Part of the family

Dear Editor,

If I could save my favorite memory it would be a visit to Stowe, Vermont and the Von Trapp Inn.

I was a guest of Stanton and Mary Ellen Porter at her familiy's farm at Randolph Center, Vermont. It had been owned by her family since the end of the Revolutionary Wary.

It was thrilling when a granddaughter of Georg and Maria Van Trapp came to our table and played "Do Re Me" and other Broadway songs on her harp. I could visualize Julie Andrews singing numbers from the Sound of Music.

For 20 years, I have treasured my friendship with the Porters, who have treated me like a member of their extended family.

Stanton and Mary Ellen met while they were missionaries in England. Later, they were married and settled in Mesa, Arizona, Arizona. In the spring of 1995 they came to mcCook and served as senior missionaries for the Mormon Church.

One day they appeared at my house on West Fourth Street and Stanton arranged to have a disabled ramp built. (He was part owner in a company that built homes in Arizona.)

Many people have benefited from the Porters' unselfish acts of kindness. Sadly, Stanton Porter passed away unexpectedly on Monday, Nov. 30, 2015, in Mesa.

He had a great sense of humor and a sense of adventure. Many pleasant hours were spent riding his beautiful Palimino Quarter Horse, "Bob."

During the summer months, "Bob" was loaded into a horse trailer and traveled to the cooler climate in the Utah mountains.

Happily, he grazed in lush meadows there.

You might even call it "a perfect type of vacation for a horse."

Now "Bob" is no doubt in his stable in Mesa wondering where his owner is. (At the ripe old age of 24 1/2, he may be joining Stanton soon.)

When my grandchildren were little, they considered the Porters as being their extra set of grandparents.

Helen Ruth Arnold,

Trenton, Nebraska