Family Ties

Since the 1920s, when Bryan Memorial and Lincoln General hospitals began welcoming babies into the world, there have been countless examples of multiple generations forming lifelong ties to Bryan Health.

Maybe no family exemplifies these family ties at Bryan better than the Retzlaff family . Four generations of the family were born at Bryan. Marleen Rickertsen became the first member of her family born at a hospital in 1947. Marleen had her daughters, Lyn and Beth, at Bryan, and Lyn had her three children – Erin, Scott and Haley – there, too. Most recently, Erin has had her two sons, Ronin and Shiloh, at the hospital.

Across their lives, which largely have been spent around Lincoln, one constant for the family has been seeking health care at Bryan.

Where They Began

Before Marleen was born at Bryan, everybody in the family was born at their house, which still stands on the same land east of Lincoln that Marleen’s great-great-grandfather claimed in the 1850s.

Charles Retzlaff emigrated from Prussia in 1854, initially settling in Germantown, Wisconsin. Seeking to stake his family’s claim on unsettled land, he walked to an area in eastern Nebraska, put his stake in the ground, and walked back to Wisconsin. He and his wife traveled back to Nebraska on a wagon train, and they established their family’s new home.

The family farm, located close to what is now 138th and Van Dorn streets, has been home to multiple generations since. The land still includes many old farm buildings arranged in a courtyard fashion – including a large horse barn dating to 1901. Lyn and her husband, Neil, still live in the limestone house built by Charles in 1867.

The farm has been home to a variety of animals, including shorthorn cattle and peafowl, over the years. Bryan Memorial Hospital purchased eggs laid by the family’s chickens during the early days of the hospital.

Maternal Care Across Generations

Technology, facilities and treatments at Bryan have changed dramatically since Marleen, a retired teacher, was born at the hospital. She, her daughter and her granddaughter have had very different childbirth experiences.

When Lyn was born, the nurse who admitted Marleen was also pregnant and ultimately had her baby before Marleen did. It was during a snowstorm, and Bryan was overflowing with women in labor, Marleen said. At that point, Bryan Memorial only had two delivery rooms.

Lyn, founder, president and chief strategist for KidGlov, remembers being set on doing everything naturally as a young mom. However, baby Erin had other plans. Lyn’s due date came and went, and she eventually had to be induced five days later. For her second and third children, she ended up having one of the same nurses as she did for Erin’s birth.

Finally, Erin, who works with her mom at KidGlov as senior art director, had the opposite situation compared to her grandma in that she was the only delivery at Bryan on the day her first son was born.

“My labor took 37 hours, and I had all the students and staff on the floor with me,” Erin said. “So, I had time to get to know everybody.”

Erin tried to have a natural birth, like her mom, but eventually the doctors decided a c-section would be best. She was scared – having never undergone surgery – but she said the whole team made her feel calm.

“They had music playing loudly, and somebody said to me ‘we’re going to have a birthday today,’” Erin said. “It made me feel so much better.

“That’s the story of parenting, right? You prepare for everything, and then something you never prepared for happens.”

Erin and her husband, Kade, had asked that family members wait to come to the hospital until after the baby was born. Her younger sister, Haley, flew at the last minute and insisted that she and the family secretly go to the hospital. They were in the waiting room when a special Bryan tradition informed them of Ronin’s arrival.

“We heard the lullaby come over the speakers, and we said ‘oh, that’s Ronin,” Lyn said. “We had been there for hours, but once we heard that we went home. We didn’t even see him, but we were there, and that was special.”

Past, Present and Future

Outside of births, the family has been going to Bryan throughout its entire history for various ailments, from broken bones to strokes.

“When you have faith that a place is going to do the right thing and feel confident that you’re going to be well cared for, why would you not go there?” Marleen said. “That faith has been built up in me over all my years, so it’s just automatic now.”

Throughout their many birth experiences as a family, the three women said they have all received positive, compassionate health care.

“Obviously the doctors are amazing, but I think I remember the nursing more because we spend so much time with them,” Erin said. "They were so talkative and helpful to me and my husband, and they made sure to teach us some basics before our son was born. They took extra care to make sure we knew what we needed to know, even though we didn’t know what to ask for all the time.”

Today, the four generations of the Retzlaff family are thriving; Shiloh, 3, and Ronin, 1, are the eighth generation on the farm, which is on the National Register of Historic Places. The long-cherished home holds many reminders of where this family has been and the promise of a continued legacy.

Though much has changed, and will continue to change, the constant that is Bryan Health will last for this generation and many generations to come.

Take Your Next Step

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To learn how you can support the work of Bryan Health, please contact the Bryan Foundation staff by calling 402-481-8605.