Last month a substitute minister at our church spoke about “standing on the shoulders” of those who came before us and benefiting from their good deeds, good reputation and successful lives. We can honor these ancestors by writing about their lives. I would like to tell the story of Melva Coleman, my great aunt. Melva was born July 16, 1872 to Isaac and Amanda Megraw Coleman. She was raised in the Town of Victory where she was active in church and civic events. Her grandfather, Thomas Coleman, started the Presbyterian Church in Victory in 1820, and her uncle, Samuel H. Coleman, was a deacon and Sunday school superintendent in the Baptist Church there for 47 years.

Melva married Frank Briggs of Cato on March 14, 1893 at the home of her parents. They moved to Cato to live. Frank worked in a tobacco stripping establishment and after a few years went to New York City and attended embalming school. He came back to Cato and opened an undertaking business in 1904. Later, Melva also became a licensed embalmer, and together they conducted the undertaking business and a furniture business in Cato. They were active in the Church of Christ - Melva being the superintendent of the Primary Sunday school for many years and Frank also serving the church in many capacities. Melva was also the leader of the missionary society at the church. They did much charity work in Cato and surrounding vicinity that the general public knew nothing about.

Following the bank holiday in 1933, Frank engineered the necessary work so that the National Bank in Cato could reopen. The bank was reorganized and Frank was elected president, served for two years in that capacity and retired. Frank was also known as the father of the local fire department. The department was organized in the early 1920s and he was the first chief. The first purchase was a little two-wheeled hose cart that men drew by hand around the village. Frank resigned as chief in 1936. In 1941, Frank was the oldest, native resident of the village.

Melva and Frank worked until 1936 when they sold their businesses to Millard Mott of Fulton. They spent their winters in St. Petersburg, Fla. and bought a home there in 1940. Their hobbies in St. Petersburg were landscaping, needlepoint and weaving. They still came back to Cato in the summer months and made frequent trips to Sackets Harbor for fishing in Lake Ontario. Melva and Frank Briggs celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in March, 1941 with a big party at the Shrine Club in St. Petersburg. They both passed away in the 1950s but left a rich legacy to our family history.

Beverly Sayles grew up in the town of Victory and writes about its history