Nine Foot Tall & Bullet Proof No More

 

On Saturday morning, February 10^th, it was a quiet winter’s morning on Grays Hollow. As I headed down to the dock, not one person was stirring. Little did I know that fact alone would play a significant role in what was about to happen in a lightning quick moment that would launch my 79 years on the planet before my very eyes.

Many years ago we had discarded a water slide, but not the associated water spigot plumbed through the decking to provide a water supply to the slide. In one giant step, as I headed for other side of the dock, I tripped and was launched head-long towards the vacant, but largest of our three slips. As I surfaced, I immediately realized the gravity of the situation…especially with a zip-up hoodie sweatshirt on that now felt like it weighed around 50-plus pounds. My thoughts were confined to identifying a route outta’ this predicament and my utter lack of respect for life jackets over the years.

On any given Saturday during the boating season, thousands of people would have been found enjoying those healing waters of Dripping Springs, but today, when I needed them most, there wasn’t a soul in site. I can’t deny some thoughts about life threatening events in my life like cancer, a tour of duty in Vietnam as a Marine, Pneumonia and a few near misses during night-time boating. But the thought my beloved pond might lead to my demise was unthinkable.. The water temp was in the low forties, my route of escape was lengthy when a voice from our house shouted, “Do you need help?”

I started to respond with one of my smart-ass one liners, instead I decided “Yes Dear” would be an appropriate response. My heaven-sent angel made her way to the dock and the first order of business was shedding that heavy hoodie, getting a rope to help me navigate across the open slip, get the pontoon off the lift and access its ladder to rescue my arse. But….that’s when Murphy reared his ugly head!

We’ve had that pontoon for over two years but had never had the ladder in the down position since these days our swimming takes place mostly off our dock. Now check this out Mr. McClure, neither of your clients were smart enough to get the ladder in the down position. By this time my amphibious training, complements of the good ‘ol USMC, was becoming stressed…On to the next objective!

The wet-steps ladder was in sight and this near-miss was about to come to an end. Cold, num and a little battered and bruised, but as I like to say, “Still Upright.” After making my way to the house, taking a hot shower and starting to ponder the entire morning’s events, I realized just how fortunate I had been. I remembered how many times I had stumbled over that spicket and how now job one would be its removal. An intervention movement was underway within my family to ban me from frequenting the dock alone. Mentally I hired Harvey Spector and Mike Ross from the hit Netflix series Suits, to negotiate my case. Since they never lose, we settled on the use of a water-activated life jacket at all times.

On Grand Lake, the official water safety police is headed up by Lake Patrol Chief Brian Edwards and he has the uniform to prove it. When I told him my story, he said, “Ever heard of the 50/50 rule?”  I had not so he went on to explain: “A fifty-year-old person has a 50 -50 chance of surviving 50 minutes in fifty degree water.” The prognosis of a 79-year-old man in 40-something degree water wasn’t a scenario I wanted to think about. I started to clearly appreciate the gravity of the situation. I’m now a lifejacket advocate and hope all Grand Lakers will join in that effort. Tragedy can strike ever so fast from the least likely of places. As I said, “”Nine foot tall and bulletproof no more.”

See Ya’ Around the Pond!!

An Interview with God You Say?

 

An Interview with God You Say?

Publishers Note: This is a column I put together many years ago and always seems appropriate as the Christmas season rolls around year-after-year. The year originally used is buried in the deep recesses of my laptop, but I suspect it was around 2011 since that when my first knee surgery occurred. I’ve taken some liberties but enjoy the message and the reason for the season.

 Earlier this week, I swung by The Coves pro shop for a bit of lunch for the first time since my knee replacement surgery on Pearl Harbor Day. There weren’t many around as the temperature on the first tee was hovering around forty and it didn’t appear the all-knowing “Noon Group” would muster a game. George McCreary, by choice, and Jim Gray, because he’s paid to do so, were the only ones on hand.

 After proudly displaying the still-in-place staples

View from the Publisher's Perch

holding my right knee together following the long overdue surgery, McCreary inquired as to what I might be doing with the rest of the day since golf didn’t seem to be an option. I told my audience of two I had a column to write for this week’s Grand Times on Grand Lake blog. George followed up his original question by asking, “What heavy issue of importance will be in your blog this time?” I said simply, “It’s an interview with God.”

 The silence was deafening, but McCreary, who is rarely at a loss for words, went on to inquire, “You been asking for God’s help with your golf game?”  I told George he’d just have to check it out on Facebook or visit my blog at Grand Times on Grand Lake with yours truly and find out, but the answer is as follows for the sake of convenience.

 I dreamed I had an interview with God.

 “Come in,” God said. “So, you would like to interview Me?”

 “If you have the time,” I said.

 God smiled and said, “My time is eternity and is enough to do everything; what questions do you have in mind to ask me?”

 So, I said, “What surprised you the most about mankind?”

 God answered, “That they get bored of being children, are in a rush to grow up, and then long to be children again. Then they lose their health to make money and then lose their money to restore their health. That by thinking anxiously about the future, they forget the present, such that they live neither for the present nor the future. That they live as if they will never die, and then die as if they had never lived.”

 God’s hands took mine. We were silent for a while and then I asked: “As a parent, what are some of life’s lessons you want your children to learn?”

 God replied with a smile, “To learn they cannot make anyone love them. What they can do is let themselves be loved. To learn what is most valuable is not what they have in their lives, but who they have in their lives. To learn that it is not good to compare themselves to others. All will be judged individually on their own merits, not as a group on a comparison basis. To learn that a rich person is not the one who has the most but is the one who needs the least. To learn it only takes a few seconds to open profound wounds in people we love, and that it takes many years to heal them. To learn to forgive by practicing forgiveness. To learn there are people who love them dearly, but simply do not know how to express or show their feelings. To learn that money can buy everything but happiness.”

 “To learn that two people can look at the same thing and see it totally different.”

 “To learn that a true friend is someone who knows everything about them…and likes them anyway. To learn that it isn’t always enough that they be forgiven by others, but that they have to forgive themselves.”

 I sat there for a while enjoying the moment. I thanked Him for His time and for all He had done for me, and my family and He replied, “Anytime. I’m here 24 hours a day. All you have to do is ask for Me and I’ll answer.”

 People will forget what you said. People will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.

 A confession for the record: George and Jim Gray really didn’t prod me about this interview with God, but I’ve used it over the years and its special message. For Mimi, the "Nurse Ratchet" at the Veteran’s Clinic in Vinita and a certified Grand Laker who was the first to request this interview be published again, there you go.

 May we never lose sight of the real reason for the season and might I take this opportunity to wish a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to one and all.

 See Ya’ Around the Pond!!

When a “First Responder” Could use our Help & the Marines still have our back

 

When a “First Responder” Could use our Help!

Larry & Lana Sanders have been a part of the Disney community for nearly 20 years. If you drive through Disney often, as I do, you are well aware that Larry is responsible for law enforcement for this small lakeside town and so much more. You might find him in his patrol car or driving a tractor to smooth out road shoulders to accommodate the visiting four wheelers or hanging up Christmas decorations or doing anything else that needs attention.

 The Sanders family have been confronted with some serious health issues over the past several weeks resulting in Lana having endured double digit surgeries to combat a form of flesh-eating bacteria. The town of Disney is coming to their aid with a benefit set of this Thursday at the Community Center. Things get underway at 11:00 am with Indian Tacos and BBQ being served. People within the community have been donating items for a silent auction, but with the couple having no insurance, cash would certainly be appreciated. Contribution can be mailed the Town of Disney to the attention of Lisa Cookson.

If  there are other questions, Lisa Cookson can be reached at 918-344-3224.

Here’s to Veterans, Marines, Waterfront Bars, Cold Beer

& Investing in the Greatest Nation on Earth

A salute to our veterans is dead ahead and I’d like to thank each and every one of them for their service. In spite of the political rhetoric, we still have the greatest nation on earth, which was bought and paid for with commitment and sacrifice. The tributes and salutes that will be found in virtually every form of media this week will, indeed, be heart-warming and it’s reassuring to know the general public recognizes that the commitment and sacrifice which came before us.

 This year the celebration of the Marine Corps birthday is set for Friday, November 10^th and is immediately followed on Saturday by Veteran’s day. As an old Marine, yes, once a Marine always a Marine, I always receive a lot of shout-outs from others, who either wore the uniform with pride, or had an appreciation for those who did.

 Just makes sense that I would be attracted to a branch of the service organized and founded in a bar in Philly. When I hear the phrase, if only these walls could talk, I always think of the history shared by the Marine Corps and Tun Tavern.

Ask any Marine.  Just ask.  He will tell you that the Marine Corps was born in Tun Tavern on 10 November 1775.  But, beyond that the Marine's recollection for detail will probably get fuzzy.  So, here is the straight scoop:

In the year 1685, Samuel Carpenter built a huge "brew house" in Philadelphia.  He located this tavern on the waterfront at the corner of Water Street and Tun Alley.  The old English word tun means a cask, barrel, or keg of beer.  So, with his new beer tavern on Tun Alley, Carpenter elected to christen the new waterfront brewery with a logical name, Tun Tavern.

Tun Tavern quickly gained a reputation for serving fine beer.  Beginning 47 years later in 1732, the first meetings of the St. John's No. 1 Lodge of the Grand Lodge of the Masonic Temple were held in the tavern.  An American of note, Benjamin Franklin, was its third Grand Master.  Even today the Masonic Temple of Philadelphia recognizes Tun Tavern as the birthplace of Masonic teachings in America.

Roughly ten years later in the early 1740s, the new proprietor expanded Tun Tavern and gave the addition a new name, "Peggy Mullan's Red Hot Beef Steak Club at Tun Tavern."  The new restaurant became a smashing commercial success and was patronized by notable Americans.  In 1747 the St. Andrews Society, a charitable group dedicated to assisting poor immigrants from Scotland, was founded in the tavern.

Nine years later, then Col. Benjamin Franklin organized the Pennsylvania Militia.  He used Tun Tavern as a gathering place to recruit a regiment of soldiers to go into battle against the Indian uprisings that were plaguing the American colonies.  George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and the Continental Congress later met in Tun Tavern as the American colonies prepared for independence from the English Crown.

On November 10, 1775, the Continental Congress commissioned Samuel Nicholas to raise two Battalions of Marines.  That very day, Nicholas set up shop in Tun Tavern.  He appointed Robert Mullan, then the proprietor of the tavern, to the job of chief Marine Recruiter -- serving, of course, from his place of business at Tun Tavern.  Prospective recruits flocked to the tavern, lured by (1) cold beer and (2) the opportunity to serve in the new Corps of Marines.  So, yes, the U.S. Marine Corps was indeed born in Tun Tavern.  Needless to say, both the Marine Corps and the tavern thrived during this new relationship.

Tun Tavern still lives today.  And, Tun Tavern beer is still readily available throughout the Philadelphia area.  Further, through magazines it is advertised to Marines throughout the world.

So, as it turns out, it was always in the cards that I would wind up a jarhead….always a sucker for bars, waterfront living, spending time on beaches, cold beer, tradition and hangin’ out with some of the greatest people in the world. A salute to vets everywhere, even doggies and swabbies and all the rest, but a very special Semper Fi to the very best as Monday was the 248^th birthday of the United States Marine Corps.

See Ya’ Around the Pond!!

 

Fund-Raiser Golf Tournament to Benefit

the Ketchum Backpack Program

But as Usual there’s a lot more to the story!

Hey buddy, how 'bout a hundred for
the Backpack Program?

If you take time to read the release below about the details of the golf tournament, including its generous sponsors and volunteers, all the information needed to participate can be found.  But unless a person has participated in this program by stuffing food items in a bag for weekend consumption or delivering the food goods to the Ketchum School System and seen those smiling faces, I contend we have no idea of the value this program provides. One man’s passion for the poverty-stricken kids in the South Grand Lake area birthed this program. It most likely wasn’t an original idea, but it never would have gotten off the ground without his efforts. 

The late, great Darrell Hicks, along with his wife Sheryl, were right there in the very beginning of establishing this valuable program. As he hustled donations, sponsorships and volunteers, many times from among his adult-beverage drinkin’ buddies hangin’ out at Mooney’s Sunset Bar & Grill, some might describe the “Bigger than Life Hicks as a real pain in the a#@.

Since Darrell’s death, Sheryl Hicks has spent hours keeping the program alive and it’s been a labor of love. Other organizations have stepped up and I’m sureDarrell would be pleased with all the growth in the program……check the details out below and bring it on brothers and sisters.

“FORE THE KIDS” Golf Tournament at The Coves Golf Club

On Monday, September 25, the South Grand Lake Foundation will host its First Annual “Fore the Kids” Golf Tournament at The Coves Golf Club. 100% of the proceeds from this tournament will benefit the Backpack Program, which provides weekend food for needy Ketchum students.

The organizers have had amazing number of commitments for sponsorships and are happy to announce as the Presenting Sponsor Asphalt and Fuel Supply of Sapulpa. Other major sponsors are as follows; Lunch Sponsor, Precision Manufacturing and Design and Trophy Sponsors, John and Debi Saied.

Hole Sponsors are Champion Precision Coatings, LLC, GLOC Aviation, LLC, AIRGROUP, Ann Hanford in memory of Tom Butler, Diana Patterson McGraw Realty Grand Lake, Dick Lanes, Bluewater Investments, Willow Park Marina, Debbie Smith in memory of Chris Smith, Alex Frost of Keller Williams, Shultz Creek Campground &RV Park, Froman Propane/Parts City, Mooney’s Sunset Bar and Grill, Safe Harbor Harbors View, Frank Ronsse and Lois Godkins-Ronsse.

Half Hole Sponsors include Erin Davis of Grand View Realty, Tiffany McKibben of McKibben Realty, Josh Reasor with The Boat Monkey and BancFirst; as well as many other donations and raffle prizes.

This will be a scramble, which includes golf, carts and lunch. Cost is $100 per player or $400 Team. Registration is at 8:00 am, with shotgun start at 9:00 a.m. Lunch and Awards to follow. We invite all golfers to come out for a good time and support your community.

For more information email sherylchicks@yahoo.com or call or text Karen at 719-205-8859. You may also visit the South Grand Lake Foundation Facebook page.

Labor Day Weekend Will Always Remain Special

Just like the alcoholic remembering that first drink, I can remember that first weekend as a Grand Lake property owner like it was yesterday. It was the Friday prior to the Labor Day weekend 1976. I had just walked out of Pidgeon Riley’s office, yeah, the now famous Diana Riley Patterson’s daddy, following the close on my Grand Lake dream. I pondered if I might have bitten off more than I could chew, paying $18,100 for a lake retreat, but having no idea what a major impact it would have on my life.

Calm waters post Labor Day

That was 47 years ago and the Grand Old Lady and yours truly have seen a lot of water pass through the turbines throughout the years. That, which seems like a small investment now, would become a permanent home in 1981 as I said goodbye to corporate life and the security of a damn good job with the Bell System. And here we are, ready to celebrate that 47^th anniversary on the pond.

Lot of memories, grand times, few regrets, not as much money as the metroplex may have served up, but a lifestyle that is enjoyed by few. The look of my perch above Grays Hollow has changed, like many of the people over the years, but it remains our home base.

Many have asked why we remain on one of the busiest and most popular coves on Grand Lake when we could have moved to a nicer and quieter location on our beloved pond. I give the same answer as when asked if I wouldn’t like to live in Florida or some other place offering up a more constant climate; it’s the seasons of Grand Lake I look forward to each and every year.

In the fall for example, I think it’s the very best with quiet days, fabulous color and a good majority of our weekend friends have headed back to the big city to do whatever it is they do. I even enjoy the beauty and wintertime adventures provided by deep snow, power outages and the challenge of just navigating up our driveway. Then spring rolls around and just as we anticipate the nesting wood ducks and the return of some 30 pairs of Purple Martins who call the Waldorf atop our dock home for the season, we look forward to seeing our thousands of friends return to Grays Hollow. Florida is no match for what old Lady Grand brings to the table.

It’s been a great 47 years and perhaps the most enjoyable part has been meeting the people along the way. Many have come and gone, due to personal choices or it just ended up with their time on this earth having expired, but they continue to cycle in and out. On Grays Hollow, I think the only original player remaining property owner is Tom Gilbert, a DDS who terrorized children for a living before the golden years. Some of the newbies, those with less than thirty years of Grand Lake enjoyment under their belts, would include the Cummins, Stavas, Tinkers, Veitchs, Sappingtons, Smejkals, the Jones/Allgood and many, many more, but it has always been cheap entertainment to watch the new kids on the cove as they customize their new piece of heaven and yell at people about no wake.

One of Grays Hollows newest addition, at least within eye-sight of our joint, are the Bowmans, Janet and Troy, hailing from Nowata…We’ve dubbed them the Nowata Nation because of the gang of folks they enjoy entertaining. Watching them, with my beverage of choice in hand, as they test drive and utilize most of the lake toys on the market today, reminds me of days gone by. Call it maturity or just graduating to senior Laker status.

But we have rookies, being defined as ten years or less on our cove as well. Jimmy Lewis, Joe & Shelley Duvall, Phil & Debbie Snodgrass, The Cobles and some I’m sure I’ve overlooked.

Watching people have fun, entertain their friends and making memories not found on a city cul-de-sac are what makes this place so special….Still enjoying the ride after 47 years! Be safe our there!

See Ya’ Around the Pond!

Then Along Comes Jones……… That’s Beverly Brown Jones

Over the years, whether for the purposes of publication or just curiosity, I always enjoyed getting to know many of the movers and shakers around our Grand Lake. And I can’t think of anyone more involved in area land and real estate transactions over the last 50-plus years than the Lady Bulldog from Jay, Oklahoma, Beverly Brown Jones. I think we first crossed paths during a fund raiser for the Home of Hope described as a log race, where the winner is based, not on speed, but on calculating time from point A to B. Mind you, no speedometers allowed, but I digress.

 When I approached Beverly about the possibility of joining up for our Legends of the Lake series, she was reluctant at first, but how could she turn down the only other democrat in Delaware County? When we settled into the Grand River Abstract & Title Company’s conference room, the surprises started to unfold. With a family history of over a hundred years in the Jay area, Beverly is proud to be called a local, but there’s more to that story than meets the eye.

 She was born on a small farm northeast of Jay near a community known as Whitewater. Following graduation from high school in 1964, Beverly had designs on seeking her fame and fortune in the metroplex of Kansas City, but that’s where she met a bright young man who altered her plans in a significant manner. Stan Jones and Beverly were soon married with the new bride soon entertaining a home with a picket fence, a few kids and a happy life in Kansas City. But sometimes the best laid plans go south…. south as in right back to Delaware County and Jay, Oklahoma.

 Through Beverly’s Mom the couple learned that Margaret & Floyd Hanes wanted to sell the Grand River Abstract and Title Company…. yep, right there in Jay, Oklahoma. The young Stan Jones was quick to recognize an opportunity and went about convincing his young bride of that.

 Beverly recalls, “That was 1968 and he said, ‘Just give it six months and if you don’t like it, we can move back to the city.’ Well three grown daughters and some 55 years later, here we are in Jay, and I wouldn’t change a thing. Stan Jones simply fell in love with small town America.”

 Beverly and Stan owned and managed their company until Stan was lost to Pancreatic Cancer in 2008, but in the forty years they managed their business together they developed standards which are still evident today; community involvement, faith and a belief in honesty, integrity and treating people fairly and with respect. Through those standards their company flourished and expanded to include offices in Jay, Langley and Gove and recently added Ottawa Abstract & Title to the fold.

 Since Stan’s death, the Jones’ oldest daughter, Laura, has joined the company as a partner, but Beverly can be found at the office virtually every day. She has served on more local boards than can be counted, including banks, hospital Foundations, educational foundations, food banks and numerous charities. She’s active in all the area chambers including Grove, Jay and South Grand Lake and I’ve probably missed a few. The awards have been many like Jay High Schools Outstanding Alumni Award, Jay’s Business of the Year Award and the Oklahoma Land Title Association’s “Person of the Year.” which recognizes the nominee who best exemplifies the highest standards of dedication among Oklahoma Title professionals. But what do the real estate professional around Grand Lake have to say about Grand River Abstract and Title Company? We asked a few to find out:

 Chuck Perry, REMAX Grand Lake: “When Victoria and I were getting started the incredible support we received from both Beverly and Stan was simply unmatched and the friendship we developed meant even more. I just can’t say enough about two greater influences on our careers.”

 Diana Riley-Patterson, McGraw Grand Lake: “I just absolutely love that woman. We’ve done business for years and am grateful for the bond we have forged. A beautiful person inside and out.”

 Sheryl Fleming, Butler Real Estate: “Nobody knows Grand Lake real estate like Beverly Jones, and she is one of the nicest people you will ever meet. Always helpful in every possible way.”

 Nothing like a testimony from a satisfied customer or client. And many of the area organizations that have enjoyed Grand River Abstract & Title’s support, like the $1500 title sponsorship of the South Grand Lake Chamber’s upcoming golf tournament, couldn’t agree more.

 Beverly has slowed down a bit in recent years and is even rumored to take one day a week off. She’s known to enjoy dining with friends, boating, reading and keeping up with politics at the state and national level. She spent many years as an avid golfer, but her true passion is serving people in her community. One of a kind, Bev Jones!

 See Ya’ Around the Pond!!

 

 

 

 

This is an All-Points Bulletin... Strangely Enough for a Book!!

In our years publishing The Chronicle of Grand Lake, we encountered a lot of people who provided tips about interesting stories and historical information about our lake. Bruce Howell, with his Echoes from the Past publication, Barbara Haver, who we recognized long ago as the Matriarch of the lake, Jim Weeks with his widely read book about the history of the lake and strangely enough the King of Facebook-Grand Lake, Jerry Cookson. And that my friends brings us to the subject of today's blog.

Over the years, Jerry gave us many suggestions for content in our publications and admittedly many were to promote activities and boats for sale at Cedar Port Marina, but he also had a knack of finding historical pictures when Cedar Port was one of the first marinas on the lake and known as Port Tyler. The book pictured on the left was one such prize and contained photos and verbiage we had never seen before. I think the book was more dear to Jerry's heart because his Mom had run across it at a garage sale and immediately passed it on to her Grand lake son, who shared it with us. Now here's the rub. 

When we elected to R-E-A-L-L-Y retire following our Labor Day on-line edition of 2020, soon after this 6'6', 260 pound sucker visits my office and says, "Hey man, where's my Mom's book?" I explained to Jerry I was fairly certain we had returned it long ago. Well Jerry was just as certain we hadn't.

And there's plenty of wildlife in Dripping Springs

When we dismantled the newspaper office in '20, we went through a massive amount of files and other treasures, but no book. The search has since expanded to our residence on Grays Hollow, with no luck. I'm absolutely certain a book like that wasn't discarded or trashed because of our appreciation of lake history, but Jerry is still convinced the ball is in our court. 

The only plausible answer I can come up with is a long shot, but folks, we're down to longshots at this point. Did I possibly loan the book out to somebody and it was never returned? In short, if you have seen this book or have it in your possession, I would really appreciate some help in getting it back to its rightful owner. I can be reached at 918-782-7710 or e-mailed at rustyfleming44@gmail.com.

See Ya' Around the Pond!!