Memory Lane - Lotsa LeRoys (January to August 1984)

1984 holds some special memories for our family. It began in the cold. I mean really cold. On New Year's morning the thermometer on the back porch of our Dearborn Baby Ford looked like this.

That little blob of red mercury is doing its best just to get up to 10 below. It was so cold that the air between the camera and the thermometer was giving off a slightly pinkish tinge. Either that or during the hoopla at the New Year's Eve party the night before someone spilled pink champagne on the lens. Those days were pretty wild. Well, as wild as a belt-and-suspenders guy ever gets.

Unlike the New Year's Eve party, the winter of '84 was pretty routine. Up early most days, the mania of the morning rush, taking Christy to her private caregivers on the way to work, then battling the wind and the cold to survive the walk from the parking lot to the office. At the end of the day, we did it all in reverse. Pretty much like everyone else we knew who commuted into the city. 

A couple of things I remember about those days. The first is that it was just before the era of the covered travel mug (at least before we discovered them). So if you wanted coffee for the drive, it was in a regular cup. No lid. And since when you're driving it's good to be able to use your hands, this open cup of hot liquid was usually nestled into an after-market cup holder which either hung loosely on the car door or sat on the dash board. And every little bump in the road threatened spills and nasty stains on you and the spot where you're sitting. Ugly. I can't believe we ever did that. An open liquid container in a moving car is a thing of the way past. 

The other thing I remember about that winter was the struggle to keep the diesel engine in our Oldsmobile up and running. It was the early days of American car diesels, which were developed to provide better fuel economy. But they hadn't quite worked the kinks out. In cold weather, untreated diesel fuel gels and can clog the fuel line. That's bad. Diesel fuel, treated for cold weather operation, worked okay but wasn't easy to find. I remember sending away for a paperback guide to all of the service stations in America that sold treated diesel fuel. 

Fortunately, at that time we had a second vehicle that ran on regular gasoline - a Chevy S-10 pickup with kid-sized fold-down jump seats. Not as comfortable as the big station wagon, but it could get us around town and back and forth to my parents' place in Bay City reliably, even when it was ten below. 

Our family photo archives don't have many pictures from the winter and spring of '84. Apparently we were too busy dealing with the demands of daily life to think much about documenting it. But we did manage to capture a few memorable moments.  In this first one Christy is snuggling under a comforter with a favorite doll. 

In this second shot she's focusing on one of her favorite activities - snack time. Note that we were smart enough to use a covered cup for Christy's milk. For some reason we failed to apply this wisdom to our morning drive coffee problem.

In late spring we took a day trip to Ipperwash to help Nancy's parents open up the family cottage for the new season. In those days Rae and Marge stayed at Avon Rae just about full time in the summer. So this spring outing was an annual ritual.

The adults spent the day sweeping sand out of the house, turning on the water, unsealing the silverware drawers, making up the beds, toting shutters into the woods to their summer storage spot, and more. During the hubbub I caught this shot of Christy and Ted having fun all by themselves on the back stoop. It was just another day at the lake for them. It can be good to be a kid.

1984 was one of the early years of the Detroit Grand Prix. In those days the race was run in June in the heart of the city. During Grand Prix week the downtown was pretty torn up. Concrete barriers and chain link fence everywhere. Anyone working downtown had a pretty tough time getting around. 

There was one silver lining. While there were races on Saturday and Sunday, Friday was a practice and qualifying day. It was called Free Prix day because you could walk around the pits and the race area at no charge. So a lot of us took Friday afternoon off and saw the sights. Here are a few shots of what is normally Jefferson Avenue. You can see how close to the cars you could actually get.

It was loud and smelled richly of high octane fuel. We loved it. Here's a shot of Nancy and the kids taking it all in. Note the umbroller. Talk about memory lane.

We knew it was an important event because this guy was there.

And a nice shot of the at that time fairly new structure that has defined the Detroit skyline ever since.

In July we traveled to the first of two family reunions that took place that summer. The first was of Nancy's Dad's side of the family and was held at Sea World in Ohio, just outside Sandusky. It was a well-attended event that ran over an entire weekend.

Ted and Christy were pretty young and may not remember the many new family members they met, a rich mix of American and Canadian blood. It would be what I believe was the last large reunion of the bi-national LeRoy family. In the following photos I've identified as many of the attendees as possible, for the Burk family historical record.

The first pic is of some fairly new members of the extended LeRoy family, just happy to be included.

Here Nancy and Christy are taking in the moment, one recording new memories while the other reconnects with old ones.

 

Here we have more senior members of the clan. From left to right Ron Wilson, Greta Snyder, and Nancy's parents Rae and Marge. Ron is a cousin of Rae's half-brother Bill. Greta is the mother of Bill's wife Jeanne. 

From here on this is going to get a bit tricky. Let me explain. All of the attendees at the reunion were descendants of two sisters - Tena and Jesse - four generations back. Nancy spent much of the weekend trying to explain to me how who was related to whom in the tangled LeRoy family tree. After my eyes started to glaze over, she simplified the ordeal by just referring to new faces (sometimes nameless) as first or second cousins, often once or twice removed. It was easier and equally ineffective. So I'm going to take the same approach here. 

Here from left to right are Greta, Rae and Marge again with Barb LeRoy, Bob Floyd and Jeanne LeRoy in the foreground.

Barb is Nancy's brother Dave's wife. Bob Floyd is married to cousin Ruthie. And Jeanne is Nancy's Uncle Bill's wife. How are you doing?

In this pic from left to right on the far side of the table is Ron Wilson, Greta and Rae again with Marge and Ruthie partially hidden. In the foreground are Nancy's cousin Wilma's son Scott McSkimming and Ron's wife Olive. Still with me?

Here we have some new faces. On the left is Debbie, Nancy's cousin Johnny's wife. Moving right we have Nancy's cousin Wilma, sister to Johnny and mother of Scott from the previous pic, and a little better pic of cousin Ruthie (wife of Bob Floyd two pics back). On the lower right is a cousin from the next generation of Wilson's whose name we can't recall. Okay. That was a little tougher.

Some more new faces. In the foreground from left to right is Bill Pattinson, husband of cousin Rae, cousin Rae (sister of Ruthie), and Nancy's Uncle Bill (half-brother of Nancy's father Rae). It was largely due to Uncle Bill's efforts that the reunion took place. I hope you're keeping your Raes and Bills straight.  

Here's an easy one. Bud (John) Wilson and his wife Carol. Bud is a cousin to Uncle Bill and Ron Wilson.

Now for the final exam. The group shot. First I'll let you peruse the photo, looking for those you've become familiar with. The answer key is below.

Here we go. From left to right (sort of) - Uncle Bill, cousin Johnny, Susan Floyd (daughter of Bob and Ruthie), Debbie (wife of Johnny), Robert Floyd Jr. (son of Bob and Ruthie), Ruthie, Bill Pattinson (in the way-back), Bud Wilson, Nancy's brother David, cousin Wilma (turning away), Wilma's son Drew McSkimming just behind her, yours truly behind Drew (well, half of my head anyway), cousin Rae Pattinson, just in front of Rae is Olive Wilson, nephew Brian LeRoy in front of Olive, sister-in-law Barb sitting in front of son Brian with second son Mathew on her lap, cousin Scott McSkimming next to Brian, cousin Ella (mother of sisters Ruthie and Rae) sitting next to Barb, Greta sitting next to Ella, cousin Julie Floyd (another daughter of Bob and Ruthie) standing behind Greta, cousin Jeannie Wilson just over Julie's right shoulder, Nancy's mother Marge sitting next to Greta, and Aunt Jeanne kneeling in front of Marge. Standing in the back wearing a white jacket is Bob Floyd. The other individuals on the right side of the photo are second generation cousins whose names we can't recall. Sorry. How did you do?

You may have noticed that there are a few key players that didn't make the picture. Namely Nancy, Ted, Christy and Nancy's dad Rae. That's because just before the picture was snapped our darling daughter bolted. It was a semi-regular happening in those days. Curious spirit I guess. The others missing from the picture had joined the chase and were coordinating their search pattern. Christy was quickly apprehended, but the mood had faded and the assembled group had moved on. Maybe next time.

From the hubbub of the reunion, the family soon retreated to the peace and calm of Ipperwash. Summer had blossomed, and we were happy to slip into our old grooves. Here are some random but typical shots. First, the cottage - Avon Rae.

In 1984 Lake Huron was at a slightly higher than normal level. But not threatening. As you can see from this pic, there was no seawall. It was a straight shot from the water's edge (from where this picture was taken) up to the sand fence, and then up a gentle incline to the front porch. Not much front yard to speak of. That would all end in the spring of 1986 when the lake level hit a near record high, but that story's a little further down the road. 

Days at the lake were pretty evenly paced between time on the beach, time in the lake, and time in the cottage recovering from time on the beach and in the lake. A balance between enjoying the elements and not getting too much sun. Here's a shot of a very common activity - sand castles. Ted, butt-deep into the day's excavation. In the background is cousin Heather contemplating her next move.

Here Christy is demonstrating sand shovel safety protocols for Heather. Note the sophisticated beach barrette look Christy is sporting.

Our four year old schnerrier Heidi (half schnauzer half terrier) was a constant companion on the beach.

Heidi didn't care much for the water, but loved a good beach sniff. Good smells abounded I'm sure.

One of the highlights of a day at the beach was the late afternoon family swim. Everyone joined in to cool down before the customary happy hour and dinner. Even the neighbors. In this shot are cousin Lynne (very pregnant with son Andrew), her daughter Heather in the swim vest, Nancy and Christy. In the background are Nancy's dad Rae and neighbor Dottie Cavan.

Below a closeup of the Burk girls. In the background with Rae and Dottie is Nancy's mother Marge out for her daily duck in the invigorating waters of Lake Huron.

    

Watercraft was an important component of life on the lake. There was this nifty starter craft that helped one adjust to floating freely. Christy is enjoying the ride.

We also had a more advanced water vehicle technically defined as a blowup boat. Here's a shot of Ted flying solo (and apparently without oars).  

This lake worthy gem wasn't just for kids, as demonstrated in the following shot of cousin Anne enjoying a leisurely afternoon on the open sea. 

Upon occasion a stint at the lake would include a special visitor from London (Ont.). That would be Nancy's maternal grandmother Edna McKellar, 99 at the taking of this picture.

Nana, as she was known, always enjoyed her days at the lake catching up with her extended family in the relaxing atmosphere of Avon Rae.

And one last shot from that visit. After the beach and before happy hour was usually and hour or so when the kids had to entertain themselves out of the sun. For Ted, that often meant time with his Lego blocks. I think this is a spaceship of some kind, or maybe a dreadnought. 

After a closer look, I think this is a Star Wars Executive Star Destroyer. Complete with storm troopers and other support staff. Or something like that. 

That brings us to the middle of August and the end of this post. I'll continue with the busy year of 1984 in my next post, starting with another reunion.

Grosse Pointe Charles