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May 28th, 2014

5/28/2014

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Below is a column of mine that was published Nov. 7, 2012. My good friend Robert “Bob” Rosebrock, who graduated with me from Southport in 1960, is still doing his best to get the changes made that will help so many homeless veterans in Los Angeles. 

With all the national attention being given to the Veterans Administration because of the terrible problems with VA hospitals around the country, I’m sure that Bob is working night and day to get the proper changes made and the terrible justice rectified in Los Angeles. He hasn’t missed a weekly protest in more than 300 weeks. 
Veterans everywhere deserve our support and thanks every day.

More than 125 years ago, 400-plus acres of land were patriotically deeded to establish the National Veterans Home in West Los Angeles. The facility provided a permanent home, medical care and rehabilitation for our veterans.

The campus still has a hospital that provides outpatient services but no long-term supportive housing for the desperately ill veterans who live and die on the streets.

Much of the property is used for other things, and none of the income from the leasing of it is used to help the homeless veterans. Some of the land has become a public park, and a private school leases a parcel for an athletic field and tennis courts. Veterans are not allowed access to any of these facilities.

As many of us did in the mid-1960s, Rosebrock spent time in the military. He is now the backbone of the effort to help support homeless veterans in Los Angeles.
He organized the Veterans Revolution and the Old Veterans Guard, whose members have gathered for the past 230-plus Sundays to protest the abuse and misappropriation of home’s land.
Rosebrock and his family lived on West Epler Avenue when we were in school, and his father and uncle owned school buses just as my father had at the time. We have missed him returning for class reunions and visits, but after reading his articles and going to the websites that he has mentioned, I understand why.
Many of his stories have been published in veterans newspapers and on-line newsletters, and he is involved in litigation to convert the entire property into a veterans home.
Our friend and classmate is on a mission. As a veteran, I am so proud of him and have a desire to help. I hope others feel the same way.
More information is available by visiting www.veteransrevolution.com and www.veteranstoday.com/2012/10/04’va-has-no-money-for-homeless-shelter/. You can also Google Robert Rosebrock.
Shonk is a 1960 graduate of Southport, a’63 grad of Indiana Central College (now the University of Indianapolis) and a retired bus driver from Beech Grove Schools. 
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May 21st, 2014

5/21/2014

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In some of my past columns I have shared stories about my sister, Kathy, and me growing up in our house on Madison Avenue. We lived one block north of Thompson Road, and our former home is now known as the Longacre Tavern. 

I had the opportunity to visit and share stories with a number of friends and past neighbors last week at the showing of Katherine Ake.


She and her husband, Joe, were our special neighbors from my youth. Their home was the first house west of Madison Avenue on the north side of Thompson Road. The only thing between their house and Madison was the property that once featured the rail tracks for the interurban trains that traveled from Indianapolis to Columbus, Ind.


We had a few small businesses in our neighborhood, and all of the kids knew one another and had fun playing together. I remember visiting the Ake house often. They Akes lived in a small home, and they had four daughters, so the house was getting sort of crowded. 


Mr. Ake had started repairing televisions as a hobby in his basement, but it eventually turned into a wonderful business – Recommended TV. Televisions were black and white at that time and were filled with lots of tubes that burned out and had to be replaced. 


One day while I was visiting and admiring a large addition to the house, I noticed the youngest daughter, Carol, walking near an open door that was the entrance to the stairs leading to the basement. I noticed her getting closer and closer to those stairs. The next time I focused in that direction, she wobbled a bit, lost her balance and toppled out of site.


I stood frozen; at first I couldn’t make a sound. I glanced around the room and seemed to be the only person who had witnessed this terrible accident. The room had become quiet before I heard a noise coming from what I supposed was a badly hurt girl at the bottom of the stairs.


I was sort of bumfuzzled when I heard the noise again. It sounded like a giggle. As I slowly made my way to the opening and looked down, there sat Carol laughing at the bottom of the stairs.


She was sitting on a large pile of clothing that covered the bottom of the stairs. On my second look I noticed that none of the steps were visible. They were also covered with lots of clothing. About that time, Katherine Ake stepped up beside me and said, “It’s a good thing I hadn’t done the laundry yet, isn’t it?” 


I visited with Katherine’s family and friends at the funeral home, where we laughed and relived so many great times. I think that Katherine was probably one of the last living parents from my childhood in our neighborhood. She was a special neighbor and mother. 


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 is married to Lyn Shonk.

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May 14th, 2014

5/14/2014

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For several years I’ve been a member of the Perry Township/Southport Historical Society (I just called treasurer John Winkler to check if my dues were up-to-date.) I was informed that I am a member in good standing.

We have monthly meetings and guest speakers about six times a year. Our most recent guest was Larry Davidson, who formerly owned Davidson’s Lumber Co., which played a vital role in our township and Southport.


About three years ago the society hosted a program in memory of Longacre Pool and Park. It was owned by the Dodrill family, and the presentation was made by David Dodrill. It was an amazing evening as David illustrated more than 100 photographs, which had been placed on a DVD.


Last year we presented a program titled “Perry Township’s Contribution to the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race,” in which Indianapolis Motor Speedway historian Donald Davidson served as master of ceremonies. 


We had Joe Langley’s daughters, Linda and Sally, make a presentation, and the daughters of Howdy Wilcox, Donna, Nancy and Sandy, showed photos and told stories about their father. The Langleys and the Wilcoxes resided on Madison Avenue.


The programs on Longacre and the Indy 500 were held at The Atrium on Thompson Road, where more than 300 people attended each event.  


Our next project will take a look at the residential and business areas on or near Madison during the 1950s and ’60s.


We will start at Manual High School and work our way south of Southport. Baker’s Cleaner was on Thompson Road, just east of the railroad tracks. I’m sure we will have some stories that involve the Southern Circle Drive-in Restaurant. 


We are looking for people who owned businesses along the thoroughfare during this era and for former employees of those establishments. We would love to share your pictures. 


My father operated a Sunoco station on Madison for several years, and I plan to invite the guys I worked with. We later operated a garage (now Long’s Bakery) in Southport, where we maintained our small fleet of school buses and operated an automotive repair business. 


I’m sure there are dozens and dozens of wonderful pictures and stories of the exciting times on Madison. If you have any photos or know folks who do, call me at 371-7654. We could have a cup of coffee at the Burger Chef on Madison ... whoops ... it’s Flapjacks now.


This is going to be a blast!

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 is married to Lyn Shonk.

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May 07th, 2014

5/7/2014

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For several years I enjoyed a part-time position as a driver of a charter bus for The Free Enterprise System. With most of my work for local accounts and sporting events, I met of lot of interesting people: Newt Gingrich, Mitch Daniels, Charles Barkley, Dennis Rodman, etc. I also was privileged to work with some great people at Free Enterprise.

Several of us still try to get together about once a month for a breakfast. Current and retired drivers and sometimes some maintenance staff join us. The past few years have been tough with the deaths of charter members Ron Lowe, Walter Hart and Carl Cambridge.

At first we moved our breakfast around the city from Brownsburg to Lawrence to Southport. Finally, we decided on a permanent location: Sisters’ Place on Terrace Avenue. We meet the second Friday of the month and have a great meal while enjoying the camaraderie.

A couple of weeks ago I was informed that Sisters’ Place might be closing, so my wife, Lyn, and I headed there for lunch. While eating one of the famous “Copy Cat” salads, we were told that owner Carole Pope was retiring and had sold the business.

The restaurant was started in 1983 by Carole and her sister, Linda Dickson, and was originally located a few blocks north of Garfield Park on Shelby Street. They used several recipes from their mother, Rachel Richter.
A few years later, Carole became sole owner. Her son Shawn Bryson joined her in the business in 1990, and the diner outgrew the former service station that it was housed in. 

I was surprised to learn that my friend Dale Elrod teamed with Carole and Shawn to relocate the restaurant to its present building, which used to be home to Miller’s Regal Market before it was nearly destroyed in a fire. Dale and Carole gutted the structure and enlarged it.

Carole’s son Rick Bryson operated the business from 1999- 2005 to give Carole the opportunity to pursue other interests. In 2005, she resumed her role as sole proprietor, and her daughter, Alicia “Sunshine” Beyers, became assistant manager.

I had a chance to visit with Carole the last time I was there, and she gave me a menu, whose backside gave an account of the restaurant’s history. She pointed out that several servers and kitchen employees had been valued employees for more than 16 years.

A couple of the servers who we looked forward to seeing were Diane Blythe, a 22-year employee, and Margaret Warner. These gals always made us feel welcome and put a smile on our faces. They knew exactly how to deal with a bunch of crazy guys who came in for breakfast and seemed to tell the same stories over and over.

On a couple of occasions I have visited Sisters’ with a group of my former Southport High School classmates. This group, which was an all-girl bunch until I was inducted several years ago, meets monthly for lunch.  
Lots and lots of folks from all over Indianapolis are going to miss the friends that provided us with such a great experience each time we visited Sisters’ Place.

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    Picture

    Fred Shonk

    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. 

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