Contact: Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon
E-mail: dolores@wiclarkcountyhistory.org
Surnames: Verschay, West
----Source: Clark County Press (Neillsville, Clark Co., WI) 7/29/2015
Verschay Gears Up (100th birthday - 2015)
Olive Verschay gears up for 100th Birthday
Olive Verschay poses for a photo in her Court Street apartment in Neillsville. She is gearing up for her 100th birthday Tuesday, Aug. 4. (Todd Schmidt/Clark County Press)
By Todd Schmidt
Olive Verschay, 99, shared details about her interesting life Thursday in the comfort of her Court Street apartment in Neillsville, as she prepares to celebrate her 100th birthday Tuesday, Aug. 4.
Olive was born Aug. 4, 1915, in Tuscaloosa County, AL, to William and Eva West. Her parents were cotton farmers, with her dad also working on gravel roads for the county. Olive was the youngest in the family. She had one sister and two brothers.
“We also tended to a big garden,” Olive said. “We planted Cotton in April or May and picked it in September. We had to drag long sacks behind us and pick the cotton by hand.”
In 1932, Olive graduated from Holt High School. She worked for a while in Tuscaloosa as a helper in an optometrist’s office at the pay of 50 cents per day.
“I grew up in the Depression,” Olive said. “That was big money back then.”
Olive stayed in Alabama until age 19, when she got a job at the Marshall Fields lingerie factory in Chicago. She found a passion for sewing work.
Later on, a friend wanted Olive to meet her brother, John Verschay. He worked for International Harvester, and at age 32 was drafted into the U. S. Army. He served for two years as a motor pool mechanic in the 106th Division, and was thrown into the middle of the war in Europe at the Battle of the Bulge.
John was one of 37 soldiers out of his unit who survived the fierce combat.
After his noble service to his country, John got a call from his family. They wanted him to come to Willard to take over a farm.
“After he got that call, we didn’t talk to each other for about two weeks,” Olive recalled.
Olive and John made the deal and became conventional farmers. They took care of a huge vegetable garden, along with many beautiful flowers and an abundance of apple trees. They also milked cows and raised chickens and pigs.
“One thing, everybody we knew in Chicago had to come and visit us on the farm,” Olive said. “We always had company.”
The Verschays farmed for 22 years. There was a rough stretch in there when John severely injured his hand in a corn picker. He was in the hospital for a month, and Olive was faced with doing all the chores herself.
After his injury, John went into selling barn equipment.
They raised Michael, a foster child from Slovenia. Michael moved in at age 13 and was a great help on the farm. Michael graduated from Greenwood High School in 1956. He spent four years in the U. S. Army.
Michael returned from the Chrysler Company after working at the Belvedere plant for 38 years. Like clockwork, he still calls Olive at 8:30 a.m. every Saturday.
When they retired from the farm, Olive and John did some extensive traveling. Places they visited include Alabama, Texas, Canada and the Grand Canyon.
“We made it to all the states except four,” Olive said. “Each year, we went a different direction for six weeks at a time.”
John became ill and spent the last three years of his life in the nursing home in Neillsville. He passed away in 1994.
“One thing about my husband, he never lost his sense of humor,” Olive said.
She lived alone in a country home south of Willard for a while before moving into the Court Street apartment 22 years ago. She is a member of the holy Family Catholic Church in Willard.
“They still bring me communion,” Olive said. “When I moved to Neillsville I started going to church here.”
She was an active member of the Willard Athletic Club, helping with many functions at the ballpark. She would also be found at every church function.
Olive was a regular volunteer at The Highground. She addressed mailings, helped with spring-cleaning and furnished food for bicycle riders, motorcycle riders and school visitors.
At the tender age of 80, Olive was helping at the nursing home, pushing the “youngsters” around in their wheelchairs. “The doctors thought that was kind of humorous,” she said.
Olive has made many friends during her life. Many of them are scattered around the country. Quite a few of them still call and check in.
“It is nothing to write out 100 Christmas Cards every year,” she said.
Olive will have many people calling on her the day of her birthday. She didn’t want an official party.
Olive took a serious fall not too long ago, and as a result, she quit driving. She gave her car to her friend, Lorraine Flynn. In an interesting side note, Olive’s driver’s license is still valid to age 104.
A friend comes in occasionally to help with vacuuming and light housework. A volunteer from Interfaith Caregivers checks on her once per week.
For exercise on good days, Olive will walk up and down the apartment steps or outside around the building.
She did a lot of embroidery and sewing work in her life. She has given up most of that due to poor eyesight.
There are a few things she credits for giving her a long and rewarding life.
“I always got a lot of exercise and held to a good diet,” she said. “Plus, the Good Lord hasn’t wanted me yet.”
