Chapter 1

History of my Mormon heritage.

Joachim, a brother to my great-great-grandfather Jens Larsen. Joachim was the first on my mom’s side of the family to become Mormon. Joachim Andersen had been converted when missionaries were sent from America to Denmark. After Joachim was converted, he moved to America. He got married and then was sent back on a mission to Denmark. He spent a lot of time in my great-grandparent’s home. It was then he was able to convert and baptize my family members.

My great-great-grandfather

Wife

My great grandfather’s conversion story

Written by Christian’s daughter Mabel Elva
Translated by his great-granddaughter Anne-Mette Howland and his great-great-grandson Johnathan J. Howland.

When Lars Christian Larsen decided to get baptized, he was around 25 years of age. He was born in 1871. (He went by his middle name Christian)

When Christian was a young man, his mother’s brother Joachim Christian Anderson moved to America. After Joachim moved to America, he was introduced to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and baptized. Later he was called to serve a mission in Denmark. While Joachim was on his mission in Denmark he was called to serve as a Branch President in Korsør. At that time Christian worked on a big farm in a town called Slagelse. He helped to care for the animals. The only days he had off were Sundays. On his day off he would participate in the meetings in Korsør, where his uncle was anxious to share the gospel with him. In 1895 there was only one train a day going from Slagelse to Korsør. If my dad didn’t get to the train station in time, he couldn’t go to the meeting and partake of the sacrament. Christian just happened to know the train conductor. There were times when Christian was about to miss the train, then he waved to the conductor, and the conductor would stop the train and pick him up.

The Sunday that Christian had decided to get baptized everything was supposed to run smoothly. As Christian was getting ready to leave, the owner of the farm came up to Christian and said, “Christian, you can’t have the day off today, because we have a pig that is about to give birth. You have to stay here and help with it.” Lars Christian responded, “I can’t, my uncle is expecting me at 2:00 p.m. in Korsør.”

The farm owner was strict and insisted that he could not do without him and that he had to stay. Christian didn’t know what to do, so he knelt down and prayed to his Father in Heaven and asked if He would pave the way so that he would be able to get baptized that day.

He was barely done saying the prayer when the farmer came back and said that the pig had given birth to 7 piglets and that Christian was free to go after all. Christian hurried to the train station. When Christian got to the train station, he could see the train was leaving. Like before Christian waved to the conductor, but this time the conductor did not see him, and the train kept on going.

Christian was determined to get baptized that day. He took his socks and shoes off and started to run the long path from Slagelse to Korsør. (He ran a total of 11 miles) He made his destination two hours late. When he got there, the members of the branch were still patiently waiting for him to arrive. Since there was no baptismal font in the church, everyone went to the fjord, where Christians were to be baptized. Just as Christian and his uncle Joachim were about to walk into the water, Christian grabbed his uncle’s arm and said “I don’t want to get baptized today after all, let us run the other way.” When Joachim asked why he had changed his mind.” Christian responded, “Can’t you see that big black animal that’s in the water?” Joachim couldn’t see it. Joachim explained to Christian that it was the adversary’s way of trying to deter him from getting baptized. Joachim raised his arm to the square and commanded whatever evil was in the water to depart. Christian could no longer see the black animal. A peaceful feeling came over them and Christian was baptized.

Wife

Together Ane and Lars had 18 children. They were all raised in the Mormon church. One of these 18 children was my grandmother, Helfred. She was born on January 9, 1901. In those days it was common for children to die from different illnesses. Helfred saw six of her siblings pass away at a young age.

History of Helfred Helene Larsen. My Grandmother.

Helfred was one of 18 children. She was born on January 9, 1901. In those days it was common for children to die from different illnesses. Helfred saw six of her siblings pass away at a young age.

Her mother and father were small farmers and did not have a lot of money. As a young girl, she went to what was called a farmers school. There were 3 grades in one class, and they did not go to school during planting and harvesting seasons.

Every day when Helfred walked to school she would pass by a bull that was behind a fence. She would stop and tease it. It made the bull very angry but there was nothing it could do about it. One day the bull had gotten loose. When Helfred came walking by it chased her. She thought it was the end of the world and she was not aware she could run as fast as she did this day. She managed to jump into a ditch just in the nick of time and was saved. She was stuck in this ditch for hours because the bull stood and waited for her to come back up. Finally, the farmer noticed the bull was missing so he went looking for it. When the farmer found his bull, Helfred was finally able to get out of the ditch. Helfred never teased the bull again.

When Helfred was young she was sent away as a servant to help other farmers. Helfred, therefore, did not have a lot of schooling. She said for all the work she did, the only pay she got was room and board and then at Christmas time she got a pair of new clogs.

A few years later Helfred also worked at a hospital where she was able to earn some money.

Helfred grew up as a member of this same church. When Helfred was sent away as a servant for a farmer. While working as a servant she became pregnant with her first son who she named Eli. He was born on May 10, 1926.

A few years later Helfred got pregnant again by a different man. She named her second child Jytte. She was born on August 6, 1932.

Since Helfred was young and unmarried she was unable to take care of these two children. Helfred gave them to her mother and father to raise.

Helfred then met a man named Karl Henry Hansen. Karly was born on March 25, 1906.

Helfred then got pregnant with her third child. When Karl and Helfred found out that Helfred was expecting they married on June 14, 1937. My mother, Mette Else Hansen was born October 28, 1937, in Copenhagen, Denmark.

One and a half years later Mette got a baby brother. He was named Ole Funder Hansen. Ole was born on April 15, 1939.

Helfred Traveled to Aalborg to Try to Get Eli and Jytte Back.

When Helfred was married to Karl they lived in Copenhagen. When Jytte was two and Eli was eight, Helfred traveled back to Aalborg to get her two older children. Since Eli and Jytte had grown up with their grandparents they called them Mom and Dad and did not know who Helfred was because she had lived so far away. Helfred’s parents would not allow her to take Eli and Jytte back. It was with great heartache Helfred returned to Copenhagen without them.

Mette and Ole did not meet their older siblings until later in life, because they lived so far away from each other. Helfred would have loved to be able to visit Eli and Jytte and for all her children to know each other, but they could not afford the train ticket and the boat ticket it took to get to where her parents lived.

Mette and Ole’s Childhood

Mette and her brother Ole were sent to a daycare every day. She did not understand why because at the time her mother did not go to work.

Every day Mette and Ole got a piece of rye bread with sugar on it for lunch that their mother had packed for them. Mette was tired of the same thing for lunch every day, one day she refused to eat it. Since she would not eat it one of the daycare workers locked her in a closet to teach her a lesson. They forgot they had locked her in the closet, so she spent the rest of the day there until her mom came to get her.

Mette also recalls one day while she was at the daycare one of the workers beat Ole. Ole fell to the ground onto the tile by the stove and dislocated his arm. When their mother came to pick them up she did not realize anything was wrong with Ole. After a couple of days when Helfred finally noticed, she took him to the doctor. The doctor was unable to help Ole put his arm back into the socket. The doctor said it had been dislocated too long. For the rest of his life, this arm was paralyzed, but he was still able to use his hands and move his fingers.

When it was time for Ole to start school Helfred sent him away to a school for handicapped children. Helfred says she sent him away because she was afraid other children would make fun of him because his arm was paralyzed.

Ole was only allowed to come home on the weekends and on holidays. Mette missed her brother and was sad he was sent away.

When Ole was 12 years old he still did not know how to ride a bike because it was hard for him to balance with only one arm. When Ole came home Mette wanted to teach him to ride a bike once and for all. As she chased him down the street she was unable to hold on to the bike. There was a parked ambulance. As a result, Ole flew off the bike and hit his head on the ambulance. He got a severe concussion from the impact.

When Ole was 15 years old he got epilepsy. The doctor said it was caused by the bike accident three years earlier. Mette says her childhood was not easy. She loved her dad even though he was an alcoholic. Her parents always seemed to fight because of the drinking. When Mette was 10 years old her mother got a job cleaning trains for the next 25 years to help pay the bills.

When Mette was 13 years old she met her sister Jytte for the first time. Jytte had come to Copenhagen because she was on her way to America where she would end up living the rest of her life. Eli also immigrated to America.

Mette dreamed of growing up and someday having enough money to be able to visit them.

In 1954, at the age of 16, Mette started working at a place called The Royal Danish Porcelain Factory. She worked there as a student secretary. In 1957, at the age of 20, Mette moved away from home.

How Mette and Johny Met

Johny had some time off from sailing. He went to a little town called Hvidovre to visit with his friend, Sven. Mette had just come home from work when she saw her mom and Aunt Tove talking on the street. Mette stopped to join in the conversation. As Johny parked his scooter he saw Mette. Johny said “Hi” to her, and she returned his greeting.

Johny thought Mette was cute. He asked his friend Sven if he knew anything about the girl who was standing on the sidewalk. It just so happened that Sven’s wife Inge had gone to school with Mette. Inge laughed and said, “Oh, that’s Mette. Would you like me to introduce you to her?” Johny was excited about the idea. A few days later Mette and Johny were formally introduced. Johny invited Mette to go see a movie with him. They fell in love and from then on they would see each other whenever time allowed.

Six months later Mette was pregnant. Johny and Mette decided they should get married. They went to the courthouse in Copenhagen and were married by the judge on May 31, 1958. After the judge had performed the ceremony Johny and Mette went to visit Mette’s parents, Helfred and Karl, to tell them the news.

History about my dad’s side of the family

My grandmother, Kitty Grethe Johanne Rasmussen was born in Denmark on February 14, 1914. She went by the name Hanne. Not much is known about her parents or her childhood. Hanne was dating a man. His name is unknown.  She became pregnant. When Hanne told her boyfriend she was expecting, he left her. During her pregnancy, she met and married my grandfather, Niels Peter Hansen.

Hanne then gave birth to a baby girl. They named her Anna Lise Kitty Lukkanen. She was born in Copenhagen on August 30, 1932. She went by the name Kitty.

A year and a half later, on January 8, 1934, Hanne gave birth to my dad. He was named Peter Johny Hansen. When he was 14 years old, he added the name Niels to his name. He went by the name Johny.

When Johny was about eight years old his mother and father divorced. The only other information about my dad’s father Niels Peter Hansen is that he died in Denmark in 1962.

Hanne met another man and got pregnant with a boy that they named Jorgen Sonny Hansen, he went by the name Sonny. He was born in Copenhagen on July 1, 1942. 

When Sonny was about four years old, Hanne met a man named Poul Christian Lund, whom she married. All though Poul did not adopt Sonny, his mom changed his last name to Lund when he started school. She wanted him to have the same last name as hers.

My dad told me he had a very rough childhood because his mother was in so many relationships, being married and divorced several times. His mother also had many health problems and had to spend a lot of time in the hospital. Hanne was unable to take care of her children a lot of the time as they were growing up. Due to this, the children were sent away. Kitty was sent to an all-girls home. Johny was sent to an all-boys home. These homes were available in Denmark to children who had parents who could not care for them.

When my dad talked about this place he said, “It was not a place anyone should ever have to go to.” Children were not treated very well. They were often beaten. While Johny was there he saw boys who had committed suicide. On one occasion he looked into a room and saw a boy who had cut open his wrist and was sitting there, covered in blood. Another time he saw a boy who had hung himself with his belt, hanging from the ceiling.

Johny tried to run away from this place several times. When he was brought back, he would get a beating for trying to run away.

Hanne would sometimes come and get Johny and bring him home. When she was unable to take care of him again, she would return him to the home. Johny tried to tell his mother how awful the home was, but she did not know what else to do with him.

My dad’s sister Kitty got pregnant at the age of 19. She had a daughter whom she named Mary-Ann Lis Johansen. She was born on July 26, 1951. In 1954 Kitty gave Mary-Ann up for adoption shortly after the picture was taken. Kitty died on February 22, 1988, of a drug overdose. I met her once while she was in prison for possessing illegal drugs. She seemed like a nice lady.

Johny decided he would join the Navy and become a Sailor when he was old enough, which he did. He was able to escape the boy’s home, once and for all.

When Johny became a sailor, he saw many different parts of the world.

At the age of 25, Johny had his last name changed to Lund. His name was then Niels Peter Johny Lund. This was the name he was known for the rest of his life.

To find out more about my dad’s brother Sonny’s childhood I have asked him questions about what had happened to him during this time. Sonny told me that he was also sent to an all-boys home then he said that he did not want to talk about it. All he added was, “All is forgiven.” I take it his childhood must have been very difficult as well. 

Mette and Johny’s life together

Upon learning of their marriage, Helfred called up Johny’s mom, Hanne, and her husband, Poul (who was Johny’s stepfather) so they could meet the new in-laws. It was Saturday and they were able to come right over. Helfred made lunch for everyone so they could celebrate. After the meal, Mette and Johny went to an amusement park and spent the rest of the day having fun together.

Johny moved into Mette’s apartment until they were able to find a bigger place to live. To help them start a new life together Johanne and Poul bought them a chest of drawers. From Helfred and Karl, they received sheets and pillowcases. The newlyweds were excited for their first baby to come and start a family of their own.

On December 13, 1958, Mette gave birth to a boy. They named him Sander Johny Lund. They were so happy to have this little newborn. Johny couldn’t wait for him to grow up so they could go fishing and hunting. This would be Johny’s chance to do the things he was never able to do with his dad.

Johny left the Navy and got a job as a Taxi driver so he would be able to be home with his family.

One day when Johny came home he found that Mette had shaved her head. All her beautiful long blond hair was gone. He asked her why she had done this. Mette laughed as she said, “I just wanted to see what it would be like to be bald.” Johny couldn’t understand why his wife would do such a thing, but he consoled himself by thinking, it would grow back.

A few weeks later when he got home, he found Mette in the middle of painting the kitchen bright red. Johny asked, “What are you doing?” Mette replied, “I want a little color.” Johny began wondering what other surprises he might come home to in the future.

In November of 1959, Mette started to feel very ill. She went to see the doctor to find out what was wrong. The doctor diagnosed her with tuberculosis. Due to the seriousness of the illness, she was hospitalized immediately. Mette was admitted to the same hospital where her dad Karl was a patient because he also had tuberculosis.

Mette and Johny felt it would be best for Sander to be placed in a home where children could live for as long as they needed to. Mette was sad to be away from her nine-month-old baby. When she had been in the hospital for three months, she was finally allowed to leave the hospital for a few hours so she could go visit Sander. Mette and Johny were excited to see their baby again. When they got to the home where he was staying the caretakers brought him to them. Sander was now a year old. When he saw his parents, he did not recognize them. Sander cried and didn’t want anything to do with them. Mette was heartbroken.

Since Mette was getting better, she was allowed by the doctor to go visit Sander once a month for a few hours at a time. Because Sander was so young, he didn’t understand these visits and didn’t seem to care much for the time they spent together, he would rather be with the ladies who were taking care of him.

After eight months in the hospital, Mette was finally well enough to be released. Johny and Mette went to pick up Sander. They could finally take him home. Sadly, since Sander had been left at this residence for so long, he cried when his parents came to get him. He reached out his little arms for the ladies who had been taking care of him these past months. This was very hard on both Mette and Sander, being back with his mom took Sander some time to get used to.

Three months after Mette returned home from the hospital, she and Johny moved into a more modern home. This new apartment had hot water running coming from the pipes and their own private bathroom with a shower. Mette and Johny were thrilled to have these new modern conveniences.

September 1960

Mette’s health had improved and they talked about having more kids. The doctor advised them to wait because she had been sick for so long, but Mette felt fine and was excited to have a sibling for their son.

Wednesday, July 5, 1961

Mette was hospitalized because it was almost time for her second baby to come into the world.