The "It's Made With Ice Cream...It Has To Be Good! Story

Hemingways on the island of Antigua.

It was an ordinary day.  Walking up the stairs at Hemingways Caribbean Cafe on the island of Antigua with my wife, Carol, and traveling friends Jere and Just Sue.  Halfway up the stairs I yell to Jere, "How about we have a banana split for lunch!"  It was more a statement than a question, and he yelled back, "Sounds good to me."  Hey, we're on vacation and you should be able to have dessert anytime you want.  Fifteen minutes later we were digging into our delicious treats while the girls were eating their rather bland salads.  Now, you do know what a REAL banana split is, don't you? A fellow by the name of David Strickler invented the banana split in 1904 in Latrobe, Pennsylvania.  He happened to be a 23-year-old apprentice pharmacist at Tassel Pharmacy who enjoyed inventing sundaes at the store's soda fountain.  His creation, which actually was called a triple ice cream sundae, originally cost 10 cents which was twice the price of a regular sundae.  In no time it became a popular treat with the students of nearby Saint Vincent College who frequented the soda fountain between classes.  David eventually bought the pharmacy, naming it Strickler's Pharmacy.  

Jere Just Sue and Carol talk to the waitress at Hemingways.

In 2004 the city of Latrobe celebrated the 100th anniversary of the invention of the banana split while at the same time the National Ice Cream Retailers Association certified the city of Latrobe as being the city where the first banana split was made.  Not wanting to be outdone, the city of Wilmington, Ohio claims that they split a banana lengthwise, threw it into an elongated dish and allegedly created the banana split.  The year was 1907, three years after David's invention.  Perhaps they never heard of Latrobe in Wilmington.  

A REAL banana split.  Banana split in two and placed in
an elongated dish.  Vanilla, strawberry and chocolate ice
cream are piled on next with caramel, strawberry and
cocolate sauces next.  Topped with whipped cream and cherry.

The treat actually gained popularity in a Chicago Walgreens Store when Charles Rudolph Walgreen adopted the banana split as a signature dessert at the original drug store's soda fountain.  A banana split has a traditional manner in which it must be made.  The banana must be cut lengthwise and placed in a long narrow dish called a boat.  The classic banana split is made with three scoops of ice cream; one each of vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry served between the split banana.  

Our treat at Hemingways. 

A sauce of each of the three ice cream flavors, chocolate, strawberry and caramel (vanilla) are drizzled onto the ice cream, then crushed nuts and whipped cream tops the ice cream with a maraschino cherry on the top of each one.  I must admit that the dessert that Jere and I had placed in front of us on the second level of Hemingways might not have been a REAL banana split, but it sure was good.  Perhaps then never heard of Latrobe either and how you make a real banana split.  We are heading back to the island soon and will try it once again.  And...if it is still the same, we will have to eat it anyway.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

The "Could This Really Be The 'City Of Lights'?" Story

Logo of the Susquehanna Heritage in Columbia, Pennsylvania

It was an ordinary day.  Driving around the small town of Columbia, Pennsyl- vania with my wife, trying to see how it might compare at all to Paris, France.  Recently there was a half-page story in the local newspaper in "The Scribbler" column that had the headline of "Presenting 'the Paris of Pennsylvania' - on the Susquehanna."  

The bridge over the Seine River near Paris, France.

Could Columbia, the little town on the east bank of the Susque- hanna that burnt the bridge over the river during the Gettysburg campaign to stop the South from crossing into Lancaster County and thus altered the Civil War, really be compared to Paris France?  I have made many visits to this small town of about 10,000 residents and have discovered some remarkable architecture as well as quite a few interesting museums while driving around the 2.42 square mile town, but I had to take one more trip after reading the story in the newspaper.  

My visit today allowed for this photo of the Columbia bridge.

Columbia is referred to "the jewel of the Susque- hanna", but to compare it to Paris is...well, crazy.  Seems that Matt Barley, a board member of the Historic Preserva- tion Trust and an architect is the person who first started comparing it to Paris.  He does admit that it was a joke, but he still thinks that, on a small scale, a really small scale I might add, it has some of the same features as Paris, France.  

The National Clock and Watch Museum in Columbia, PA.

Yes, it does have a beautiful arched bridge that connects Columbia to Wrightsville and yes, it does have antique lighting on it as the Paris bridge over the Seine River does.  

Columbia's beautiful Market House in downtown Columbia.

And yes, Columbia does have some of the most impressive architec- ture in Lancaster County as does Paris have in France.  And yes, Columbia does have a few neat museums and antique shops as does Paris.  

Artist Thomas Hermansader's home in Columbia, PA

OK...I can see how he could have stretched it a bit and compared Columbia to Paris.  I guess if I lived in Columbia I would want to push the image of my town as Matt has done.  It really has drawn attention to his town which is perhaps why he did it.  Well, Carol and I drove around quite a few of the streets this morning and passed through the beautiful Historic District that has nearly a thousand structures that incorporate a mix of 18th through 20th century styles.  

Rivertowne Antique Center located in Columbia, PA

Columbia's long-time Mayor, Leo Lutz seems to see it the same way that Matt does and that can only be for the better of the town.  When I initially Googled Paris, Pennsyl- vania, I came up with a small town of 732 residents that is located just north of U.S. Route 22 near the Pennsylvania/West Virginia border.  

Historic John Wright home in downtown Columbia, PA

Wonder how they feel about having another town in Pennsyl- vania called Paris?  Oh, so what!  Can't do any harm comparing Columbia, PA to Paris, France.  The neat bridge should be enough to make the comparison. Now I don't feel a need to travel to Paris, France.  I have it right here in my backyard.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

Ashley and Bailey Silk Mill, now Turkey Hill Experience.

This image was found in a public art station on the streets of Columbia, PA.

The "The Origin Of Fire Marks" Story

It was an ordinary day.  A few years ago I wrote a story about the Fire Marks that dotted the homes of Lancaster, Pennsylvania and over the years have found out a bit more about why they were a part of American history.  The fire mark dates back to the 17th century when 70,000 of the city of London's 80,000 homes were destroyed when the 1666 Great Fire of London raged for five days in September.  This awful tragedy led to the creation of the world's first fire insurance policies by a private company called the "Fire Office."  Over time more insurance companies formed and began the use of the fire mark on the homes that carried that home's fire protection.  

An early fire mark cast in lead.

About 100 years later the concept of fire insurance began in the United States when Benjamin Franklin initiated the start of the fire mark after a devastating fire in Phila- delphia in 1752 destroyed stores and homes near Fishbourn's Wharf.  Franklin named the company The Philadelphia Contributionship for the Insuring of Houses from Loss by Fire Insurance Company.  Almost 150 policies were sold the first year.  Franklin became known as "the father of American Insurance" due to his starting the company.  

A hand-painted fire mark.

It was said that he got the idea during his 18-month printing apprentice- ship in 1724 in London.  In the early 1720s about 10% of all homes in London were insured against fire damage.  But, the use of fire marks didn't become popular until 1791 when Anna Speakman of Arch Street in Philadelphia was issued the first fire mark which consisted of four hands interlocked at the wrist onto a rectangular board.  

An early crossed-hands wooden fire mark.

The earlier fire marks in the United States were made of wood, but eventually were cast in lead.  Many of the fire marks were painted in bright colors with gilded hands and a black shield.  The resident's policy number would be painted below the four clasped hands.  Some historians reported that private fire companies, or brigades, would not put out a fire unless their fire mark was on a home.  Other experts have doubts that this was the case and actually said that fire insurance companies would award a monetary reward to the fire company who arrived at a fire first.  

The home of Mayor John Passmore.  His fire mark can be seen on
the far side of the lower left-hand window.  Click to enlarge photo.

This led to rivalries between fire brigades to see who could arrive at the scene of a fire first.  In the city of Lancaster, one of the earliest fire marks was located on a structure at the corner of East Orange and North Shippen Street.  The house was once owned by Quaker merchant Thomas Poultney and later sold to Dr. Christian Neff.  John Passmore, the first Mayor of Lancaster after the city was chartered in 1818, also lived in the home.  

Larger view of the fire mark on Orange Street home.

A small side story here tells about Mayor Passmore being so large, at 480 pounds, that he needed a large wagon, rather than a hearse, to haul his supersized wooden coffin from his home on Orange Street to his grave.  During the past 10 years I have found a few different fire marks on homes in the city that evidently have been preserved by their owners.  Many interesting stories, myths and legends can be found about fire marks in the early history of our nation.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

This Lancaster home, as well as the next two photos, show fire marks that are a large tree symbol.

The "A Reunion With A Former Student" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Looking out the family room window to see if our guests had arrived.  When the doorbell finally rang, I was taken back in time for the next few hours.  On April 8th of this year I posted a story about a former student by the name of Steve Graver.  

Steve Graver's 1969 Yearbook portraiture.

Steve was one of my first Industrial Arts students in the late 1960s.  He graduated in 1969 and as with most of my students, I lost track of him.  At the end of March of this year I got an email from him and memories of my first few years of teaching all returned to me.  Steve was in my Graphic Arts class at Manheim Township High School in Neffsville, Pennsylvania, a few miles north of Lancaster.  He somehow found my email address and wrote me a note.  He was living in California and was interested in finding out about his 50th year class reunion.  I stopped in the school office the following day after running the printing press for most of the morning and got the information which I sent to him that evening.  

Pat and Steve and their family.

Wasn't long before he told me his plans and our emails began on a regular basis.  He sent me a photo of he and his wife at the Jersey Shore as well as a family picture of he and his wife Pat and their 7 children.  After graduation from high school in 1969 he got a job at Intel Printing Company and eventually moved his family to California where he worked printing wine labels for Napa Valley wines bottles.  He devoted his entire working life to the printing trade.  Well, Steve made arrangements to attend his class reunion and told me they would stop for a visit.  After the doorbell rang I opened the front door and there stood Steve and Pat.  

Early photo of Pat at 925 Janet Ave.  Pat
is the young girl on the right of photo.

People change quite a bit in 50 years and I didn't recognize him until he said, "Mr. Woods."  I never forget a voice.  He introduced me to his wife as they walked into our foyer.  Carol joined us and we spent the next few hours reliving our lives with each other.  Steve grew up in the same neighborhood as my mom, dad, brother and I did.  He delivered our newspaper for a few years and even remembered a few of my early cars I owned while living on North Queen Street with my parents.  Being he was about five years younger than me, I never got to know him when we lived near each other.  

Photo of Carol and I with son Derek and baby girl Brynn.

Steve attended the nearby Catholic School until his parents decided to put him in public schools so he could experience "shop" classes.  Best move they could have made as it turned out.  Pat lived at 925 Janet Ave. in Grandview Heights for a year or so as her parents waited for a new house to be completed.  Just so happens Carol and I bought that same house at 925 Janet a year after we were married.  Small world as they say.  Back in April he shared with me a photo of Pat as a child in front of Janet Ave. and I sent one of Carol and I at the same location.  After a few hours of conversation we headed to a local restaurant for lunch.  Tough catching up on half a century of living, but we certainly tried to do so.  We spent the next hour at the restaurant talking as we ate our meal.  Time to leave and Steve insisted he pay the check, since he claimed I was responsible for him being successful in the printing business.  We returned to the house and bid farewell since he and Pat had to head back to their rental so they could get their luggage and head to Baltimore for their flight back to California.  Over the years I have met quite a few former students and find it interesting to see how my class may have helped them in their choice of career.  I had both my sons in my Grahphic Arts class and they too are in the printing trade, but after hearing Steve's story and his success as a printer, I realized I really did make the right choice of becoming a teacher.  

Steve (right) and myself visiting after 50 years.  As you
may notice, printing ink makes you lose your hair!

And, it was humbling to hear him tell me that I made a difference in his life.  It was another extra-ordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.  

The "The Arts Are Alive In Lancaster, Pennsylvania" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Standing in centerfield at Culliton Park taking a photo of the block-long brick building to the east that is a warehouse for Lancaster's Water Street Mission.  At one time I played baseball on this field and years later coached my youngest son on the same field.

My photo taken in July of 2019 of what
is left of the public artwork.

 At the time it was called Farnum Field and then was renamed Conlin Field at Farnum Park.  Today it bears the name of Culliton Park.  The reason for the photo is to compare it to what it looked like about a year ago.  It was back in 2018 that the building, filled with bricked-in window openings, won a national award as one of the 50 most outstanding public artworks created that year.  It was recognized by the Americans for the Arts which is a national nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C.  The project was titled "This Neighborhood is ...,".  In September of 2018, artists led by city residents Salina Almanzar and Osmyn Oree painted 20 resident portraits and 25 responses on the west facade of the warehouse that faced the park.  The project broke down barriers between folks that live in the neighborhood and folks that use the park as home and folks in transition.  The park is slated for a major renovation that will include infrastructure improvements to collect and manage stormwater in and around the area of the park.  

This photo by Michelle Johnsen was taken shortly after
the artwork was completed in September, 2018.

The wall mural took about four months of community work which was meant to raise awareness of the water issues and the importance of imple- menting better practices.  The mural consisted of painted panels that filled the window openings of the building.  Two Dudes Painting Company from Lancaster donated the paint and the Stormwater Management Fund and Lancaster County Community Foundation provided funding.  A vehicle lift was donated by the Rental Zone.  Much of the mural was temporary and was removed about a month after it was painted.  Salina Almanzar is now working with the Water Street Mission and SoWe to create a permanent water-themed mural on the same wall.  Pretty neat to have been singled out by the Americans for the Arts as one of the 50 most outstanding public artworks in the nation.  The organization has been presenting public art awards for the past 18 years.  Every year there are hundreds of submissions presented for consideration.  The arts are alive in Lancaster and have been for ages.  If you are within walking or driving distance of the city, take a walk around downtown and see for yourself.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

The "Suicide Squeeze Sends It Into Extra Innings" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Champions of the Lancaster County Jr. Midget (ages 14 and under) Baseball League was just decided.  The Mountville Angels are the champs!  My grandson Caden has played in organized baseball for over a half dozen years now and this was the biggest game he has ever played in to date.  Lancaster County is rich in baseball tradition and just about every small town in the county has a team in the Lancaster County League.  At the end of the season the top eight teams square off in the Lancaster County Championship Tournament which is sponsored by the Lancaster Newspaper.  Caden's team ended the season as the second seed and played the 7th seeded team Donegal in the first round of the double-elimination tournament.  It took three games to advance to the semi-finals where they faced a team from Ephrata at Mt. Joy's Kunkle field.  Once again, they needed to lose two games before being eliminated in tournament.  They defeated Ephrata 6-1 to advance to the finals against a team from nearby Lititz.  They once again needed to beat the team from Lititz twice so they could be the champs.  If they happened to lose the first game they would have a second chance to try and force one final game.  Before I tell you what happened in the game, I should give you some background into the tournament that at one time was known as the New Era Tournament which was sponsored by the Lancaster New Era newspaper.  It was an honor to be a boy living in Lancaster and play in the tournament.  As a young boy I played in the Midget-Midget tournament for Schick and came to the plate in the semi-finals and hit a shot with the bases loaded.  My third-base coach had me try for a homerun, but I was tagged out at the plate.  We won, but lost in the finals that year.  While playing in the Midget tournament with the Grandview team I once again drove in a run in the quarter-finals, but lost in the next game.  My oldest son, Derek, got to play in the Jr. Midget tournament finals, but lost.  Two years later, playing in the Midget Division with the Sertoma team, his team won the championship.  My youngest son got to play in six tournaments where his team, which I coached for those six years, lost the first five years, being beaten by the same team each year.  Seems the Willow Street team had a young pitcher, who eventually played in the Philadelphia Phillies organization, that we just couldn't beat.  The final year this young man was injured and we made it to the finals where we managed to win the title against a team coached by my wife's cousin who had also played professional baseball.  Exciting times for both sons and me.  Well, fast forward to a few days ago when Mountville played Lititz in the tournament to determine the LNP champion.  

Pix in newspaper of Caden pithing in the 1st game of the finals.

At the time my wife, Carol, and I were on vacation with our daughter and her family so we watched the first game on my phone using the Game- Changer app.  Caden made the next morning's newspaper when he hit a homerun over the fence in left field.  His team won the game over Lititz by the score of 8-3.  Since it was a double-elimination tournement,

Caden (#29) crossing the plate after hitting his homerun.
This photo was taken by the newspaper photographer
and was on the front page of the Sports Section.

 if they won the next game they would be champs.  We arrived home from vacation Saturday with the game taking place on Monday evening.  Lititz needed to win to force game three and after a few innings it looked as though that was going to happen when they took a 7 run lead after 4 innings.  Then in the 5th inning Mountville scored a pair of runs to pull within 5.  Looked rather bleak when they came to  bat in the bottom of the 7th (this age plays only 7 innings) needing 5 runs, but they managed to tie up the score when Caden laid down a suicide squeeze bunt with one out and a man on third.  

The team celebrating winning the Lancaster County Championship.
Caden is the player on the right with the black batting helmet.

The runner headed home as the pitcher wound up and Caden turned to bunt.  If he missed the ball, the player would be out at home.  Didn't happen!  Perfect bunt and the game was 7-7.  Lititz got the final out, forcing another inning.  Neither team threatened in the 8th inning forcing the ninth.  Mountville held Lititz and came to bat.  The Lititz pitcher got two quick outs then Hunter Williams singled and took second when the ball was bobbled in the outfield.  

Final score on the scoreboard.  The Angels were the home team.

The next batter hit a ball to the third-baseman who bobbled it before throwing it to first.  Hunter, running with the pitch from 2nd rounded third and kept on running home as the ball was thrown late to first and the subsequent throw to home was too late as Hunter slid under the glove of the Lititz catcher.  Then the celebration began with the Angels storming the field.  Mountville ended the year at 25-7 with the big win at the end of the year to win the County Championship.  Another baseball memory for my family as well as every other family of the Mountville team.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

The parent who punches in every play so everyone can watch GameChanger on their phone or computer with the  GameChanger app saw this while Caden was batting.  The app stopped working, since the parent's phone ran out of charge and could not broadcast the end of the game.  Our phones began to buzz with anxious viewers wondering what had happened.  Good results were given to each caller.

After the excitement died down, the team gathered in right field for a talk with the coaches.

The Mountville Angels coach gets doused after the game.

Caden taking the throw at first base during the championship game.

Traditional handshake after the game.

Newspaper photographer taking the celebration with the championship trophy.

Team photo.  Coach on the far left is my son, Derek, and the third person from the top right is grandson Caden.

The "Walking On The Moon!, July 20, 1969: Part II" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Reading comments in an article titled "Lunar Legacy" attributed to former U.S. House of Representative Robert S. Walker.  This is the same guy who worked with me at an Acme Supermarket store in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.  Same guy who went to Millersville State Teacher's College in nearby Millersville, Pennsylvania with me.  Same guy who presented a flag flown over the White House to Manheim Township High School where I was teaching and when he saw me at the rear of the auditorium stopped his talk, waved and told the audience that I was a friend of his since college.  Same guy with the goofy looking smile on his face all the time, just like me.  And...the same guy that one evening while working at the near empty Acme supermarket decided to see how many shoppers we could hit with grapes while working the check-out registers  In other words...he was just a normal guy at one time.  

Former Rep. Robert Walker of Lancaster, PA

Now, at the age of 75, he heads moonWalker Associates which is in Arlington, Virginia and is a lobbying firm.  At one time he was the chair of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee.  In 2001 he was appointed to chair the Commission on the future of the U.S. Aerospace Industry.  In 2004 he served on the President's Commission on Implementation of the U.S. Space Exploration Policy.  At one time he was slated to fly aboard a space shuttle following Sen. Jake Darn of Utah and Rep. Bill Nelson of Florida, but that all ended after the Challenger crashed in 1986.   Back on July 20, 1969 he was working for U.S. Representative Ed Eshelman.  When Apollo 11 landed and the moonwalk began, he and his wife were in awe of the achievement. Neal Armstrong and Buzz Aldren were good friends at the time and still remain friends.  He was going to be with them last Saturday to celebrate the anniversary of their landing.  He said the goal now is to take humans outside low-Earth orbit and back to the moon and on to Mars.  There is now a plan to have humans back on the moon by the end of 2024.  The goal is to return and remain their permanently.  A mission such as this would be an international mission, but will require American leadership.  We are now in competition with China to be the First Nation to have a permanent presence on the moon.  His new company is involved with consulting practices on space-related activities.  He is now working with a company that is tying to create a system to clean up space debris as well as another company that is looking to harvest solar power in space and then beam it down to Earth for use as base-load power.  Bob has come a long way since the early 1960s when we both went to Millersville.  His name may be noticed in the future as part of a new chapter in space exploration.  And, I'm proud that I was his friend at one time.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

The "Walking On The Moon!, July 20, 1969: Part I" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Trying to remember what I was doing the day that Neil Armstrong walked on the moon.  It was Sunday July 20, 1969 that he gingerly descended from the spider-like lunar module the Eagle, with his hefty backpack and bulky space suit, and became the first human to every walk on the moon.  Where were you?  Were you even born at that time?  I had been married for a little over two years at the time and can still remember watching TV with my wife as he walked in what seemed like slow motion across the moon before sticking the United Stated flag into the surface of the moon for all to see.  I do remember reading about some of the events that took place in Lancaster, Pennsylvania during the walk on the moon.  It was reported that every TV in St. Joseph's Hospital in Lancaster was tuned to the walk.  

Apollo 11 Pilot Michael Collins.  Led the way to the moon!

A local woodworker made a solid walnut box with an inlay that depicted the six phases of the moon and mailed it to President Nixon to keep moon debris in it.  Whether the President ever got it was not known.  At the local Host Town Motel on Keller Ave., they stopped the showing of a Bridget Bardot movie on their TV channel so all visitors at the motel could watch the walk on the moon.  After Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin's first steps, they continued the movie.  One local lady didn't believe it really happened.  She said it was contrary to God's will and the moon was not meant to be explored since the scriptures say that man is to inhabit Earth and God is to inhabit the heavens.  Those who worked for the city of Lancaster had Monday off to celebrate. It was also reported that the Saturn V Rocket was almost twice the size of Lancaster's Griest Building, the tallest building in downtown Lancaster.  

Neil Armstrong 

The Griest building stands 187 feet, 8 inches tall while the Saturn was 363 feet in height.  The more I read about the landing 50 years ago, the more my memory was able to recall facts from that special day.  Do you remember that there were three astronauts aboard Apollo 11; Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins.  At times people forget about Collins.  Did you know that there were nine astronauts who died before the flight of the Apollo 11.  There were also 20 flights into space before Apollo 11 lifted off.  It took 195 hours, 18 minutes and 35 seconds to complete the mission to the moon.  

Buzz Aldrin saluting the U.S.A. flag on the moon.

The total distance to the moon and back in miles was 953,054.  To do that in under 200 hours meant they were really flying (pun intended).  It was said that 600 Million people viewed the moon walk and the final bit of information is that it cost the citizens of the United States $25.4 billion to send three astronauts to the moon so they could walk on it.  

The front page of the Lancaster New Era.

There are still some people who don't believe anyone really walked on the moon.  They believe it was all a Hollywood production that was done to fool the public.  5-10% of Americans believed it was all staged; 12% of Britons and 20% of Italians don't believe we landed on the moon; 55% of Russians do not believe that we landed men on the moon.  So, after 50 years, how do you feel.  Did it really happen?  What did they ever do with the pieces of moon that they were said to have returned to earth with during the mission?  How did the astronauts feel after walking on the moon.  Do you ever look at the moon and think that the United States actually had two of our citizens step foot on it?  Do you take pride in our country for being the first to walk on the moon?  I still have the front page of the paper showing that famous day, June 20, 1969 when Buzz Aldrin stood next to the U.S. flag on the moon, saluting it.  And...I actually believe it happened!  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

The "Oh, The Memories Of That Old Organ" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Sunday, July 14 and today was the last day that St. James Episcopal Church in Lancaster, Pennsylvania would use their historic four-manual organ that was installed 71 years ago.  The James Hale Steinman Memorial Organ was played for the last time at the 10:30 a.m. service at St. James.  The organ has become too expensive to maintain and doesn't use the current technology that is available in today's church organs.  Mr. Steinman donated the organ to St. James in 1948 in memory of Caroline Morgan Hale Steinman.  James Hale Steinman was the publisher of Lancaster Newspapers, now LNP Media Group.  The organ was built by the Gundling Organ Company from Lancaster and was a major upgrade from the previous organ.  In 1968, the organ was rebuilt with a gift from members of the Steinman family.  The rebuild included new organ pipes that fill three rooms behind the large organ.  Then in 1994 the Steinman Foundation gifted another $50,000 to help extend the life of the organ for another 20 years.  But, now the console, mechanical pipes and analogue technology has become too hard to maintain.  

Mr. George Rodgers playing on the church organ pre-1948.

My father, Paul, used to tell me stories of the church organist and choir- master, Mr. Rodgers, who could make the keyboard come alive with music when my father was a young boy singing in the St. James Boys Choir.  Mr. George Rodgers spent 32 years at the keyboard of the old organ before the new one was installed in 1948.  

Mr. Frank McConnell at the keyboard of the
James Hale Steinman Memorial Organ.  I used
to turn the pages for Mr. McConnell as a child.

Later, Mr. Frank McConnell became the organist and choirmaster at St. James and I had the same experience that my father did as a child when I sang in the Boys Choir as well as adult choir and had the chance to watch Mr. McConnel's hands fly over those keys as he reached for stop after stop to enhance the music as well as watch his feet walk across the foot pedals to add more bass to the organ piece he was playing. I was one of the lucky choirboys who had the honor to turn pages as Mr. McConnell would play the Saturday organ recitals during the Easter season.  

The cassette tape insert of Mr. Frank
McConnell at the keyboard of the James
Hale Steinman Memorial Organ.  I took
the photo as well as printed the inserts.

My three children also had the chance to be members of the youth choir and once again watch as Mr. Mcconnell made that old organ come to life.  I still have a cassette tape that I printed the insert for that features Frank McConnell at the St. James Organ.  Oh, the memories of that old organ that will never be forgotten.  My wife and I were married at St. James Church and for the recessional Mr. McConnell played the Toccata and Fugue in d minor by Johann Sebastian Bach.  We will never forget the chills we felt when Mr. McConnell began playing and we turned to walk down the aisle as Mr. and Mrs.  The old organ was a part of my life from 1948 until a few days ago.  After Mr. McConnell retired and the choir gained a series of new choirmasters in the past several years, the one constant was that old organ.  How I will miss that old piece of wood, metal and ivory.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.  

The "A Disaster, But The Food Was Good! Story

It was an ordinary day.  Down-loading the photos I had taken with my iPhone of the Island Grill in Ocean City, New Jersey where we had just eaten our evening meal.  The menu tonight featured some of the most unusual offerings for dinner in the restaurant at the north end of the city.  

"Dinner Specials"  Click to enlarge.

Specials such as Grilled Kangaroo & Pear Purse Ravioli, Kobe Truffle Burger, Camel Burger, Elk Burger and Wild Boar Tenderloin with Sautéed Haystack Onions were listed on the Dinner Special.  The menu items were rather unique, but the service will keep us from returning to this restaurant that for years has been one of our favorites.  My wife and I, along with our daughter, son-in-law and two granddaughters waited about 30 minutes before being seated.  That's not unusual for a good restaurant during the summer months in Ocean City.  But, after being seated, at two different tables, the evening turned into a disaster.  

Family Courtney, Dave, Camille and daughter Brynn.

My wife and I had one waiter while the other four had another waitress.  The table next to us, with 10 young adults, had been seated over 30 minutes before and still had no food or drinks in front of them.  Carol and I feared it may happen to us, but we were waited on immediately and had a drink and salad in front of us in about 10 minutes.  

Across from them, we are eating our meal.  This photo was
taken less than a minuted after the one above and as you
can see we have our meal while they don't even have water.

The other part of our family waited close to 20 minutes before the waitress stopped to take the drink orders.  Carol and I actually had our meal brought to us before the table of 10 had their salads in front of them.  Our meals were very good with Carol having Seafood Mac & Cheese while I had Lobster Raviolis in a Blush Sauce.  

My meal of lobster raviolis in blush sauce.

The pasta covering on the ravioli was rather unique with multi-colored strips of pasta.  We felt as if we should wait until the rest of our party had their meal, but knew it might take quite some time.  As we ate our meal, our family's waitress arrived to take their drink and salad orders.  

Carol's meal of Seafood Mac & Cheese.

As we finished our dinner, our family was just having their meal delivered.  Their food did look delicious, but the lateness of its arrival took some of the enjoyment away from their meal.  Since we had walked to the restaurant, we chose not to wait outside the restaurant in the heat, and headed home.  They did report their meal to be delicious, but the experience will be taken to another restaurant next year in hopes of better service.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.