We have already seen the good fire works for here. I mean the ones where we do not have to pack food, find a place , and sit in stop and go traffic coming home.
Sorting through papers on a cleaning spurt, I came across a letter I had received some years back from Michael Pado. I had written him to ask about some of his memories of summers in Winona Lake and when he first met Glen. :
9-8-06
Dear Janice,
There are two difficulties to start this essay:
1.Trying to determine dates on the photos, (I had sent some copies of old pictures.)
2. Trying to select myself from my twin in the photos.
Here are some of my memories of Winona Lake (which includes Glen ) over the years .
Perhaps the first visit was around 1940. Glen became a friend a few years later.
Marlin was on the scene a bit earlier because of the connection with the
Bralliers who owned the Lake Lawn rentals.
Three weeks or so per visit was the typical visit. My father drove down over the weekends from Gary. I remember our drives from Gary , and back, during the war (WWII) when only 2 or three other cars passed us during the trip. My father had an"A" gasoline ration sticker that allowed him to have enough fuel for our trips.
There used to be a small bakery directly on the road to sell products to cars and walk-bys just about twenty yards toward the village. Great bread and fruit pies.
Other memories:
--The smell from the brake factory (Gatkes) ,when a certain wind developed.
--The noise from the Penn. railway on the high line.
--Walking with Glen to the boat house via the lake edge instead of the road.
--Treats at the boat house were seeing beautiful boats , especially" SunnyBoy,"
which was a teak topped Chris Craft and the fastest boat on the lake. Our next treat was the ice-cold Dr.Pepper from the cooler.
--A float plane landing on the lake was a great event.
--Watching Mrs. Brallier build a 10x10 foot raft from scratch in less than one
day!!
--Learning to swim for the first time at about age seven or eight.
--Watching the bounty of fish,turtles and clams as we swam from
the raft.
-- If there was a disagreement between us and Glen, he had this gentle refrain,
"Ya dum nut".
--We went fishing on and off for perch and bass. For Gars, my father had the
machine shop make a Triton spear. ;since the gar are always in shallow water.
I don't remember ever getting one.
--Speaking of Gar, my brother and I had our greatest adventure rowing to the
island canal and through it to the other side of the lake. This was the side that
was mysterious and out of sight from the Lake Lawn shore. We saw a 6 ft.
Gar!(near the river mouth.) We then viewed the nice houses and landscape.
However , six or seven hours later, my mother was both upset and relieved
when we returned.
--The few times we went to the public ,sand, beach, (then across from the old
Winona Hotel), under shirts were required for males. Well, this was Billy
Sunday territory. This reminds me of some of his events from the big gazebo
in the park. (These boys were raised very Catholic.) We saw other non-
religious shows in the gazebo, including a memorable magician act.
--Taking a clear, glass jar of Winona Lake water back to Gary.
--In high school(1947-'51) at Bishop Noll in Hammond commuting from
Gary via the South Shore train, we visited Winona Lake during the summer.
--When we started driving, we made several trips in the summer to visit Glen
and Marlin. We went to Center Lake park to swim.But our main reason was the
10 meter tower on the pier which challenged our fear and our youth..
I remember Minnie and her new husband joining us at Center Lake park for
picnics. The connection to Winona Lake was diminishing.
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