Ronald Reist:  

In October, 1967, Phyllis (Bauman) and I were married. We had three children: Lisa (1968), Stephanie (1972), & Ryan (1975). After 21 years, Phyllis and I divorced, though we remained friends, and she (and her husband and daughter, Alex) still attend my family's events and holidays. In September, 1989, I married Lois Jackson (Dontje), a 1968 Graduate of Portage Northern H.S.. She didn't have any children of her own, but she became a mother and grandmother the day we wed. We now live in the Lawton, MI area, in a house that we built ourselves, on 10 acres surrounded by Grape Vineyards. We love the natural setting and feed birds year-round. We just celebrated our 26th wedding anniversary! We also love our pets, and at one time had 2 dogs and 5 cats living with us (2 of the cats belonged to Lois' aunt who was living with us at the time). We are now down to 1 cat and two rescue dogs - Ginger; a fox terrier and dachshund mix, and Minnie; a fox terrier and chihuahua mix. We lost our son, Ryan, in 1999. The death of a child is something that is heart-wrenching, even after this long a time. Our daughters have given us six wonderful grandchildren - ranging in age from 27 to 15 years old - 2 girls and 4 boys. They have been a source of great joy in our lives. Lois is th...Expand for more