Married Life with Beula and Children, Part 1

Written by Kimberly Eden, Heath's Row: A History of Herman and Beula Heath

In March 1949 they moved to Dragerton, where Beula's parents were living. Herman got a job in the coal mine. He had worked only a short time when the mines went on strike, which lowered the work week to one or two days a week for almost nine months. Jeffery Lavon was born on December 2, 1949. "He was a beautiful little red headed fellow, who looked exactly like his father." When he was 2 months old he got pneumonia and was in the hospital and recovered after two days, but then Beula spent five days in the same hospital with the same sickness.

In September of 1950, Herman was recalled to the Marine Corps during the Korean War. He was stationed at El Toro Air Base, just outside of Santa Ana, California. where Jeff and Beula, then pregnant, joined him two weeks later. He was promoted to sergeant and recalled to the reserves on temporary service. Herman explained his situation as - "I was supposed to be involved in VI instrument maintenance. As I traveled to El Toro Marine Base in CA, I met Sgt. Wayne Braithwaite who worked in the post office in Ogden Utah. He pulled strings to get me in the post office at El Torro Marine Base. I worked in the post office for one year receiving and distributing mail." On the fifteenth of March 1951 Kristena Eilene was born in the Naval hospital at Camp Pendleton, Oceanside, California. "She was tall and thin like her mama but no means skinny. She had medium brown hair and big blue eyes." For his service in the Korean War, Herman received the National Defense Service Medal.

After Herman was discharged in September of 1951 he worked at US Steel Mine in Horse Canyon until January of 1952 when he returned to Brigham Young Academy and completed his Bachelor's in Geology. He got a job for an oil company in Rock Springs, Wyoming but only remained there for two months before being transferred to Grand Junction, Colorado. He didn't like the work and took a job as a chemist for U.S. Vanadium Development CO. and they moved Herman to Uravan, Colorado. Herman was promoted to manager and transferred to Thompson, Utah. Herman also worked at a service station in the evenings. They were there until January of 1955 and were transferred back to Uravan. While they were there Beula's allergy developed into asthma and in April they moved to Greenview, Utah where they lived until November. They then moved back to Grand Junction where Herman worked for Climax Uranium as a metallurgist and Beula went to work for Dr. Pavetti, a veterinarian. They bought and lived in a trailer on an acre on Elen Avenue.

Jeff started elementary school in September of 1956 and Kristena started the next year but Herman decided to return to school to get his masters, so in late September of 1957, he got a leave of absence and they returned to Provo. Gail Lynn, the third and last child, was born in the Utah Valley Hospital on November 8, 1957. "He had long black hair, blue eyes, and red skin, which soon faded to a peachy white." Jeff was baptized on April 12, 1958 by his uncle Clyde and was confirmed a member of the church the next day by Elder Harold LaMunyou.

When Gail was five weeks old, Beula hound an infection in her breast and was in the hospital for a week. The day after she was released they returned to Grand Junction where Beula relapsed with bronchitis pneumonia and a severe attack of asthma. Spring came before she was well again. In August, Herman was laid off and moved to Ceadaredge, Colorado where he taught school the next two years. Herman, a priest by this time, baptized Kristena on April 18, 1959. She was confirmed a member of the church the same day by Dr. Wallace Ames.