For most of her life, Linda lived in Omaha, Neb. During World War II, she and her mother lived in Berwyn, while my uncle Gene was in the service. Unfortunately, Gene and his wife divorced a few years after the war, and Gene came to live with us for the rest of his life.
Linda traveled to Oak Park every summer for six weeks from 1948-1957 and proved to be a great friend and companion. She helped me with the daily chores, played ball with the neighborhood kids, went to movies and on excursions with us and helped my grandmother and mother.
My mother was a great believer in attending both cultural events and baseball games. She took Linda and me to half a dozen Cubs and Sox games, as well as to the various museums. She also took us to Marshall Field’s three or four times each summer.
My uncle Gene and his lady friend took us on picnics and to Riverview two or three times each summer. Gene saved all of his loose change throughout the year so when Linda came, he presented her with a huge jar of money, which she freely spent.
Most of the time, Gene spent weekends in the garage working on his current car. Linda and I helped him try to detect a mysterious noise in the engine of each of the cars he had over the years, but we could never hear what he heard.
When Linda first visited, she was 7, and my pals and I teased her a lot, which didn’t bother her. One time, though, I told her that a previous resident of our house had shot and killed her husband in the living room and that his ghost frequently roamed the house. A few nights later when she saw a shadow on her window shade, she believed that the ghost was after her. I agreed with her and told her I had seen the ghost, too. She told my mother and uncle about what I had told her, and I was given a clear description of what my fate would be if I scared her again. She lived in peace forevermore.
When Linda came after her junior year in high school, my buddy R.J. wanted to take her on a date. He got up the courage to ask Gene, who I knew didn’t like R.J. Gene told him he could go if I went along, and if we went to a party, there was to be no dancing to rock-and-roll music. I told Gene that I didn’t want to be a chaperone, so R.J. and Linda never went out together.
After 1957, Linda never came again during the summer. In 1958 she went to the University of Nebraska and, like me, she worked during the summer months. She married in 1962, became a speech correctionist, and in 1964, she, her husband and son came to Oak Park for a few days. Although we corresponded frequently, I never saw her again after her 1964 visit. She passed away in 1994.
I often think about her and the good times we had, but all I can do is hold onto those memories and consider myself fortunate that I had a good friend who shared a part of her life with me.
John Stanger is a lifelong resident of Oak Park, a 1957 graduate of OPRF High School, married with three grown children, and an English professor at Elmhurst College. Living two miles from where he grew up, he hasn’t gotten far in 68 years.
