The Hillmer Twinkie Blog
The story of a Twinkies Box that has traveled over 32,500 miles to date
(That's more miles than once around the world!)
Twinkies Celebrated their 80th Anniversary in 2010 and apparently went belly up in 2012!
(Maybe it was because they taste so bad...)
Good news - in 2013, Hostess Brands is back in business and Twinkies along with a number of other great products, including Cupcakes, are once again being made and sold!!
Dedicated in loving memory to Aunt Alyce, August 1998
The is a very true story of two Hillmer families: one in Colorado, one in Wisconsin. Their kids, first cousins, did many things that all children do. One summer in Colorado, junk-food flowed in excess. For some reason that history is not clear on, sometime in the mid to late 1970's, a box of Twinkies was purchased in Colorado but the novelty of eating such stuff had worn off so the Twinkies were not eaten - but saved! Then, in July 1980, one of these kids was married and when one of the wedding gifts was opened they found The Box of Twinkies! This box was then sent back and forth when the families would travel and visit each other. Initially, the travels were recorded (signed & dated) on the box. But as time (and a certain dog in Colorado) ate away at the box, it became fragile so notes and other small items were collected in the box to help keep the time-line going. In the mid 90's the scribblings were documented in an EXCEL spreadsheet. In August 1998, the spreadsheet was transferred to the internet for all to see. That same box, continues its travels to this day!
PS: The actual Twinkies (food?) were enjoyed by Cinder, the German Shepherd in Colorado who found the box and didn't ask about its age.
The History...
| Messages and History | |||
| Original Cost $1.29 | |||
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July 19, 1980
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11:48am Opening JD & Bonnie's Wedding Gifts, the box was found | ||
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February 26, 198?
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Not clear when or how this happened, but it was returned to Colorado. | ||
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March 14, 1982
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High noon, sent to WI Hillmers | ||
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?
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Un-documented event | ||
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September 15, 1985
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11:45am | ||
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April ??, 19??
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Ink ran (dog slobber), too hard to read | ||
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August 13, 1988
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Un-documented event | ||
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November 19, 1988
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This marks the 2nd time in 10 years that Alyce visited Waukesha; a card from Stacy & Michael was added; an individual Twinkie was added (it expires Nov 18, 1988 - so don't eat it!) | ||
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December 12, 1989
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Christmas tag added "JD, I didn't forget, Santa of Colo." | ||
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September 20, 1990
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Un-documented event | ||
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August 27, 1995
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JD brought to WI from Carl's Wedding (Aug. 26, 95) | ||
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July 27, 1996
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Sent to CO with Roy (Christmas in July, Roy visited Grandma H who is now at Westmoreland Home) | ||
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August 22, 1996
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JohnW & Bev went to Roy & Alyce's 40th anniversary and brought it back with them; pictures in box now from CO | ||
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April 20, 1997
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Gave to Roy to take back to CO; he was here to see Grandma H and attended JohnW's 68th B-Day party | ||
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August 12, 1998
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Sent back via John & Bev in memory of Aunt Alyce (mom). The Legend and Tradition Must Continue! | ||
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October 13, 1998
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Sent with Roy back to Carl & Shelly as a baby gift to welcome Whitney (9/24/98) to this family tradition. | ||
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June 23, 1999
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Sent back to Wisconsin with John & Bonnie and their family when they visited the Colorado Hillmers. There was a spectacular lightning storm when they left that evening. | ||
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August 7, 1999
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Sent back to Colorado with Roy, after a fishing trip on Lake Michigan. 7 Salmon and 1 Brown Trout were caught; waves were 4-6' and it rained a bit, fishing was great, and included a 38" 28 lb. King Salmon. | ||
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June 13, 2000
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The Colorado and Wisconsin Hillmers went fishing again (June 17th) on Lake Michigan, but the "box" was left in Colorado by accident. The "reunion" included a 50th wedding anniversary for the "senior" Hillmer's (John & Bev) | ||
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November 2000
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No Activity | No Activity | The CO and WI Hillmers came together in Waukesha to remember Roy & John W's mother, our Grandma Hillmer, at the time of her passing. The Twinkies were left in Colorado as we all had more important things on our mind this time. |
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February 2001
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A package arrived in the mail, and to our surprise the box of Twinkies had been found and shipped to Waukesha. Thanks Roy 🙂 | ||
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August, 2001
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Returned with Roy to Colorado, with a "Twinkie the Kid" toy added for Carl & Shelly to celebrate the birth of their baby, Naomi (6/17/01). | ||
| June 12, 2003 | Colorado | Wisconsin | Sent back to Wisconsin via John & Bev in memory of Roy, nothing added to the box this time, just memories. |
| June 26, 2003 | Wisconsin | Colorado | This could be an all time record as the box was returned to Colorado by John & Bonnie and their family, just 336 hours (or so) after the June 12 memorial service. A Twinkie Lip Balm was added to the box (purchased at Walgreen's in Waukesha). |
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May 31, 2004
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At breakfast the day after Kristi & Josh's wedding, in Cincinnati, the box was passed back to the WI-Hillmer clan, with an added set of Twinkie earrings and a Twinkie T-Shirt now enclosed (we all signed the shirt). | ||
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May 28, 2005
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The box and goodies are handed back to the Colorado clan in Madison Wisconsin as we all came together for Nate and Erin's wedding. | ||
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July 21, 2007
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The box and its treasures was handed back to the Wisconsin Hillmers in Richland, WA, when we all gathered there for Richard and Jill's wedding. The box has increased in size to accommodate a few new items, including a Twinkie glass. | ||
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July 25, 2009
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The ever growing box is returned to Colorado via Marna & Phil, in St. Cloud Minnesota, during the wedding weekend of John & Bonnie's son, J.Michael, to Leah. A small article was added, AND a picture from 1988 of Alyce & Roy handing the box to John D. The WI-Hillmers are looking forward to it coming back either at or before their daughter Stacy's wedding, to Jake, on June 5, 2010. | ||
| June 5, 2010 | Colorado | Wisconsin | The box was given back to JD at Stacy and Jake's wedding in Waukesha, with even more stuff added to it. When will it get back to Colorado? |
| April 4, 2014 | Wisconsin | Colorado/Minnesota | The box, now in a Twinkie Backpack, was given to Marna the week after John David's mom, Beverly, passed on (12 days after her 85th birthday). A wonderful time of memories was shared by all as we celebrated mom's life on earth and her eternal life now with Christ. |
| October 31, 2015 | Minnesota |
Wisconsin
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Marna & Phil brought the Twinkie BackPack to Wisconsin with all its contents, including a new box of Twinkies, and one wrapped with a note, for John D. Hillmer's Retirement, 10/31/2015. Much fun and celebrating around the retirement, but the planned Kite flying (a Hillmer family retirement Tradition) had to be postponed as it rained on the 31st. Note, now that Marna & Phil have moved from Colorado to Forest Lake, MN, I suspect the box will travel back to Minnesota next time. |
| March 13, 2018 | Wisconsin |
Minnesota
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We missed a few wedding opportunities to exchange the Twinkies (Richard & Nancy H in Thief River Falls and then Kimberlie & Alex in Waukesha), but finally as Marna & Phil passed through Waukesha after touring the South and visiting Nancy P for her BIG birthday, we exchanged the box at Michael & Leah's house and it traveled back to Forest Lake, MN.xxx |
| Sometime in 2019 | Minnesota | Wisconsin | The box was brought to Waukesha on Nov 11, 2019. Marna & Phil had taken their Ridgeline pickup truck for a short road trip down to Waukesha. The 11th was a Monday and we had pizza at John W's house. |
| August 24, 2020 | Wisconsin | Minnesota | Just 4 weeks before John W's passing (9/23/20), Marna and Phil picked up the Twinkie Kit from John W's driveway dinner (we were all trying to be socially distanced from one another, due to COVID19 carefulness). |
| March 4, 2022 | Minnesota | Wisconsin | After traveling to a number of destinations this past winter, Marna & Phil passed through Waukesha with the very full Twinkie Backpack and all of his memorabilia. The exchange was made after feasting at a Thanksgiving Day style dinner with carved turkey and all the fixings, hosted at Mike & Leah’s house, with food brought to the event by each attendee. The Twinkie Backpack is packed now and has a newly added “Twinkies Fun and Easy Dessert Kit” in it. We all think it’s time to digitize some of the contents and reduce its weight and volume. |
| April 13, 2024 | Wisconsin | Minnesota | Marna and Phil traveled to Waukesha for a weekend visit and time of fun and games (a night of Rook) with the Waukesha clan. They toured a few of the local attractions, including the Mitchell Park Domes Horticulture Conservatory, and a drive through tour of Lapham Peak State Park to see where JD volunteers. Marna shared homemade gifts that she sewed, with the girls and for the anticipated Hillmer baby (Mike & Leah's, expecting #3 in June). |
| Date | Received From | Delivered To |
Revised April, 2024