History

Jean Stubnitz, an only child, was born in February 1927 in Wilkensburg, a suburb of Pittsburgh Pennsylvania. She moved quite a bit in her lifetime. Her first move was to Crafton Pennsylvania around 1929, where her father built two houses: one they lived in, one they rented. She said she can remember playing in those houses as they were under construction.

By the third grade, her family moved to Adrian, Michigan. This was around 1935, when her father opened the spring factory. Her parents owned a cottage at Devil's lake and they eventually moved to live there all year round. She continued shool in Adrian and went to one year of Junior High before changing to Kingswood in Bloomfield Hills Michigan. This was a school for girls and was part of the Cranbrook system.

She entered the University of Michigan Ann Arbor in 1945 and graduated in 1949, majoring in history. She told me she would have liked to have been a scientist if her math wasn't so bad. She met Max in 1947 where he was a graduate student. They met at a ping pong match, so I am very grateful to that sport! They were married January 18, 1949 at the courthouse, and didn't bother to take wedding pictures! They moved to Adrian in 1950 and my mother had 4 babies in a row (baby boom!) which is where I entered the scene.

There were a few moves from then on. The first was to a rented house in Mountain View, Ca. 1956. Then we moved to Palo Alto Ca until 1960, when we moved all the way back to Adrian, where my mother promptly had another baby! My dad worked for her father at the spring factory, and then we moved all the way back to California again in 1964. By then we were teens (except Danny, 6 months old) and moved to a large two story home in Moraga, California. The house was brand new and had 5-6 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. We had 9 people living there, as my dad's parents lived with us too. We grew up and went to college and my parents sold that house in 1973 and made several moves - to Walnut Creek, Pleasant Hill, and Martinez. My mom worked for Sears for 11 years as a saleswoman and kitchen designer. In 1985 my parents moved to Brentwood, Ca (not the one in So. Cal). Their house was on 2 acres and they kept a couple of horses for my sister Julie. One was a clydsdale.

All of the kids had moved to Washington and Oregon and they wanted to be with us and the grandkids. So from 1992-94 they rented an apartment in Vancouver Wa, to see if they could take the winters (remember we are at the same lattitude as Michigan, which has harsh winters). They decided they could, and in 1994 bought a house in Vancouver where they are to this day. I've included an assortment of photos, so take your time and enjoy. -Madeline