PUBLISHED JULY 31, 2024

A couple of weeks ago, I had the opportunity to scratch something off of my bucket list. To be totally truthful, I added it to the list about seven minutes before I was certain that it would be scratched.

A good friend and former classmate of mine needed to relocate from the Southside to just a bit north of the Broad Ripple area. I had some running around to do on the northside, so we decided to have lunch on that day. I arrived and took a tour of the new living quarters. We then hopped into my car and headed out. 

Back in the 1970s, Kenny Otto and I operated a commercial driving school in the Broad Ripple area. I drove down to 62nd Street and we drove past the building that we operated that driving school.

We continued looking for a suitable location to have lunch. We did not drive past any place that caused both of us to smile and nod our heads. At some point, my friend explained that there was a restaurant in a business that we had just passed on Keystone Avenue.

I quickly looped around and drove back to that location and pulled into the parking lot. It was at that exact time when I added it to my bucket list. My list is stored safely in my little brain. I added, #36 Eating Lunch in a Hardware Store. I parked the car, and we walked into Sullivan Hardware and Garden.

As we walked in, we asked for directions to the restaurant and a friendly employee gave us directions. We walked down the main aisle of the store, and it was probably over the length of a football field before we came upon Sully’s Grill.

We found a nice table and soon our server was helping us order and delivering our lunch. It was a very tasty lunch and we both needed carryout containers. Near the end of our lunch, our server stopped at our table and inquired if she could get us anything else.

I thought for a few seconds and then asked if she could get me a dozen 5/16 x 1 ½ hex head cap screws. She took a couple of steps back and said, “Do they sell those here?”  We all laughed, and I assured her that I was fairly sure that all sorts of fasteners would be sold at a hardware store.

As we returned to the car carrying our to-go boxes, I mentally scratched off #36 from my bucket list. I finished off the second half of my hardware store lunch the next day at home.

I am enjoying the television coverage of the Olympics in Paris. Sometimes we get a view of parents to one of the competitors when something special is happening. Sometimes it is extremely exciting and sometimes it can be an incredibly sad or upsetting time. I have become remarkably familiar with the box of tissues that resides near my recliner chair.

The other morning, I was sitting in my recliner and watching the Olympics. I needed to refill my coffee cup. As I started to stand up, Simone Biles was standing and getting ready to start across the floor mat. We both began at the same time. She ran, jumped, flipped, turned, twisted, and landed before I completed my difficult stand up to get coffee.

In one week, I scratched my bucket list and almost beat Simone Biles. It was a very good week.

Shonk is a 1960 graduate of Southport High School, a ’63 grad of Indiana Central College (now the University of Indianapolis) and a retired bus driver from Beech Grove Schools. He can be reached through email at [email protected].

PUBLISHED JULY 24, 2024

For several years, I have been a member of the Perry Township / Southport Historical Society. In 2011, I helped put together a program about The Longacre Swimming Pool and Park. A few years later, I helped with a program that remembered Perry Township’s Contribution to the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race. Both of these programs were highly informative and educational. We had great turnouts for both of these events.
 
Close to five years ago, we started researching and developing a Basketball Hall of Fame. This Hall of Fame is based on exactly two blocks of Epler Avenue. That is the short drive between Madison Avenue and Shelby Street. Two gentlemen were responsible for creating basketball fun, excitement and history that allows us to celebrate their accomplishments.

The seven inductees from that program were Paul L. (Pete) Bailey, Frank Kautsky, Louie Dampier, George McGinnis, Steve Downing, Patrick Williams, and Oral Hildebrand.

There are three ways that someone can be considered for this hall of fame. They must be a former student and basketball player at Edgewood Grade School.

 Someone that traveled from many locations in central Indiana to compete in three-on-three basketball games on the outside courts at Edgewood Grade School. There were at least a dozen of those courts on the property.

Many of the nationally known names come from the very first professional basketball team that was based in Indiana. Mr. Frank Kautsky owned and operated a family grocery store at Epler and Madison. He, with the assistance of Pete Bailey, started and operated the very first professional basketball team located in Indiana.

Our second induction will take place on August 17th. It will be held in The Perry Township Educational Center from 1:00 to 3:00 in the afternoon. We will be inducting and honoring seven more to the hall of fame that afternoon.

The following names are on our list for this program.

Tom VanArsdale: Manual H.S./I.U./ Professional player and former player on Edgewood outside courts.
Dick VanArsdale: Same as his twin brother.

Branch McCracken: Former I.U. Basketball Coach and before that a player on the Kautsky Basketball Team.
Fred Fechtman: I.U. player and player on the Kautsky team. Later he was an assistant superintendent for Perry Township Schools.

 Jesse Blackwell: Former Edgewood Grade School player and outside courts player. Butler University player and then high school coach for many years.

John Wooden: Former UCLA basketball coach and winner of several national championships Before UCLA, he was a player on the Kautsky basketball team.

Everett Swank: Southport High School assistant basketball coach and prior to that a player on the Kautsky team.

I have been in personal contact with the VanArsdale brothers and Jesse Blackwell. I have also spoken with relatives of Branch McCracken, Everett Swank, and Fred Fechtman.

Everyone is looking forward to this program and induction. More information as the day gets closer.

Shonk is a 1960 graduate of Southport High School, a ’63 grad of Indiana Central College (now the University of Indianapolis) and a retired bus driver from Beech Grove Schools. He can be reached through email at [email protected].

PUBLISHED JULY 17, 2024

I enjoy several breakfast and/or lunch get togethers each month.  I meet with three groups at The Pancake Emporium on Bluff Avenue. Another group goes to a different location each month for a nice lunch.

I am now helping my good friend, Bill Bane, as he develops a monthly breakfast for former and current school bus drivers for Beech Grove City Schools.

I started driving a school bus at Beech Grove at the start of the 2001-02 school year. I spotted an advertisement in The Spotlight (Now the Southsider Voice) by Beech Grove City Schools. I called and scheduled an interview with Assistant Superintendent, Jim Flanders. Within a few days, I was an employee.

On one of my first visits to the transportation department, I reconnected with an old acquaintance, William “Bill” Bane. I was elated that everyone was not going to be a stranger.

School started in a few days, and there was a lot to learn; my route, my duties and school policies were a few. I also wanted to become acquainted with my fellow drivers. Bill was a tremendous help to me in those early days of that school year.

The drivers’ room in the transportation building was where drivers gather for meetings or to just hang out until leaving on their routes. The room had a large conference table with chairs positioned around it. I quickly noticed that most of the drivers had their own special seats.

After a few days, I spotted an empty chair and started sitting in it. It was interesting to visit with 10 to 15 fellow drivers at that table. Sometimes it seemed like everyone was talking and no one was listening.

One day, during a rare quiet moment, I heard a female driver ask if anyone had change for a twenty. I dug into my pockets and counted my cash, but I only had about $17. However, I had a plan. I held up my fist of small bills and coins and told her that I had change.

Upon returning to her seat and counting the money, she appeared a bit startled. I was certain that she would look in my direction, so I looked away. I then watched as she started counting the money again. I figured that she was considering the possibility that she had miscounted. I am sure she came up with the same total.

She now faced the dilemma of challenging a new employee and accusing him of shortchanging her $3. I am not sure if she knew my name or vice versa. I watched as she started counting that pile of money for the third time.

After that third count, the lady looked up with total distress showing on her face. When we finally made eye contact, I exploded in laughter. She knew that she had been spoofed. She quickly filled the room with words unfit to be published in my article.

Within a couple of minutes, we were both laughing. I apologized and told her that I owed her $1.50. She quickly and loudly corrected me.

Michele Edmunds and I became good friends. She now drives for Perry Township Schools. I remember often asking her if she needed any change, but she never did. 

During those years, I had several friends and family members named Michelle. Our daughter and a good friend and neighbor of hers both are Michelle. When I started working with bus driver, Michele. I needed to separate them somehow.
 
Our daughter remained “Michelle.” Her friend and neighbor became, “Little Michelle,” and my co-worker became, “One L.” Those names still stand. Bill Bane is still known as Bill Bane.
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I am sure we will have lots of stories to tell and remember at our new monthly breakfast.

It is amazing how sometimes I will see or hear something that can trigger thoughts that can take me back to my school days. That is one of the reasons I find it enjoyable to stay connected with former classmates and co-workers.

When I was young, we lived in a three-bedroom home on Madison Avenue. Life was great and extremely simple. Our main and probably only source of entertainment was a very large radio that stood on its own in our living room. This was well before we had our first television.

There were four or five local AM stations, and their newsmen and disc jockeys were very well known. The stations were connected to networks like local TV stations are today. Local news and music aired during the daytime, network shows during the evening and weekends along with sporting events.

I listened to shows like, “The Lone Ranger,” “Superman,” and “Roy Rogers.” I sat on the couch near the radio, closed my eyes and listened to my heroes save the day. Their voices were locked into my brain. I remember my folks telling stories about me altering my voice to sound like Roy Rogers, my hero.

Soap operas also got their start on radio and were aired during the early afternoon before children were home from school. I remember my grandmother having an afternoon break to listen to her shows.

Comedy, drama, detective, music, quiz, and adventure shows dominated the evening schedules. One of my parent’s favorites was “The Jack Benny Show.” The show also featured Rochester, Don Wilson, Phil Harris, Mary Livingstone, and Dennis Day.

I fondly remember sitting on the floor in front of that big radio on Sunday evenings listening to The Jack Benny Show with my parents. That was just another part of Sunday for us. 

Many of these wonderful shows were transformed into television programs a few years later. It was so cool to see Clark Kent dash into a public telephone booth and in a few seconds emerge and fly away as Superman. I often wondered about the business suit he left behind in his rush to save Lois Lane.

I think we had a 16-inch black and white console television with some interesting rabbit ears sitting on top of the set. Things went along smoothly until the invention of color television. Then it seemed to start all over again. We were lucky to get a color television exceedingly early. Lots of my parents’ family would stop by to watch a popular show in the evenings.

There are a few cable channels that now provide some of those early television shows. I have enjoyed watching “The Jack Benny Show” again. So many memories, especially when the show has a famous guest star. Recently, I saw Nat King Cole guesting on one of The Jack Benny Shows.

I wish I still had that old stand alone radio.

Shonk is a 1960 graduate of Southport High School, a ’63 grad of Indiana Central College (now the University of Indianapolis) and a retired bus driver from Beech Grove Schools. He can be reached through email at [email protected].