A box of letters from the 1940’s have brought many special memories to life for sisters, Christine Berhow-Greiman and Jenny Berhow-Hanson.
After their mother died in 1998, the family cleaned out her home. Christine ended up with boxes of letters her parents wrote to each other from 1942 to 1945.
“At the time I didn’t have any interest in reading them,” said Christine, who is from Garner. “I finally asked Jenny if she’d like them.”
“I started reading them and realized we had something very special,” said Jenny, who lives in Ventura.
The story begins when Nancy Jane Hare met John Harlan Berhow on a blind date on June 13, 1939.
Johnny wanted to serve in World War II, but due to rheumatic fever as a child, he was not eligible for the Armed Forces. He began working at Bethlehem Steel in San Francisco welding ships. The letters began when he moved to San Francisco.
In November 1943 he joined the Merchant Marines where he was an engineer on cargo ships that hauled supplies and troops to the South Pacific.
“He wanted to be in the Armed Forces and wanted to die for his country if needed,” said Christine. “He didn’t want a desk job.”
Jane, in the mean-time, got a job at a Des Moines ammunition plant making bullets.
“The letters are written like a phone conversation between the two, like a diary,” said Jenny. “Sometimes they’d write two to three letters a day. They’d ask questions and then three days later a letter would arrive from the other with the answers.”
The letters contained many historical events that were taking place at the time, not only about the war, but other events such the San Francisco black-out and the launching of ships. There were also newspaper clippings of events that tied everything together.
“Dad had gone to a movie in San Francisco and told Mom not to bother seeing it because it was terrible. The movie was ‘Casablanca,’” Jenny laughed.
There were also secret messages written in shorthand in the middle of some of the letters. They had the messages deciphered and learned Johnny was admitting to loving her and wanted her to do the same.
“In July of 1943, Jane had a trip planned to San Francisco to visit Johnny, but then her father died and she didn’t get to go until September of 1943,” said Christine.
Johnny came back to Des Moines in 1944 on a two week leave. The couple were married on July 19, 1944. Jane had five days notice to prepare the wedding.
The couple honeymooned in Clear Lake where they stayed at the Hilltop Motel and went dancing at the original Surf Ballroom.
Following the honeymoon, Johnny returned to San Francisco. Nancy moved to San Francisco in May 1945, ending the letters. Nancy did keep journals following the letters, so the sisters were able to piece more information together about their lives.
Johnny was thanked for his service by the Merchant Marines on Oct. 22, 1946. The couple then moved to Des Moines and later to Hampton before settling in Garner in 1963, where they raised five daughters. Johnny owned Berhow Plumbing and Heating in Garner from 1963-1973. Jane owned J&K Refinishing.
Once Christine and Jenny began putting the letters in order they realized they had many photos and memorabilia that corresponded to the letters.
“One letter had poke holes in it and Dad talked about a special pin he had gotten her and I realized I had the pin he was talking about,” said Jenny. “The holes lined up perfectly with the pin.”
Christine and Jenny wanted to do something special with the letters to share the remarkable love story of their parents. In 2020 they started a blog entitled, “johnnyandjanewwii.blog, with pictures and transcribed letters.
“It’s been a real learning experience,” said Christine. “We learned how to get followers and we put it on Facebook. Our goal is to get the story published in a book someday.”
“I loved learning a whole new side of our parents,” said Jenny. “We were young when Dad died in 1976, the letters gave us a way to get to know him better.”
“Our biggest regret is that we didn’t go through the letters when Mom was still alive,” said Christine. “You don’t realize when you’re a kid the love your parents had for each other.”
Both Christine and Jenny agree that the project has been rewarding in so many ways. They encourage other families to take a look at those old family letters and memorabilia. You never know what stories you’ll find in those musty boxes in the basement.
