Reflecting Back

For those of you who were unable to make it to June's family meeting, I wanted to post some of the stories that were shared. Because it's the month of Father's Day, and family meeting was on Grandpa/Dad's birthday we had each of his children share how he was an influence to them as a dad...
Ted
I appreciated the work ethic that dad taught me. Between my Jr. and Sr. year at Granger High School I ran a milk route. It was a difficult job but paid well. I would get up in the middle of the night and be up to the dairy by 2 am to load out and get an early start on my route. I usually didn't get back to the dairy for unloading until about 3 or 4 in the afternoon. I remember one night being out on a date. We were having a really fun time and I didn't get her home by 9 pm, which I had to do as a driver. In fact, it was near midnight when I finally walked in the door. Knowing I had to be up at the dairy in an hour or so, I went in and woke up dad to see if I could get out of going on my milk route. I was learning a new area from another driver so I knew it would be covered okay. Dad wasn't angry but in a firm way he reminded me of my commitment to the job and of being responsible. He let me make the choice - but after his 'pep talk' I knew what I had to do. I changed clothes, had a bowl of cold cereal and headed out the back door for the dairy. It was one long and sleepy day, but I had learned a valuable lesson.

Karen
I remember at one time Dad was a guide at temple square. Sometimes he’d take one of us kids with him on the tour, and on one particular day he took me. I enjoyed the tour he gave, and afterwards he asked if I wanted to see where the Prophet, President McKay lived. When we pulled up at his house, Pres. McKay was in his front yard, standing there in his regular shirt and trousers, watering the lawn. Since he knew Dad, we went over and Dad introduced me to him. It was such a neat experience to meet a prophet of the Lord in such simple surroundings. And to have an experience that would be impossible to have now days, I will never forget that.

Kent
Dad was always a hard worker and wanted to instill this great principal into his children. Often on a Saturday morning he would open the door to the basement where his three sons’ were sleeping (after a late night date some were deeper into sleep than others) and yell down stairs…”my tigers…my tigers…time to get up”. We would slowly pull ourselves out of bed and make the tuff climb up the stairs. He would then have us follow him out to the driveway where he would wax the two cars and we would wipe them off. Getting the cars cleaned was a side benefit of those Saturday mornings… the real lesson was learning to work and enjoying one another’s company.

Doug
I’d like to share an experience with Dad/Grandpa that showed how important he made me feel. Dad was very busy with civic activities when we were young. He was not only on the Days of ’47 committee but also the Chairman of the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce, Head of the Utah Safety Committee, announcer at the Basketball tournaments, active member of the University of Utah booster club, and Chairman of the Utah Boxing Commission. It’s in his last service that I want to talk about.
With seven kids, and with all that Dad did, there were not very many times when we had “one on one” experiences with him. When I was probably eight or nine he invited me to go with him to one of the big boxing matches. He told me I was going to be his personal assistant. I can’t remember where the fight was but the one thing I do remember was that Dad gave me a white envelope. On the front of the envelope was typed “TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN”. Inside was a letter with a greeting that said “To Whom It May Concern”. The letter went on to say that I was Ned Winder’s son and Personal Assistant and that I had the right to go anywhere in the building. I really didn’t do much to help but I’ve never forgot how important he made me feel. I wandered around a bit and had a few people challenge me as to where I was going. I pulled my envelope out, let them read it, and then they gave me the go ahead to go wherever I wanted. I don’t remember who won the match but I did know that I was a “winner” and important in my Dad’s eyes that he would trust me to go wherever I needed to. I kept that letter in the envelope for many years and would take it out from time to time to remember how good and important he made me feel.

Janet
There are so many memories that I could write about. In every way Dad was a wonderful, caring father. One thing that I love to remember is his love for music. I remember laying in bed as a very young child and hearing the 78 records on the phonograph in Mom and Dad's room as I drifted off to sleep. Dad also sang to us at night when we were in bed; cowboy songs (I recall one about a cowboy who went out in the cold night to save a wandering calf) or "Uncle Ned". I have fond memories of singing in the car, especially hearing Dad and Mom sing, "Down in that Old Cherry Orchard", or
"If I Could Hear My Mother Pray Again" as we traveled around Florida. They harmonized so well in singing and in life. Many hymns remind me of Dad; I will mention two in particular. I can't hear "How Gentle God's Command" without thinking of Dad's beautiful harmony to that hymn. And "How Great the Wisdom and the Love" will always remind me of Dad spontaneously leading us as we were in the building next to the Garden of Gethsemane on our trip to Israel in 1977. I miss hearing Dad singing and am grateful to know that I will hear him again someday. We love Dad and Mom so much and are grateful for such wonderful parents.


Wendy
The hardest part about this assignment is to decide which, of my many memories, to share. But here's goes:
As we all know, dad was well-known. And he wasn't just well known among his peers but with people of all ages, including all of my friends. This past Christmas I went to a party with some friends from high school that I was in Madrigals with. Someone had brought our scrapbook that I hadn't seen for 30 years. It was fun to look at it but the best part was that there was a whole page I had forgotten about on dad (or "Ned" as all my friends called him). I think he had as many photos in the scrapbook as I did. All my friends, boys and girls, loved Ned.
I remember a time when my friends from seminary council toilet papered our house for my birthday in July. Their plan was to then wake me up and take me out to breakfast. When they arrived early in the morning they found dad up and busy (probably wiping off the cars in the garage). Rumor has it that he welcomed them and even helped toilet paper a little. When I woke up he was serving them orange juice and rolls and they all visited and laughed while I cleaned the mess up.
I pull out my yearbook every now and then and it is amazing to see how many people mentioned dad in their comments to me.
I will always be proud to be "Ned's daughter!"


Nancy
I remember when I was a teenager and I was at that age where most kids would rather hang out with their friends than their parents. However, whenever my friends would invite me to go with them to the high school sporting events, I would usually decline and say ‘I’m already going with my dad’. I loved going with Dad to the games because everyone liked him, he was so funny and nice to everyone and I enjoyed hanging out with him. He was one of those dads you could be proud of being with instead of embarrassed. I am grateful for the fun memories I have with him.