that we had ever lived in. It was much bigger and better than the Riverdale houses and the rented house on 12^th Street. The house sat pretty far back on a narrow but deep lot and it looked small from the front. The house was actually an east-west house on a north-south street and, as such, it extended even further back into the property. The living room and the single stall garage faced 13^th Street. The kitchen, bath, dining room and two main floor bedrooms were in back. There was another bedroom (mine) over the garage and there was a full basement (bedroom, storage room, recreation room and utilities). The front yard was much bigger than the backyard.

Bob's Memory: THE HOUSE WAS ALL WOOD SHINGLES. Both the exterior and the roof of the house were covered with wood shingles. Since dad was temporarily out of work, he decided to make the best of it and paint the house. I was to "help" him paint the house. He went out and purchased the exterior paint and linseed oil ingredients for the roof. It seemed like he just got home with all of the supplies when the phone rang. He had a new job -- started the next day -- and I got to paint the house. I remember climbing on the roof with my mixture of linseed oil and graphite on a hot summer day. It was not the place to be. The wood shingles were so dry that it seemed like the linseed oil was just sucked out of the brush as I attempted to cover the shingles. You could almost hear the oil being sucked out of the brush. I didn't think I was ever going to finish coating that roof that summer but eventually the job was done. As it turned out, dad "helped" me.

Bismarck High School: Dad's last job in Bismarck was as a custodian at Bismarck High School. He probably worked there from 1964? to 1978? He was one of four or five custodians that worked at the high school and, as such, he drew the evening shift occasionally. For the most part, however, it was a forty-hour a week day job and much easier than the gas station business. I suspect that it was probably also more profitable.

Family Life: Betty Burdett remained a housewife after moving back to Bismarck. She remained active in the church and her children's lives. She was able to spend more time helping her mother who had turned seventy years old in 1971.

Betty's health started to fail around 1963. She was hospitalized for awhile at that time because of blood pressure problems and she battled off and on dizzy spells the rest of her life. Later in her life, after falling in a parking lot, she wrote: "Bob, I look like HELL. My nose looks like hamburger and I really have a black eye. My hands are skinned and in between the fingers I am raw. … Am going to get plastic lenses as I won't be getting so much glass. The glasses, plus my dizzyness (sic), poor balance and not being careful did all this. 2 falls this bad in 5 days is just too much. After 15 years of lousy balance and being dizzy, I should know better."

Charles' parents had relocated back to Ogden, Utah after his father retired from his job as the McCall, Idaho postmaster. As such, the summer-vacation trips changed from McCall, Idaho to Ogden, Utah -- with occasional side trips to Yellowstone Park.

Bob graduated from Bismarck High School in 1966 and went on to attend Bismarck Junior College for two years. He worked as a cameraman, projectionist and controlman for KFYR-TV, during his last year of high school and two years at BJC. After graduating from BJC, he moved on to North Dakota State University and WDAY-TV in Fargo, North Dakota for the next two years -- graduating with a Bachelors of Science in Industrial Engineering in 1970. After graduating from NDSU he moved to Omaha, Nebraska to work for Western Electric, the manufacturing and supply unit of AT&T.

Marianne graduated from Bismarck High School in 1970. She worked for the Burleigh County attorney in Bismarck until she got married (and moved to) Las Vegas, Nevada on January 30, 1971.

Betty helped take care of her parents, still living at 320 S. 10^th Street in Bismarck, during their latter years. Charles' parents were living in Ogden, Utah when they died.

• Theresa Senger died at age 77, on April 19, 1969.

• Rose May Burdett died at age 88, on November 11, 1971.

• Charles Lorenzo Burdett died at age 86, during the summer of 1974.

• Joseph Senger died at age 88, on January 28, 1978.

All of the parents lived full lives and died of "natural causes." Joe Senger had worked hard when he worked and he relaxed when he retired. Charles Lorenzo Burdett's work had been less physical -- so he built the house in McCall, Idaho (with his own hands) after he retired from the business world. Theresa Senger watched over her family to the end. Rose Burdett's humming is probably still echoing throughout Idaho and Utah.

Sometime during the 1970's, Charles converted (from Mormonism) to Catholicism. He had been married to a Catholic wife and been surrounded by her Catholic family for most of his adult life. Sometime during the 1970's he decided to also join the Church.

Bob's Memory: I never asked my father what prompted him to convert to Catholicism when he did. My father was not very vocal when it came to his religious views. He was not one to lead the family in prayer, quote Scripture or discuss doctrine but he obviously felt strongly enough to abandon the faith of his parents. He had attended Mass with the family, from time to time, as I grew up and he had over the years been exposed to the teachings of the Church. Before the Church formally received him, my father received some RCIA-like instructions from a Catholic nun at the family church (St. Mary's). I never met the nun who instructed my father but my mother reported that the nun was very proud of him, at least in part because he was a Mormon converting to Catholicism. Even in Bismarck, in the 1970's, that was more of an exception than a rule.

Charles Grant Burdett turned 65 on April 21,1977 and he retired for good at that time. He and Betty remained in Bismarck until after Betty's father died in 1978. During 1978 they decided to move south to warmer weather and away from the Senger family feud that developed after the death of Betty's father.

Charles had fallen in love with San Diego, California, while he was stationed there during World War II. His announced plan was to move to Las Vegas for a year to see Marianne and the kids and then move on permanently to the San Diego area.

I don't know how serious the San Diego goal ever was but, as it turned out, Charles and Betty never got any further west than Las Vegas. Occasional summer vacations in San Diego (the zoo, Sea World, La Jolla and the Beach Cottages along Pacific Beach) seemed to suffice.

Charles and Betty moved into a furnished apartment on the southeast corner of Serius and Arville, across from Clark High Scholl. The apartment was on the ground floor, fairly spacious (2 BR, 2 bath, full kitchen) and bright (lots of windows and enclosed porch). The apartment was new and located in a new area of town when they moved in. The area got a little seedier over time, as Las Vegas went through its amazing growth spurt.

In 1981, their son Bob began to date a young lady of Japanese ancestry -- Terry Oshima. Betty was thrilled at the news and wanted to know more about this young Irish girl -- Terry O'shima. When the couple were married on September 18, 1981, Charles and Betty were in the Boystown chapel for the ceremony. After the wedding, Bob and Terry gave mom and dad the keys to their Omaha house (to bond with their new granddaughters) and mom and dad gave Bob and Terry the keys to their apartment in Las Vegas (the honeymoon suite).

Living in Las Vegas, Charles and Betty had a fair amount of company over the years. Bob, alone at first and later with his family, would typically visit at least twice each year. Some of Betty's relatives from Bismarck would fly down occasionally and Charles' brother (Ren) and sister (Barbara) would stop by from time to time from Utah or southern California. In addition to the San Diego vacations noted above, Charles and Betty traveled some to visit relatives in Nebraska, Alaska and North Dakota.

Like many northerners, they enjoyed the relatively mild Las Vegas winters. I am sure that Charles once or twice smiled on a sunny winter day as he recalled his gas station days in Bismarck. The Nevada tax structure (NO state taxes) was also nice. To a certain extent, they seemed to enjoy the Vegas lifestyle. They would play the slots some, enjoy the inexpensive buffets, enjoy an occasional lounge show, and attend a number of the television shows (e.g., Dean Martin roasts, game shows) that were taped in Las Vegas. Above all, they enjoyed being near Marianne and her family. It was fun for them to watch Michael and Melissa grow up.

Bob's Memory: Mom's gambling was always a little suspicious. She was never a big gambler but she would occasionally play the quarter slots. She had a container of quarters that she used for 1.) the slots and 2.) for the apartment's laundry machines. She would give us the impression that her slot machine winnings had always covered the laundry costs -- but I was never convinced. I suspect that this line was intended to defer any gambling (loss) concerns that my father might have. Dad probably gambled less than mom did. He would play the slots some and was fairly good at picking college and NFL football teams. He was known to put a little money down on the college football bowl games -- usually five or six game parlay tickets. He had fun with this and it made watching the bowl games more interesting. He came close a lot and won a couple of times. My father was a notorious grocery shopper. Even in Bismarck, he would check out the ads and drive to several stores to get all of the weekly bargains. I remember one time in Las Vegas when we drove a mile or so out of our way to save a few cents on a loaf of bread. After buying the bread and collecting his change he walked over to the slots that are located by the doors of most, if not all, Las Vegas grocery stores. Within a few seconds, the change -- the "bread" deal -- the savings -- was gone and we were heading back to the apartment for sandwiches. Easy come, easy go.

Bob's Memory: Las Vegas casinos were never too thrilled about minors being in their casinos. Children could walk through the casinos (e.g., lobbies, arcades, restaurants) but they were not allowed to linger in the "gaming" areas. The reasoning was probably related to some state law concerning children being exposed to the evils of gambling. I suspect that part of the reason was also to keep the kids out of the gamblers sights, so that none of them would reflect on the fact that they were gambling with the kid's shoe money. In any case, when we would visit Las Vegas we would take the kids with us as we headed to the Golden Nugget buffet or the Circus Circus acts. Grandma would take advantage of the situation and bring her quarters along to "make" some more washing machine money. Sometimes our kids would get a little too close to the gambling action. I remember once watching from a distance as mom walked through a slot area. My young son Matt was walking a short distance behind her and a casino security guard was a short distance behind Matt. Betty and her grandson were subsequently escorted from the casino floor.

Betty began to have some "stomach" problems in the 1990's. Her condition was not properly diagnosed until she was hospitalized in August of 1991. The doctors, at that time, determined that she had a fairly advanced case of colon cancer. She did not leave the hospital alive. Surgeons operated on her for the cancer but complications (sepsis) took her life before she could be released. Her husband and both of her children were with her during her final days. She was buried at the Veteran's Cemetery near Boulder City, Nevada.

Charles Burdett lived alone for almost twelve years after his wife died but Marianne and her family took very good care of him. When Betty died some of the sparkle in Charles died also. He maintained his driver's license up until the last year or so, and was able to drive around Las Vegas, as required.

He lived long enough to see all of his granddaughters get married:

Charles always enjoyed little kids and he loved to play with the Schuster and Martin dogs. He would bring them treats and play ball with Scully in the backyard until either he or Scully tired out -- whichever came first.

Charles was blessed, in that he was sharp as a tack, until he died. He was always interested in the world, economics, and politics. He would read the paper, watch the news and could keep up with sports, politics and most of societies issues.

Probably because of the "Omaha connection," Charles was very aware of Omaha financier Warren Buffet -- the Wizard of Wall Street -- the Oracle of Omaha -- and his successful Berkshire Hathaway Corporation. As such, Charles would keep up on:

• the Berkshire stockholder meetings held in Omaha each year,
• the annual reports that Berkshire (Warren) would write,
• the companies that Berkshire owned (like GEICO - Charles' long-time car insurance provider), and
• the books written about Warren.

Charles' physical health was not quite as good as his mind was sharp. He had some back problems that haunted him over the years. He died from what would have previously been called "old age," when his heart (congestion) and kidneys (edema) just couldn't handle things very well. During the last year or so, he moved from the Arville Street apartment to a "Carefree" apartment near Desert Inn and Sandhill Road. He still lived alone but the apartment was closer to Marianne and it was easier for her to check up and help him with medical issues, groceries, etc. He was hospitalized a few times before he died and received some PT/OT treatment at a nursing home for awhile. He eventually died in his apartment under the care of hospice and Marianne. His funeral was held at Holy Family Catholic Church. All of his living children, grandchildren and siblings were able to attend his funeral. He was interred, next to Betty, at the Veterans Cemetery near Boulder City, Nevada on May 13, 2003.

Editors Note: These online biographies began with the "Life History" that Charles Lorenzo Burdett penned by hand before he died. The first biography that I placed on the website was his and it was the only biography on the website for a long time. It was the easiest to post because all I had to do was type it in, organize it a little, and add a few pictures. The other Senger and Oshima biographies were added later. It recently occurred to me that the missing biography was that of my parents. So while it is the last of the biographies written -- it certainly is not the least of them. [Bob Burdett, 2-22-2005]

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Changes and additions:

On 3-25-05 the paragraph on President Eisenhower's visit to Riverdale was added, along with the associated editor's note and link to the Bismarck Tribune articles.