Whatever happened to the kids of the "Bike Bus" couple?

[astro]

IIRC was discussed several years ago, but I can’t find it in searching and I’ve forgotten if there were any answers.

Per the Bike Bus Story(start at page 1 advance to 5 then come back to this link to get pages 6 & 7 )

Whatever happened to Ellie’s kids? Seems to be kind of mystery. IIRC someone found a comment somewhere regarding their fate.

[Green_Cymbeline]

I remember reading all about them here a while back. It was an intriguing story.

Ah, just found the link: Story of the BikeBus. (image heavy, long worthwhile read.)

I looked this up on Wikipedia and found nothing - I am surprised there is nothing there.

[Green_Cymbeline]

Here’s a better link to the Bike Bus site: http://www.goddessheart.com/bicyclebus/bikebus_history1.htm

[Green_Cymbeline]

Apparently, RomTom wrote a book, “Comporting Roadwise,” and this is from a web site about the book: http://www.medicinebowgallery.com/roadwise.html (Flash presentation, then click “more” link):

Comporting Roadwise is an autobiographical work detailing the shocking story
of RomTom, an American hippie-gypsy who was imprisoned for his pacifist beliefs
during the Vietnam War era, and who when ultimately released from confinement
embarked upon an amazing adventure as an American nomad along with Ellie,
his French-Canadian born wife. The journey cost them their three daughters,
losing them one at a time to the U.S. government, and a multitude of other miseries
which government agencies and the rigors of living on the road heaped upon them.
In addition to the horrors they experienced, there has also been a great deal of
wonderful magic in their lives during the thirty years since their journey began.

Also, a quote from here: http://portland.indymedia.org/en/2005/08/322912.shtml

After thirty years on the road with his French-Canadian wife (who now suffers from mental difficulties resulting from the government having “rescued” their three daughters from their hippy life-style), Rom Tom is as mellow and peace-loving as can be, still repairs and purchases bicycles wherever he goes, a gaggle of which famously decorate the top and sides of his '74 Ford bus, and has written a prodigious tome about his life entitled Comporting Roadwise.

[Green_Cymbeline]

Found something else, on an adoption message board, from 2003: Adoption | Adopting.org

Seeking our daughter, Beersheba Rose

Today has been a wonderful day for us. Thanks to adoptioinforum.com we have been tearfully reunited with our daughter Sandy Laughing River after an absense of 20 years. Now we have one more daughter to find, our third child, Beersheba, who was born Jan 21, 1981 in Seattle, Washington and taken away from us by the government in Orange County California later that year. My name is Thomas Holme. My wife is Marie Ellie Holme. We have been together all this time, hoping that someday we would find our lost children. My sister says that the people who adopted Beersheba changed her name to Rose Marie Martin and they lived in Orange California. Another time I heard that her name was Beersheba Rose Martin.

Beersheba, if you are out there, please know that we have always loved you. We never willingly parted with you. They took you away from us because we were fish out of water in California, – we were counter-culture people who had lived in log cabins in the wilderness, trying to live vegetarian lifestyles, until we were caught up in circumstances and forced to live in hectic southern California, which was as different from us as day and night. Your mother, Ellie, is a French Canadian. She did not speak English well. The government workers really gave her a hard time, intimidated her badly, broke her heart. She has never fully recovered. But I love her with all my heart and will always be with her. Now that we have found Sandy Laughing River, for the first time in a long time, we feel hope that we will all be united again one day. We have a website:

Yahoo | Mail, Weather, Search, Politics, News, Finance, Sports & Videos

And I have also written a book about the way they took our children away from us. It is entitled COMPORTING ROADWISE and should be released on CD later this year.

Your parents, Tom and Ellie

And another tidbit, from here

Ellie and I hitchhiked together for many years, lived in communes, bought old vehicles and wandered cross country. When she got pregnant we attracted attention of the authorities who did not approve of our lifestyle and our child Mushmara was taken away and we could not get her back. My sister Patricia was able to get custody of her and ended up raising her as part of her family. Unfortunately Ellie and I had two more children on the road, each time hoping we were in a place where this tragedy would not be repeated, but both children were taken anyway. We consider it a gross injustice. I have always believed the government took my children because of the stand I took during the Viet Nam war, as a way of punishing me and ruining my life. Few others believe that scenario. I do. We do not know where Sandy Laughing River or Beersheba Rose are now. I wrote a book about it all, entitled COMPORTING ROADWISE. It has never been published, but hopefully will be some day.

[astro]

Reading between the lines (again) it appears her mental stability really was kind of questionable. I have to admit I’m not sure removing the kids from that environment (if she was as spacey as even her sympathetic husband described her) was entirely the wrong thing to do.

[Crafter_Man]

@astro

Reading between the lines (again) it appears her mental stability really was kind of questionable. I have to admit I’m not sure removing the kids from that environment (if she was as spacey as even her sympathetic husband described her) was entirely the wrong thing to do.

Agree.

I learned long ago to never make a judgment after hearing only one side of the story.

[juniperrrdannonnn]

Romtom was my dad. he passed 3 weeks ago. Rose, Sandy, Tommy and Marry were all reunited with us within the past 20 years. it was all dad had ever wanted, im glad he got his wish. i am their half sister Juniper, RomToms and my mother Ami’s daughter. my sisters and brother live all around the world now, all but sandy raising their own big families. sandy is in college. only sandy and tommy even stayed in the USA. rose found dad, but dad had to fight to find sandy. marry was raised by a family member after taken from our father by the state. i was the product of free love, my mother was a friend to Dad and Elys’. Ely went up to Canada a few weeks ago to be taken after by family. dad lived to be 65 years old. he lived an extroardinary life

[juniperrrdannonnn]

oh and i am just a highschool student… i was dads only child to get ot stay in his life since the beginning of my own, sadly. i saw him multiple times a year up to the age 16. Tommy was the only other who was not taken by the state besides me. we were raised by our mothers. i bet you didnt expect to hear directly from one of us, but there you go

[Reepicheep]

juniperrrdannonnn thank you for posting and giving us the information about your father. May he rest in peace.

[Blue_Mood]

I’m sorry to hear about your dad’s passing. He sounded like an amazing person.

[Tristan]

My condolences on the passing of your father, and welcome to the Dope!

I hope you stick around, you sound like you would fit in here just fine.

[Mr.Slant]

My condolences as well.
Your dad seemed a neat fellow, and I enjoyed his writing.

[retsin2000]

I saw a wonderful happy hippie bus with a bunch of bikes on top Sunday before last in Missouri while I was driving from Colorado to Illinois to visit my seriously ill father. It gave me a great big good feeling in the middle of a somewhat grim journey. Don;t know if they were inspired by your dad juniperrrdannonnn, but I wouldn’t be surprised. Very sorry for your loss.

[dreddybetty]

I was there during the Vermont and Quebec Rainbow Gatherings era.
I met RomTom and Ellie in Vermont but mostly got to hang out with them for about a month at Lac Beau near the town of Riviere Bleu in Quebec.
I was trying to find them to reconnect when I found this thread. Sorry I missed RomTom and he is now passed on, but I’m glad Ellie is back with her family.
I am especially glad that their story has made it to the internet. It will live on in our hearts.
Another woman who incidentally had a baby during the Lac Beau gathering, Smiley (a spirit connection for sure in so many ways, I should write the story for you folks) knew and loved RomTom and Ellie too. I’m sending her the link to the story of the Bike Bus, et al.
I love hearing from Juniperrr <3 Very sweet and makes me so happy.
Infinite Love for my Rainbow family, all the indigo children and the crystal star babies… muah!
- DB

[Oncearunaway]

Hi,

Child of Romtom: Sorry for your loss and I’m glad your mom could figure out how to protect you from removal by the GOV.

BUT- I searched for him because I heard nude pics. of my young self were on line only to find his multiple websites all defunct.

I was likewise at VT gathering and Lac Beau and met Romtom as a street kid in Montreal. What can I say- he was on me like glue - basically a rainbow gathering version of stalking- blathering about all the goddess stuff. Eventually I agreed to let him take pictures as he had been forcefully and manipulatively begging me for. He had found me at sunrise- oh and he molested me against my will telling me that it was normal and how everyone gets so worried about touching genitalia but goddess power …blah etc.

Ya, I get it- it boils down to I was a traumatized girl and had no clue how to say NO and so Romtom got to have a weird sexual experience with me and then years later friends saw my photos- which were extensive and I will not describe- all the way in Oregon.

Oh, and I was 14.

You can all rationalize it any way you want- free love- beauty- happy hippy. But- if you lose 3 daughters- maybe you should lay off the other people’s lost daughters.

Just adding my actual “goddess” experience to the mix of groovy memories. Peace