Strombotne / Specht

Ben came to America to live in Indianapolis with his mother’s brother, Louis Wolf (nee Rousuk) and his wife, Jennie Efroymson, who were first cousins and both born in Vilkaviskis, Lithuania. In the late 1800’s, the Wolfs and Efroymsons started several Department Stores, in Indianapolis, and for Ben Brodie’s first few years in America, he worked for his uncle. At six feet tall and 200 pounds, Ben was purported to be a rough and tumble young man, who was always getting into fights, and after a few years in Indianapolis, his uncle encouraged him to join the U.S. Army, as way to Americanize him. Ironically, it was to escape the Russian Imperial Army, which prompted the family to send Ben to America, in the first place. With the country at peace, the army seemed like a safe place to be in November of 1897. Unfortunately, a few months later, the Spanish American War erupted. https://www.geni.com/people/Benjamin-Brodie/6000000002727433350

....he was the first person to go over San Juan Hill with Teddy Roosevelt as a Roughrider and live. He was Dorothy Holt's father and I'm blanking on his name right now but it'll come to me. By the way, once they got to this country, the la st name was spelled Brodie.