By Dr. Ferrell Miller
JC Breakfast Optimists Club
At the Hampton Inn on March 26, the JC Breakfast Optimist Club members had guests Judy Sanner and Renee Schmedemann share their stories about growing up in a German culture. Even though the two had not met prior to the meeting there were many common experiences they told.
Both of their mothers were born and reared in Germany. Each married a U.S. Army soldiers. Celebrations of American holidays were “big deals” in both households. German was spoken in each of their homes.
However, Judy admitted to being “stubborn and did not want to be different from her English-speaking friends. When mom spoke to me in German, I would not answer back in German.” Her ability to speak German in sentences is limited.
Renee stated that she learned the language and continues to speak it with her brother, other family members and friends. Since both of their mothers came from different parts of Germany, each had a different dialect.
Judy shared that this is true with students in her English Learners classes at Junction City High School “who speak Spanish, but students from different countries and/or locations within a country have a different dialect and, in some cases, cannot understand each other.”
Renee worked as an OMS Assistant at Fort Riley and recently retired from her work. She said “Some of my Spanish speaking co-workers wanted to learn German words and we exchanged. I would teach them a German word and they would teach me the Spanish equivalent.”
Renee told club members that she still prepares German meals she was taught by her mother. Some of the dishes include kartoffelknodel, which are potato balls or dumplings; streusel kuchen, a coffee cake; jager sauce, which is the sauce to pour onto schnitzel for example; schnitzel is made with veal or pork tenderloin; spatzle or egg noodles and rouladen made with thinly sliced beef. She said that her husband, “Marty, is the baker in the family. He bakes the brotchen, which are like Kaiser rolls, to go with some of our meals.”
Both agreed that the diversity of cultures in Junction City is what attracted their parents to live here. “This is a welcoming community” and both are glad they chose to live here.