Friends Part III

Here is my next installment of my Friends Series. It has been hard to limit who I write about - I have so many great friends!

Joel and Sandy Baier and Family

Joel and Sandy are the types of friends that you find only once in a lifetime. I gained their friendship through Bernie and it had a very unique start. Bernie and I had dated a very short time when he started talking about them. He wanted to go to Iowa to visit his friends that he had taught high school with in Kimball, SD. I agreed to go with – why not. He really wanted to see them. I was comfortable from the minute I walked into their crazy household. Four kids and lots of friends flowing through. I realized very soon that they looked familiar, but I couldn’t figure out why at first. Then when Bernie asked Joel how “Jerke” was, pronouncing it the way they do in the Parkston area, I questioned who “Jerke” was. Turned out they were talking about Delmer Jerke, my 2nd cousin. Small world beginnings. I had felt Joel looked familiar. After talking, found out I had sat across from Joel at Delmer’s wife Shirley’s funeral. I was “in” then and there, considered family. Joel made me call my Mom and tell her who I was visiting. Joel swears we are related, but my Mother tells me we just have relatives in common. Joel and Sandy have been a very important part of our lives. Even Josh has picked up on the relationship, but why not, he had to be “Baier Approved” before Steph could marry him! The Baier kids are all a little confused – they actually think we are family. We keep getting invited to all the family events and we are so happy about that. Watching the Baier kids grow up, marry and start their own families has been awesome. And they are so supportive of us. The Baier Clan was at Steph & Josh’s wedding 100%. Of course, Josh was Baier approved. Through Joel and Sandy we have met so many nice people – Don & Joan Gaskill, Bob & Nancy Pulford, plus a large group of people from Delmont, SD, where Joel and Sandy have moved to. Because my Mom is originally from Parkston, it has been nice getting back into that area of the state and the communities there. Joel and Sandy Baier hold special place in my heart and I treasure their friendship!