Well, I’m feeling better. Stuart, my therapy dog, and I can get back on our nursing home and school visiting schedule. It drives Stuart crazy when I do something that messes up that routine.
We did do something different last week. Several times Stuart and I stopped by the Southport Police Department at Southport and Derbyshire roads and visited with folks stopping by to pay their respect to Lt. Arron Allan, who was fatally shot July 27 while responding to a car accident in Homecroft. We met several Southport officers and a lot of Southsiders. Several of my family members and neighbors also stopped by. It is such an honor to be a part of our solid Southside community.
We watched the funeral procession from Banta and Derbyshire roads, where about 30 people gathered to honor Lt. Allan. It took more than 30 minutes for it to pass.
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Saturday was also my birthday, and I got many well wishes on Facebook. A couple of days before my birthday, I watched an old episode of “The Jack Benny Show,” which originally aired on the radio before moving to TV.
I remember sitting on the floor near my folks’ big self-standing radio. My family really enjoyed listening to that radio show. All the years that Benny was on radio and television, he claimed to be 39 years old. This year I caught up with Benny. I was 37 for several years. Now I’m 39 – and like Benny – I’m locked into that age.
Saturday evening my wife, Lyn, and I went to Mike Heimel’s auction center in Beech Grove, where the bluegrass band Midwest Station was playing.
At one point the band tried get Mike to sing with them, but the audience didn’t think that was a good idea. He did go up and “cuddle” with a couple of the band members. Those photos can be seen on Mike Heimel’s Facebook page.
The band sang “Happy Birthday” to Mike and me. Our birthdays are only a couple of days apart, but I’m thinking he might be older than 39.
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Attention former Edgewood Grade School students: Our big reunion is Saturday, Sept. 9. If you need any information, give me a call at 317-784-9242.
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.