Chester Chatter: The sounds of summer

By Ruthie Douglas
© 2018 Telegraph Publishing LLC

School was out for the summer. We kids were happy and excited. Thus began new summer sounds, the day started being awakened by clanging of milk bottles banging against their metal rack as they were delivered to our door.

Next door, Henry mowed his lawn with the push rotary mower. Birds chirped and bees buzzed and thus began the long lazy days of summer for us kids.

We had a neighborhood gang of sorts, meeting each day to plan what to do for fun. We rode bikes, played in the nearby woods, and rollerskated on the sidewalks. Often, we spent a week building cardboard forts in our backyards.

Sometimes, Uncle Kenny, who always had Mondays off from work, loaded his Beach Wagon up with neighbor kids and drove to his camp on Sand Pond. We used the boat, swam and water skied and ate the picnic that mothers had packed for the day.

We seldom got bored and did not get mad. We often rode with Uncle Kenny on Wednesday and Friday when he drove his delivery route, bringing groceries to customers as well as meat from his mom-and-pop store. We went to the landfill dump with him and up to Mount Holly once a month to buy a wheel of cheese for the store.

Then, just like that, the evenings got cooler and it was time to buy school clothes.  The lazy, hazy days of summer were over.

Weddings and other celebrations

Mikala Bates and Kyle Brown were married May 5 in Ocean Isle Beach, S.C. Mikala is a former resident of Chester and the daughter of Chris and Cheryl Cook. Best wishes to the young couple.

Major Gunnar Spafford was honored at the Marine Chapel in Washington, D.C., for his 25 years service in the Marine Corps. A retirement party was held at his home. His mother, Asta Spafford, his aunt Pat Spafford, his sister Heather and her husband Scott Bonnett and their children Erica and Brandon attended the event. Gunnar grew up in Chester and graduated from Green Mountain High School.

Ed and Angie Peterson celebrated their 3rd wedding anniversary recently.

The testimonial dinner for State American Legion Commander Jerry Stewart and Lynda Farmer, state president of the Legion Auxiliary, was held Saturday at the Chester American Legion Post 67. About 150 folks from around the state attended and many spoke words of praise for both Jerry and Lynda.

Priscilla Peck is recovering in rehab from a bad fall. Get well soon Priscilla.

New American flags gracing our Main Street all the way to the clinic are something special. I love them because I love my country and our flag. The flags will fly till Veterans’ Day.

• This week’s trivia question: What family of two boys and two girls worked in the Depot Post Office? 
  
• Answer to last week’s trivia question: Jake’s Barbershop was next to the People’s Bank.
  

Street Talk

Do you have plans for a summer vacation? If so, what?