The man who stepped up and filled the need – Ezra Hohulin
Over the years, I’ve told people that Ezra Hohulin was the greatest man I personally met. That is a bold statement about a person, when there might be so many people to choose from that have impacted my life. Let me share some reasons why Ezra Hohulin’s life measured up to the point where I can declare that he was the greatest person I have personally met.
In the Hohulin family there is a deep history of people with very strong faith, lives devoted to their Savior. Gottlieb Hohulin, Ezra’s Grandfather set a great example of the family as a lay preacher. Ezra continued that legacy, but it took the trials of life to surrender his life to Christ. These trials included losing everything in the Great Depression, having his wife Marie die after the birth of their sixth child, trying to hold it all together without Jesus to walk with him and provide for him. In his late 30s or early 40s, as a widower with six children under the age of 14 or so, Ezra came to faith. Ezra lived out his faith in many ways that have been lost to history. One way that Ezra lived out his faith was recently shared by his Grandson Jim Klopfenstein. Jim notes that Grandpa would buy items at garage sales, mark the item up a little, sell it at his next garage sale and give the profit to those in need. But the best argument for me in how Ezra stepped up to fill needs is the impact of his faith on his children and grandchildren. Ezra’s children and grandchildren also came to faith. Then many of them became, Pastors, Missionaries in foreign lands, and all became missionaries to their children and the people in their lives.
Let’s step back to an earlier point in Ezra’s life. Ezra was born in 1902, the world was changing, technology was advancing. As a young man, Ezra saw the travel and farming by horses’ transition to automobiles and planes, and farm tractors. He experienced the flu epidemic of 1918, World War I, the Great Dust bowl, and the Great Depression. Many of these events could crush a person’s spirit. But Ezra’s character and eventually his faith made him resilient. There is a story in the family that after Marie’s death a wealthy family offered to adopt the infant Vera, Grandpa keep his children together and pressed forward. At the start of World War II Ezra was a 40-year-old widower with six young kids, but a single man. The U.S. needed every able-bodied man. The oral family history was that Ezra had to talk his local draft board into letting him stay home, work at Caterpillar and take care of his family. What would have happened to those young children if Ezra had gone to war and left them with other family members.
In November of 1942 Grandpa remarried. Mary Thomas became the children’s mother and Grandma to us 25 Grandchildren. Notice that I didn’t use the terms Stepmother or Step Grandmother. Because that’s not who Mary Thomas was, she was the mother to the first six children, the additional three that she and Ezra had, and the most wonderful Grandmother to all the Grandchildren. I share this because I believe that Grandma Mary was the reason for the next example of Grandpa Ezra stepping up to meet needs. Growing up I remember that once a year or so, Grandpa and Grandma would send a check to their children. While they we not rich, they were sharing their resources. As a Grandchild it was awesome to have Grandma and Grandpa send you $5. Remember there ended up being 25 of us. Grandpa told the story of when he was young his aunt Anna Maria Hohulin gave him some change and told him to save some of it for his old age. Grandpa said that he went to the grocery store and bought oranges. I wonder what Ezra and Mary’s grandchildren did with the $5 each time they received it. But I know this, it made us feel special and we knew that Grandma and Grandpa loved us.
By 1977 Grandpa was a widower again. At some point in in the late 1970’s or early 1980’s Grandpa moved to an apartment in the Apostolic Christian Skylines in East Peoria, Illinois. Often the Grandchildren would visit Grandpa, bringing their spouses and children with us. We wanted our families to know Ezra. Grandpa always had a smile on his face and would note today was the best day of his life. Grandpa had a closet down the hall from his apartment where he stored candy, and animal cracker cookies for the great grandkids, many great grandchildren went home all sugared up. But we didn’t go see Grandpa for the candy and animal cracker cookies. See Grandpa showed that he loved and cared for us by knowing all our names, and our spouses’ names. That was between 40 to 45 names. Most grandparents struggle to remember their grandchildren’s names little alone their spouses. He would show us his love by the time and personal attention that he spent with us. To us Grandchildren he was the best Grandpa anyone could ever wish for.
I have heard the following information from my parents, Aunts, Uncles and cousins. Family oral tradition tells us that Great Grandpa Tim lost up to three farms in multiple states in the Great Depression. Ezra Hohulin lost a farm and a feed store in the Great Depression. Ezra retired from Caterpillar in 1967 at the age of 65. At about that time, it was noted that Ezra paid off the last of his debts from the farm and the feed store that he lost in the Great Depression. Today no one pays off the debt of the items, businesses that they have lost to foreclosure. Ezra paid these debts but never got back the farm or the feed store. What a testimony of his faith and character.
Growing up I often wondered why Ezra as the second son seemed to have acted more like a first son. As I’ve gathered information about the family history, I have come across information that helps me understand possible reasons why Ezra took on the responsibilities of an oldest son. Whatever the reasons, Ezra Hohulin stepped up and looked after his father, mother and at least one brother.
Over the years I have met people who knew Ezra. Some of these are distant family members who maybe didn’t have the greatest memories of their parents. But when they speak of Ezra, they note his kindness, the positive impression that Erza left them and how he positively impacted their lives.
Ezra Hohulin was a real-life George Bailey from It’s a Wonderful life. He impacted so many lives that is why I can say with great confidence that he was the greatest man that I have ever personally met.
Mark Hohulin