The "Ghosts of Harrington Drive" Story

It was an ordinary day. Getting close to Halloween. Time for the "Ghosts of Harrington Drive" to appear. A few years ago, when Carol and I were in the Lancaster County Corvette Club, we met Dee and John Zimmerman. They were members of the club and also knew my mom and dad, since John sang in the Barbershoppers with dad. John and Dee lived about a half mile from us and we passed their home almost everyday on our way to work. For years we always enjoyed the Ghosts that Dee would put along their wooden fence that surrounded their property. At the beginning of October the ghosts would appear and remain until after Trick or Treat Night. Our kids would always enjoy seeing them when they would appear. The "ghosts" were made from a bed sheet with eyes, nose and mouth drawn on them with marker. The head was formed by stuffing a small white trash bag with newspaper, shaping into a round head, and then placing a stick into the end of the bag so you could attach it to the fence. When we moved to our new home Carol thought it would be the perfect place to have our own ghosts. We made four of them and started to place them out at Halloween. After a year or two Carol decided to add some additions

to the ghosts so we could keep them up until Thanksgiving. Two of them got Pilgrim's hats while the other two had headdresses with feathers in them. Looked pretty neat. Many times I would be out for a final mowing of the yard or raking leaves and someone would stop to tell me how much then liked the ghosts. Neighbors called to tell us their kids enjoyed the ghosts. One morning Carol was pulling out of the drive and a passing motorist stopped behind her, got out of her car and told Carol how much fun it is to go to work and pass our house. Wow! Something as simple as decorations made from bedsheets can sure make a difference in some people's lives. It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.