Page 12 THE BEACON December 2017
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In the OOD OLD DAYS
jeaniesmith10 @ gmail . com
By Jeanie ( Hurley ) Smith
Sharing Thanksgiving
Editor ’ s note- This is one of Jeanie ’ s favorite articles that she wants to share again with you . The original article was written in 1996 .
October , 1967 , I went to work at Campbell Hausfeld in Harrison , Ohio . The ironic part of this was that I returned to work for the same man I had worked for when I was 18 . I think the “ Family Leave Plan ’ must have already been in effect back then because I was gone for over 20 years , got married , had three kids , and then returned to my same old job . Probably the longest “ family leave ” in history .
The man I worked for was Clyde Small , better known as Brockey . He was a story all his own ·· 1 never met anyone again quite like him . He was like a roaring lion on the outside but soft as a marshmallow on the inside . He was fun but he was fierce . I worked for him until he retired , about six years ago . I learned a lot and I loved him dearly .
After that I transferred to the engineering department where I was secretary to Jim Lammers and Robert Pearce . They were good to work for too . I loved working and I loved the people . I was always treated with the greatest respect . I lasted fifteen years , to 1982 .
I guess you are wondering by now what all this had to do with Thanksgiving . And I ’ m getting around to that . In November , 1968 , I decided I would fix a Thanksgiving dinner and invite a few people home for lunch . Little did I know what I was starting because with no trouble at all , it soon became a yearly event !
The first year I invited ten . That wasn ’ t too bad . I fixed most everything the night before and Jesse was working nights . So when I left work , he and good old Grandma Smith took over the kitchen to do all the last minute things that take time .
By the time I had moved to the engineering department , the crowd had grown considerably and after that , it was hopeless . It got to the place that it took all week to get things ready and that was with lots of help from girls at work and my own family . But what fun we had , working and laughing like idiots . No one seemed to mind helping one bit .
But then it got to the place I couldn ’ t get everything done and get to work . So I started inviting our vice president . Richard Heiman was our vice president then and he is now president of the company . I often wonder if he thinks of me at Thanksgiving time . When I invited him the first time , I was sure he would say no . But , to my surprise , he agreed and not only , he said I could have the day off . What a blessing !
One year , I got this wild idea that it would be fun to get Mr . Heiman a live turkey and present it to him at our house after we were finished eating . I told the kids that worked in the lab about my idea . ( I called them kids but they were really young men . After all , by this time I had acquired the title of “ Mother ” so I really thought or them as my kids . Someone dubbed me as the “ Ruth Lyons ” of Campbell Hausfeld and since Ruth was Mother , I became Mother too .) But back to the turkey ... Well , these kids just went crazy . They thought it would be wild . It was sort of hard
to buy a live turkey but the Turkey Farm finally came through . On the day of the Thanksgiving feast , they got that turkey , put it in one of the big boxes we shipped compressors in , poked holes so the poor thing could breathe , gift wrapped that huge box , and put on a card and a big bow . What a sight !
When it came time to present it , one of the men ( 1 don ’ t remember who ) made this big speech about how we wanted to get him something really special to show our appreciation . Well , when he opened that box and that old turkey gobbler stuck his head out , I thought that man was going to die ! We managed to capture it all in pictures and it is unreal ! It ’ s a wonder he didn ’ t fire us all but he took it in good spirit and agreed to come back again the next year .
The problem was , I was left , stuck with that turkey in a box on my front porch . I had no idea how I was ever going to get rid of it . I had helped Mother kill and dress turkeys when we raised them on the farm . But I also remembered that all that blood and guts wasn ’ t a lot of fun so I wasn ’ t about to try that . I finally thought of a girl who used to stay with us when she was in Cincinnati Bible College and was from a family of thirteen children , Lorna Gabhart Cook . I knew that she would do anything so I gave her a call and she came to my rescue . That provided their Thanksgiving turkey .
Then there was the year they turned the tables on me . They bought me a bra from Fredericks that could be inflated to any size you wanted and a small compressor to go with it . If I would have kept that thing , I could have given Dolly Parton a run for her money . However , I took it back to Fredericks and got the $ 50.00 they had paid for it . Can you believe that ??
The last year I had this
M
DEAR
ARIE
By Marie Segale
marie @ goBEACONnews . com
Dear Marie ,
My husband and I have been married for just a few years . I am already getting anxious about the Holidays . We have three kids together , I have two girls ages ten and twelve and he has a son age nine . It is a big deal dividing up the Holidays with so many people involved , not to mention both of our families of origin . It can be overwhelming to deal with it all . Marie can you help ? Lucy form Greendale
group was November , 1981 . There were seventy-two present . Thank goodness it was a nice day and some of them ate on the deck and the front porch . I had people sitting in every room in the house except the bathroom . They even sat on the beds . No one seemed to care as long as they got a plate full of food .
It was a lot of fun and gave a lot of joy and excitement to a lot of people . When they would all get their desk calendars in January , the first thing they did was turn to the first Thursday in November and mark it as “ Thanksgiving at Mother Smith ’ s ”. I ’ m thankful I was able to do such a thing but I could have never done it without all the friends who helped make it a success and my family who put up with it . Grandma Smith was such a blessing . I don ’ t think she missed a year coming to help . I have many happy memories of my working days at Campbell Hausfeld . I ’ m glad I worked there . It was quite an experience .
This year as Thanksgiving comes near , I count my blessings over and over . Our last great grandchild arrived on September 25 , another little girl . Madelyn Jean . She is named for her grandmother . Karen Jean Shell ( our County Auditor ) and , of course , ME , her great grandmother . Billy and Angle have three adorable children now . Abigail is in Sue Tucker ’ s first grade and Dillon just turned five and goes to pre-school at Dearborn Hills .
We are blest with health , home , money to pay the bills , family and wonderful friends and a God who loves us .
Have you counted your blessings ? Have a wonderful Thanksgiving and God bless you all .
Dear Lucy ,
I am going to figure you and your husband each have visitation schedules with your ex-spouses regarding Holidays . With so many additional people to consider you and your husband could use the same method for your own families of origin . Let ’ s say this year you go to your husbands ’ family for Thanksgiving and to your family for Christmas . Then next year you switch . Some families are small and the families of origin can all get together for one or both Holidays . It sure has to be clear though that you take turns being with each other ’ s family . It would be very sad if either of your parents felt they were being left out of your Holiday plans .
Do you have a pressing issue for Marie ? Contact Marie @ goBEACONnews . com
Old Friends Luncheon- Dec . 7
By Thelma Stutz
Old Friends and Bright Beginnings ’ monthly luncheon will be December 7 at Dearborn Hills United Methodist Church at 11:30 . Lunch will be catered by the Brichlers and will feature roast beef , mashed potatoes , gravy , lima beans , slaw , rolls , and dessert . Your reservation and $ 9 will be appreciated by Sunday , Dec . 3 . Contact Lois Gellert 812-487- 2026 or Thelma Stutz 812-637- 5569 .
“ Music puts joy in one ’ s soul ,” and we are pleased to have The 275 Brass Quintet ( formerly The Marzan Brass Band ) as our guest entertainment . This band consists of Ron Porges and Steve Joos on trumpets , Charlie Jacobson on trombone , Marilyn Bourquein on the horn , and Bruce Knapp on tuba . They will be performing a Christmas program of carols and other popular Christmas songs .
Because it will be Dec . 7 , perhaps they will perform a song in memory of WWII along with some sing-alongs and , of course , a holiday joke or two .
In the spirit of Christmas , we are making our annual plea for canned goods and nonperishable items for the North Dearborn Food Pantry . We hope you will be generous in this time of need .
Thanks to the Glory Bound Quartet for their great entertainment at the October luncheon . Their witnessing and harmonization of gospel songs were enjoyed by all , and we will be welcoming their return on Oct . 4 , 2018 . Also thanks to Shelly Batch for leading the devotions , and to The Brichlers for the excellent lasagna .
Thanks to YOU , we have plenty to be thankful for .
Thanksgiving is a time for giving thanks . At UCB , we ’ re very thankful to be able to serve the people of southeast Indiana . We ’ ve also never been more committed to making your banking experience easier than ever . Whether it ’ s online banking with free bill pay , our simple online loan application , or even our mobile app that allows you to see account balances and transactions , transfer money , schedule bill payments , scan checks for deposit , send and receive money via email or text with our POP money , our goal is to make banking easier . Visit BankUCB . com to learn more , and thank you for choosing United Community Bank .
Lawrenceburg Hidden Valley Lake US 50 ( Lawrenceburg )
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