A Short Biography of Walter and Maria Brand

Walter was the youngest in a family of three sons. He was born in Dortmund on the first of November 1932 . At he age of 14 he entered into a three-year apprenticeship program with a master baker. After completion he continued as a Konditor apprentice for another two years. As a journeyman with two credentials to his name, he felt fully equipped to face the world.

  He went to work in the different parts of Switzerland until 1956 when he applied for a position to work in Australia to make the goodies for the German Olympic team. Eventually, he ended up in Hawaii in 1960.

  This is, where our life together started.

Let me back up for a moment and tell you a little about myself.

I was born on March 30, 1936 , the fifth child in a family of six, four girls and two boys. My hometown is Vreden , near the Dutch boarder in the West Muensterland . At the age of 14, I went to work in a hospital, 60 km from home, which seemed a world away. Later I went to work in Krefeld and then in Stuttgart doing housework. I saved my money to pay for the Atlantic crossing on the Italia, to join my brother in Milwaukee in 1956. Being eager to learn about the world, I went to Hawaii in 1960, where I met my husband Walter on the beach at Waikiki .

Having the same background helped us decide rather quickly to get married.

We moved to the mainland. Both of our boys were born in San Francisco . Our oldest son gave us three grandchildren, all living and doing well in Birmingham , England . Our second son lives with his wife in San Mateo . They have no children.

  With the boys on their own and grandchildren too far away, I wanted to do something worthwhile with my time. History was my subject. I wondered what the Germans, who had come before us had done. Had this country been blessed by their arrival?

  I went to the library and started to dig. The librarians seemed surprised that anyone was interested in German American history, but they were very helpful. I was overwhelmed to learn about the contributions the Germans made to this country. Why was it not being taught in school? I wanted to share my findings with my fellow German immigrants but also with the diverse members of our community.

I started in 1986 and have not stopped since. I have talked in schools and senior centers.

My husband started to put the information I gathered on cardboards to make posters. We now have quite an exhibit. Our tent, 10x10, gives us ample space to display some of the German contributions made to the nation, the San Francisco Bay area and Santa Clara County , which is better known as Silicon Valley . We attend fairs, multi cultural events, Oktoberfests , German Days etc. We had an extensive exhibit in the main library in San Jose . Every-where we go we have flyers for people to take. On all of this we work together, because, neither one of us could do it alone.

I have become bold and started to write, struggling with the language as well as with the computer. I have had stories published about our heritage in The America Woche , the Staatszeitung , the Neue Presse , Continuity, a newsletter by a San Jose preservation society, Der Blumenbaum , a Sacramento German American Genealogical Society and the Villager, a newsletter for a retirement community with about 4000 residents.

My husband and I have had a fundraiser for the restoration of a picture of the Orchestral Society of San Jose, taken in 1893, which had started as The Germania Verein Amateur Orchestra. It was the direct forerunner of the San Jose Symphony. We collected $5,000 in three months. The picture was restored in 1999. Our last endeavor was the naming of a small playground after a German pioneer in the downtown area. The city council approved the park as well as the name on March 18, 2003 . It will be named Balbach Park . Balbach manufactured the first steel plow on the West coast in 1852. He had his shop in that neighborhood.

I believe this will give you plenty of insight in our leisure activity.

Thank you very much.

Walter and Maria Brand