Those Were the Days!

     A lusty "Carry Out" call. That was the message many Boone area young people remember hearing when they were Fareway Grocery employees under the leadership of a very energetic Floyd "Curly" Adams, the store manager.
     Willie was one of those employees and he does remember, "two young men were at the egg candling station with a radio playing and may not have heard the call, which took precedence over all other functions except possibly mouth to mouth resuscitation. Floyd could, in no way, suffer such dereliction of duty, grabbed the radio and threw it down the ramp. Floyd must have felt he overdid it. He picked up the unit, put the loose pieces back into place and plugged the device back in. Holy mackerel, the lights went out all over the store but the checkout still functioned, no electricity required. The total was arrived at by the use of adding machines, hand cranked no less. The process was, absolutely, faster than the latest computerized services, no discounts, no coupons, just a fair transaction. The checkers were amazing. Fast and accurate. Baggers filled strong paper bags to maximum capacity. This is where the carryout commenced. It was expected. No ifs or ands. You got help getting three bags full wedged into your arms and followed the customer out the door and maybe two blocks to the car and then you waited while the customer fumbled for their car keys. Well, it was something to do on Saturday and we got paid. I think we started at 7 a.m. and probably got out around 9:45 p.m., picked up our envelope which contained $10 cash minus 63-cents income tax. I took this job knowing what it was but there was a certain status involved. I knew about the job as a result of being a cart boy before I was old enough to pay income tax. There was a feeling of camaraderie among the workers, a a majority were athletes. I was advised that a secret cave existed in one of the basement warehouses, toilet paper boxes had been stacked to create a concealed space where an employee could possibly regain sufficient strength to continue until closing time, a banana or some cookies added to the rehabilitation effort. I visited the cave, but did not stay or return..........I needed the job."
     Editor's note: A fun remembrance........edited just a bit. Thanks for the great memory Willie.
K-----K
     The Kornerman says, "hey, those 9-volt batteries just laying around can be very dangerous thanks to information, including a video, sent to us by old buddy Laverne Anderson."
     The video shows a house being completely destroyed because of old nine-volts being stored, presumably for recycling, in a paper sack. An example was given. Some steel wool came in contact with both the negative and positive ends of a nine-volt and the result was sparks and a resultant fire.
     The gist is this........be careful where and how you store those things. Thanks Laverne.
K-----K
     The Kornerman and Jo had the pleasure of attending a retirement party for Rick Wulkow last Saturday along with over 200 other folks. We had an opportunity to reacquaint with lots of Iowa High School Athletic Association friends from the past and present. Former boss Bernie Saggau was there from his winter Arizona home and it seemed like quite a Boone contingent with current IHSAA staff members and quite a few of Rick's Trinity Lutheran church family on hand.
     We had a great time. Rick concludes 10 years of being the IHSAA Executive Director in late January and Al Beste replaces him. The positive beat will go on.
     P.S. Isn't it great to have such a wonderful "opening" to our community, especially during the holiday season, via the lighted show surrounding the IHSAA headquarters. It's a simply beautiful sight and it seems there are more and more lights every year. Thanks Rick and the IHSAA for this terrific entrance to our community.
K-----K
     There was an interesting note with a Boone connection in the D.M. Register the other day. As part of the Spirit of Christmas, the Register is bestowing a rose each day to a deserving individual. The rose this particular day was given to Marjorie Beaton of Waterloo, who at age 94, continues to pursue her passion for sewing to benefit children in impoverished countries. Marjorie recycles old T-shirts into diapers and has been sewing about eight hours a day since February of 2011.
    Marjorie's daughter is Boone's Linda Hora who wrote, "they began by sending the diapers to Haiti. Hard to believe but she has now lovingly sewn 11,000 diapers for children in need."
     What a terrific project.
K-----K
     Boone Area Deaths: Betty Lou Koch, 84, Boone. Boone area survivors are a son Roger and sisters Mildred Smith, Helen Johnson and Jane Zanker all of Boone............Jerry Smith, 69, Boone. BHS-63. Was a truck driver. Boone area survivors include his son Jason and daughter, Kathy Musfeldt..............
Eugene "Gene" Harris, 87, West Des Moines. Boone area survivor is a son, Van Harris of Boone........
Vivian Maynard, 95, Boone. Boone area survivors include a son Glen, daughters Roberta Grabau and Shirley Riley and a sister Eleanor Conrad all of Boone...........Evelyn "Evie" Benshoof Surface, 83, Reinbeck, formerly of Des Moines and Boone. Born in Boone. BHS-49. A pastor's wife for 31 years. Worked on behalf of the orphans of Korea and Viet Nam for Holt International Children's Services. No Boone area survivors.
     Maurice "Morry" Reid, 101, Glen Ellyn, IL. passed away Wednesday. Morry hasn't had any Boone connection for many years but will be buried beside his wife in Linwood. He had a long career as a licensed Professional Engineer with the railroad, much of the time spent in Boone. Morry is an uncle of Jackye Ray of Boone and has visited here a couple times a year.
     This goes back a number of years but the Kornerman remembers Morry as a great fast pitch softball player on some terrific Boone teams. In 1972, he was inducted into the Iowa Fast Pitch Softball Hall of Fame.
     Jerry Smith was a pretty good pitcher on one of the Kornerman's Babe Ruth baseball teams.
K-----K
     Worldwide Korner Headquarters are located at 710 Aldrich, Boone, Iowa 50036-4703. Phone number is 515-432-1530. To email your stories/memories/comments/support........
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