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DAD AND GUS WELCH TOSSED A COIN FOR MISS MILLER
   MOTHER THOUGHT SHE WAS Indian - when she first met Dad

Mother is 75 in excellent health and lives in Hawthorne, California. I called to wish her a Happy Easter today and I asked her when she first met Dad. This is what she said."All the girls at Carlisle had heard that Jim Thorpe was returning after a two years absence, he was reputed to be quite handsome and quite an athlete. Mom said that Sam Bird,Blackfoot,Captain of the Football team had made a trip to [[strikethrough]] the Thorpe Ranch [[/strikethrough]] Oklahomaand had persuaded Dad to return to Carlisle . Dad had been at Catlisle 1904-1908....Mother cane in 1909and it was now 1911.  She met him at the regular Saturday night dance,when he requested a dance from her dance program. It was love at first sight, for him apparently, since Mother said he wanted all the rest of the dances. She was 18, he was 23. She thought he was fresh ,when they first met. while dancing She, "how do you like my new hair-do " ?
He, " Oh, you cute kiddo "
Mother said that was considered a fast remark and she wasn't sure if she liked him or not.

Shortly after Gus Welch and Dad tossed a coin to see who would ask Miss Miller to University of Pennsylvania football game at Philadelphia. Dad apparently won her heart then [[strikethrough]] an along with placing his name [[/strikethrough]] He won other things also This was the year 1911 that the Carlisle Indians took such mighty teams as Harvard , Pittsburg, Georgetown, Army and Syracuse. Dad was picked by Walter Camp All-American as First Team Halfback for both L911 and L912 . [[1911 and 1912]]

Mother graduated from Carlisle in 1912. Uncle Earl and Aunt Grace, mothers guardians, did not approve of Dad. Uncle Earl He sent her money to come to him in go to California, [[strikethrough]] to get away from him [[/strikethrough]] hoping to break up the romance. Mother said, " Uncle Earl and Anut Eva returned Dads letters and she mother took out a post office box in order for she and Dad them to correspond.

In the meantime Dad switched his interests IN SPORTS from football to track and [[strikethrough]] won thee [[/strikethrough]] entered the Olympics in Stockholm, Sweden. He won the Pentathlon with the low score of 7 points and he won the Decathlon with 8,412.96 points.  He won 8 gold medals or firsts out of 15 events, he scored in all others.  The New York Giants baseball team offerred Dad a three year contract , plus [[strikethrough]] an [[/strikethrough]] a trip around the world.  When Dad wrote mother all this and offered her a honeymoon trip, Uncle Earl acquiesced, paid to have a wedding gown made and for her return trip to Carlisle for the wedding. Mother and Dad were married at Carlisle October 14, 1913 L(L the best man was Gus Welch.  Mother says but for the flip of a coin the names might have been reversed..