CAIN

They had five children: Alma Virginia, Melba Ruth, Margaret Lee, Elmer, Jr., and James Arthur. Alma died as a young child.

Mom and Pop Ward—no better mother and dad ever walked upon this earth. In earlier years, they were called "Mama and Daddy" by their children, Melba, Margaret, Phil and James. As the grandchildren came along they were called "Mom and Pop". Soon, this was the only title they were known by.

My how they loved us! Pop was the provider for the family—having worked for Magnolia Oil Co. (later known as Mobil Oil) as far back as I can remember. Mom was the homemaker. We always had three hot meals daily. There was fresh made bread with every meal. She had hot biscuits for breakfast with dry salt meat sliced to make it look like bacon. She boiled it to get as much salt out as possible and then she fried it. She made brown gravy with the drippings after the meat was removed. Then there was jelly, syrup and butter to go along with this. This may not sound good to you—but it tasted wonderful to us. These were the depression years and the fare wasn't real fancy. I have told my children and grandchildren about our menu - it was beans and potatoes today—tomorrow it was potatoes and beans. We always had hot corn bread to go with this. Occasionally, we had fried chicken. Mom always had chickens in the yard for eggs. That is where our fried chicken came from. Pop always raised a calf and a pig through the spring and summer months which he killed and dressed in the fall. This gave us fresh pork and beef as long as it lasted. Also, he raised a big garden every year for fresh vegetables. Mom canned everything she could find to can—fruits and vegetables. Some of the fruits were apples, peaches, pears, black berries, dewberries, mayhaws, etc. I have gone with her to the berry patch many times -we would leave the house before daylight—I always came home hot and tired and covered with red bugs (chiggers). I haven't mentioned supper yet. We had our hot corn bread again and maybe some left-overs. Most everyone enjoyed a glass of milk with cornbread crumbled in it. Some enjoyed buttermilk with their corn bread. Sweet milk was my favorite. We called our three meals a day, breakfast, dinner and supper. We gathered around the table as a family (all six of us) and after Pop offered Thanks, we ate.

One day, when I was six or seven, a neighbor invited my mother to go with her to the Pentecostal Church. Mom received the Holy Ghost at prayer meeting that day. She was then baptized in Jesus name. She was so happy with her new experience she witnessed to everyone who would listen to her. At first my Dad was not too happy about this. But conviction hit him as a result of Mom's prayers and he also received the Holy Ghost. When I think of Mom and Pop and their relationship with God, I remember Mom's strong witness. She won many family members and friends to God. And with Pop, I remember his faithfulness to God and his love for God's Word. He sat reading his Bible for hours in his later years. He memorized long passages of scripture. He also became an ordained minister after he retired from Mobile Oil. He and Mom moved to Black Lake in Louisiana. They were living in Beaumont at the time of his retirement. They bought a small house on eight acres of land out on Black Lake. They were about six miles out of Campti, LA. There was a small church in Campti without a pastor. The congregation asked Pop to be their pastor. He went before the church board in Alexandria, LA and they granted him his general license. Normally, a man is granted his local license but the board saw fit to bypass that first step based on his faithfulness as he sat under some wonderful pastors through the years. They recommended he be given his general license. After a year or two, he went back before the board and became an ordained minister. He pastored the church in Campti for about twelve years before his health began to fail. He resigned and eventually returned to Beaumont where he passed away on 26 Sep 75, at the age of seventy-nine. Mom left us on 30 Apr 91 at the age of ninety.

Pop was a firm believer in education. We all went to school unless we were very ill. I graduated in 1938 at the age of sixteen. Margaret followed two yeas later, also sixteen. I cannot remember the year the boys graduated. They were younger than Margaret and I. As I mentioned earlier, these were the years when money was not plentiful. None of us furthered our education after high school.

As the grandchildren arrived, Mom and Pop's great love extended on down to them. They really thought we were all special. They loved all of the extended family. They were always welcome in our home. We are all reaping the many benefits of their prayers. God has blessed all of us so much. I will be eternally grateful for my Mom and Dad.

I have failed to mention what a wonderful cook Mom was. She never measured anything. I don't know how she always got it right. Holidays were very special. My aunts - Ruth, Ada, Bessie and Jessie - usually were with us. This caused a closeness, which still exists today. My cousins were almost like my brothers and sisters. My grandmother Cain was surely a great mother. She taught all her daughters to cook, as well as many other chores around the house. They knew how to wash, iron, keep a clean house along with outside chores in the yard and garden. But their cooking was outstanding. The only thing Mom never cooked was pies. But no one could make a better cake than she. Aunt Ruth made wonderful pies as well as Beek and Jess. I am so thankful for being a part of the Cain family.

My mother and dad, May and Elmer Ward, were very special parents and I loved them so much. In my younger years, we nearly always had some of Mom's family living with us. Later some of my dad's brothers lived with us for a while, too. No matter how many were there, we really had some happy times together. I can never remember any arguing or cross words between us.

My dad always had a job, which the Lord blessed him with, when so many other people couldn't find work. He and Mom were willing to help others with what they had.

Mom and Pop both loved to fish as well as the rest of my aunts and uncles. When Aunt Ruth and Uncle Olon bought their first cabin on Black Lake, they welcomed everyone that came. Lots of week-ends were spent down there as well as vacations. The kids played in the water while the moms and dads were out on the lake fishing. When they brought in the fish we could hardly wait for a good meal of fried potatoes and fish.

Mom always tried to help with finances by taking in washing and ironing. When I graduated from high school they gave me a watch and a ring with three small diamonds. I was so pleased and thankful for those gifts. They weren't always able to give us extra things but we never went hungry. Even though Pop worked long hours, he always had a big garden with lots of fresh vegetables.

I was always glad that Mom was able to stay at home and didn't have to work out. When we came home from school and she wasn't there, I could hardly wait for her to get back. The house seemed so empty without her.

My sister Alma died before the rest of us were born and I know that was hard for Mom and Pop to lose their only child. I've always wished I could have known Alma. There are four of us now, Melba, Phil, James and me. James came along several years after Melba, Phil and me, so he was good entertainment for all of us. The four of us live in the Beaumont and Vidor area and have been close through the years. Phil is in a nursing home and that makes us sad, but he is always glad to see us when we go.

After Pop retired from Mobil Oil in 1960, they moved to Black Lake. They had owned a place on the lake a few yeas before he retired so this was their home for several years.

The Pentecostal church in Campti was without a pastor, so he got his license to preach and was ordained into the ministry and they voted him in as pastor. He was their pastor until his health began to fail, which was about 12 years later. The people in Campti really loved Mom and Pop and the feeling was mutual. Mom would cook when there was sickness or death in a family and they did a lot of visiting in that community. They made lots of friends there and really hated to leave when they had to come back to Beaumont.

Pop had cancer that was in remission for several years and then became active again. In 1974, he had a heart attack and we had to bring them home. We were all working here and were unable to take care of them there. Pop cried many tears wishing he could be back there. His heart was with those people in that community. He passed away 26 Sep 75. Before he died he worried about Mom and wanted to be sure she was taken care of. Her mind was beginning to fail and he realized this before we did. We assured him we would take care of her. We later had to put her in a nursing home, which was one of the hardest things we ever had to do. She was there until she passed away on 30 Apr 91.

They were really wonderful parents to us. They took us to church faithfully and I'm sure they prayed many prayers for us. I really appreciated them and still miss them, but I plan to see them again some day over there in the Eternal Home.

Mom and Pop Ward (May and Elmer Ward) were my grandparents. Their daughter Melba Ward Dupree is my mother. At the time of my birth in 1952, Mom and Pop, along with their daughter, Margaret Ward, lived in Beaumont just down the street from where our family lived. Because of the proximity of their home to ours, I enjoyed many good times with them in my early years.

Pop Ward was still working at the Mobil Oil Refinery in the 1950’s. But there were many trips made up to Black Lake for a few days of fishing and often they would take me with them. For Pop, fishing meant getting up before daylight to prepare to get out on the lake. We would go buy some fresh minnows, sometimes getting the store’s owner out of bed. But before the sun was fully risen, we would be out on the lake.

Mom Ward was the kind of grandmother that held a special attraction for a young boy. For a while she worked at an elementary school. She would take me to work with her occasionally, which was always an exciting thing to me. She always had time for her grandchildren and created many wonderful memories for them both in Beaumont and at the lake.

The Ward family Christmas party was always a fun time for the kids. Since all of the Ward family lived in the Beaumont area at that time, we would gather at Mom and Pop’s home. While the adults visited inside, the grandchildren would have fun running and playing outside. After a delicious meal, which always included Mom’s chicken and dumplings, Christmas gifts would be exchanged. Mom, Pop, and Babe (Margaret Ward) would always have special gifts for the kids.

After Pop retired from Mobil Oil in the early 1960’s, he and Mom moved to Black Lake. Shortly after arriving there, he was asked to be the pastor of the Campti United Pentecostal Church. Although he had been a Bible scholar and Sunday School teacher for many years, he was not a licensed minister. The district superintendent of the Louisiana District of the United Pentecostal Church, Rev. C. G. Weeks, approved him to accept the position until the District Board could meet and issue him ministerial credentials. Much of his retirement years were spent in the work of the Lord. If you walked into his home on Black Lake, you would usually find him with his Bible in his hands, reading and preparing to preach.

Pop was an outstanding pastor, who loved the flock, visiting them in the hospitals and going to their homes. The church building did not have air-conditioning and when he preached, his face would become very red and every few minutes he would wipe a puddle of sweat from his brow. He was a most enthusiastic preacher and used many scriptures as he preached. Although he could quote most of the verses that he used in his sermons, he normally had Aunt Ruth (Manning), to read the Bible for him as he preached. He said that he did not want anyone to think that he was misquoting the scriptures. From the pulpit, Pop often said, “There are no big I’s or little You’s in the kingdom of God.” Many times, Mom would testify in church with a strong voice, “We serve a great big wonderful God!”

Mom and Pop seemed to enjoy their years living at Black Lake. Besides fishing, Mom and Pop had a big garden every summer. During the dry weather, Mom would water the garden at night. She got up every two hours to go move the water hose. They would have plenty of vegetables to share with the family. In addition to putting up vegetables, Mom also made mayhaw and muscadine jellies, which many of us enjoyed. Mom also had laying chickens and every Thursday, Pop would run the egg route to deliver the eggs to their customers. As you can see, their retirement years at Black Lake were very busy years.

Mom and Pop Ward made quite an impact upon the community around Black Lake and Campti. Although Pop retired from being the pastor of the church in 1972, long-time residents around there still talk about Brother and Sister Ward and what wonderful people they were.

I have so many good memories of both my grandparents; it's hard to narrow it down to share a small portion. We affectionately called them Mom and Pop. Pop had a very positive effect on my life, as it was he that, by his living witness, pointed me to Jesus Christ. He was relentless in his faith. I guess that's probably the best memory a person could leave behind. All during my childhood, when we would go to his house, whether in Beaumont or Black Lake, right beside his recliner would lay his Bible and Sunday School material because he was always in the Word. When you were with him any length of time, you knew he had a deep, fervent love for GOD. He was a man's man. He was a leader of our family, and a blessing from GOD. I will see him on the other side as I hope many in our family will. Each of us has that choice.

I must be getting old like the rest of you, because I can remember when Mom drove. That was also an experience. My favorite times riding with her was when she drove James Ward's black and red Ford. My favorite memories of her, were the times I sat with her in the winter by the space heater as she related to me all the everyday happenings around Black Lake. I also remember hearing her sing as she worked in the kitchen. One time, when a bunch of us were at the lake, three of us were in the kitchen as she was cooking a peach cobbler. She pulled one of two cobblers out of the oven and spilled it on the floor. She figured it was still good, so she scooped it back in to the baking dish and served it with the other one. We really laughed about that. Mom didn't care a lot about "things", just GOD and family. There will never be another like her.

I have many fond memories of Aunt May and Uncle Elmer and most of them were due to our many summer vacations that we spent at Black Lake. They were always very generous in allowing our family to stay in their cabin at Black Lake until my folks were able to purchase a lot from them and build our own. I couldn't count the times that we walked back and forth to their cabin on the hill for refreshments and visits on those summer days that many of us so fondly remember. I think I have written before about how Donny and I managed to drop Uncle Elmer's outboard motor in the lake while throwing rocks at a wasp nest. It was just amazing to me how he never got angry at us about that incident. In fact, I can never remember Uncle Elmer getting angry about anything because he was such a good-natured person. I remember one of his favorite sayings went something like "In a hundred years, it won't make any difference". I think he was saying to just not sweat the small stuff and I think that most of us could benefit from that. And I always remember how Aunt May would take up for us kids whenever we would get into trouble, and for some of us that was fairly often. I think that both of them had a big impact on the lives that they touched and, for sure, they did on mine.

My what memories I have of these special people! I couldn't relate all of them. What comes to mind first is how happy Aunt May was. She was bubbly, her happiness spilling out all around her. In contrast Uncle Elmer's voice sounded somewhat gruff, but he had a heart of gold and loved everybody. It was always such a pleasure to visit in their home.

I remember being with them more at Black Lake and at home in Cotton Valley more so than in Beaumont, however, I have special memories there too. One was when I got to sleep upstairs! That was a real treat. I have many memories of staying with them in their first and second cabin at Black Lake where they always made you feel so welcome. I remember one time when Uncle Elmer knew we were coming to visit he bought the green seedless grapes that he knew Donny and I liked (which we could not afford at home). They always wanted you to enjoy your stay with them and went out of their way to see that you did. Those were good times spread over many years when we visited first in Aunt Ruth's old cabin, then in Aunt May's cabin and later Aunt Ada and Uncle Carl built a cabin there. Then even later, Aunt Ruth bought a newer cabin and we visited her and Uncle Olon there. It was always exciting when the adults came in from fishing in the mornings to see how many fish they had caught and we usually helped them scale the fish so they could be quickly fried to eat as we were hungry.

The kids loved to go swimming in the lake, fished, sat around and listened to the adults, did a lot of playing Rook and always showed up for meal time. We loved to take a trip to Chanler's Camp or Black Lake Lodge if possible in the afternoons for some ice cream. We usually shot fireworks at Christmas.

I remember in later years when they had the new cabin, Uncle Elmer would usually ask me to go to Sunday School with him on Sunday mornings when we were visiting and I would usually go.

Uncle Elmer would usually want one of us kids to go with him fishing and he would have us to drive! What an experience! He liked to go fast in the “boat road”! I very well remember us shearing a pin on the way out and on the way back probably on the same underwater tree trunk or stump. I was afraid of the water and didn't like the high-pitched noise the motor made when it sheared a pin, but undaunted, he would put another pin in and away we would go. When traveling from one fishing spot to another through a wooded area where there was no "boat road" he would often motion for me to "speed her up", to my dismay, as I didn't want to get knocked out of the boat. The Lord took care of us anyway and I never had to climb back into the boat.

I remember once when I was sick with a fever at home in Cotton Valley, Uncle Elmer was visiting us and he prayed for me and instantly the fever broke and the Lord healed me!

Sometimes Mother and Daddy would share veggies with Aunt May and Uncle Elmer and Aunty Geek and Uncle Dallas would come over to help and to visit. There would be a big bunch of us shelling peas for hours in the back sitting room. The kids would usually sit on the floor and shell and listen to all the stories. One hot day Donny and I were griping and complaining about having to pick veggies in our garden. Aunt May heard us and shamed us, telling us that we ought to be glad to help our mother. I wasn't glad then, but later I realized that she was right.

Some of the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays were spent at our house or at Aunty Geek's house when Aunt May's family would come to visit. I well remember the wonderful times we had visiting and the delicious food. There wasn't enough room for everyone to sit at the table, and you would find us kids in the bedrooms sitting on the beds eating our lunch. Once when Melba brought several pies, I tried her pecan pie and it was so good. I asked her about the recipe and she said, "Well I got it from your mother".

Aunt May loved the milk and butter that we had and was glad to get to take some of the butter home with her. I loved Aunt May and Uncle Elmer very much and really miss them. They were such a wonderful part of my growing up. I have been very blessed to be born into the wonderful family that the Lord gave me.

Mom

Red blanket

Lost on Avenue A

Frightened woman

Does not remember my name.

Red stuffed dogs

Nursing home

Wheelchairs

Gray, pulled-back hair

Babbling grandmas

Sadness

“Amazing Grace.”

Red lights

Warm, spring night

Woman through the window

Emergency Room

Gray face

Warm tears

My brother’s rage

Gone

I wanted to say Goodbye.

Red curtains, red roses

Families

Lost love

Smiles and bouquets

Loneliness complete.

White

Tears and holding mama’s hand

Songs of “Amazing Grace”

Bright sunshine

Mom and Pop. Love and Strength.

By: Amy Hirasaki Moore—Great-Granddaughter