To the grandfather who died before I was born…

Dear grandfather Joshua Lafayette Twitchell. I loved to say your name. For some reason I have admired you and thought of you even though I did not know you in this life. You died when your daughter, who is my mother, Vesta Maud Twitchell Jacob was only nine years old. The events of that day were so difficult in her memory they were retold many times in her life. She also told how you would cause your children to laugh because you dressed up and teased them. I came to know you through your six grown children who were my aunts and uncles and through your wife, my grandmother Bea Snyder Twitchell, who never remarried. There was also a 7th child, Elmo, who died as a young child. You grew up in Escalante with parents who were active members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints and Escalante is where you met your future wife as she was helping your mother. Grandmother decided to become sealed in the temple at Manti to you and I heard my grandmother tell of the dream before she decided to do this ordinance. The dream is sacred and her experience to tell. The quality of your family tells me something of the quality of you and the hope that we all have of being united as a family in our after life.

You worked hard for your family herding sheep that you owned and then selling them to buy a home in Delta that later was stolen from you by the persons who sold it to you saying the second mortgage was disclosed as part of the price. You lost that home due to the deceit of that sale which caused you to now not only have lost your income through the sheep you sold but also your livelihood to earn an income. You became discouraged and returned to use of alcohol which caused severe poverty for your family.
Grandmother chose you to marry and you were the only one she wanted to be married to out of all the possible choices she had. I do believe you will turn your boat around and that heaven will be all that it is promised it can be for you with all of us. This is written by your second oldest granddaughter Sherrill Jeanne Jacob, 06/06/21.