Sunday, March 16, 2014

Article #285 Example of Parents


Sherilyn Tyler of St. George remembers My Daddy Could Do Anything: A lot of little girls think that their daddy can do anything, but mine really could.  He could, and did, build a house. He probably learned how to lay the cinder block from his cousin-a stone mason, but Daddy also did the plumbing, electrical, cement and cabinet work.  He knew how to skin a chicken, milk a cow and butcher a hog.  He knew how to raise veggies and fruit, and could even keep bees.  He could chop wood, fight forest fires and plant a lawn. Dad was told that someone who could raise strawberries like he could had no business working in an office.
 He could edit a magazine, laying out the pages with precision.  Although the magazine was printed on large presses, he could set type and run an offset press.  If they needed someone to get information for an article, they didn’t need to send a photographer along, Dad could write the article and do the photography too. My daddy could do anything.  Oh wait, maybe not.  He never was very good at making a bed.

            Kenneth Robbins of St. George recalls his industrious grandfather Seymour Bicknell Robbins who was quite the businessman in early Salt Lake City. In 1907, Seymour founded Keeley’s Ice Cream Factory and Restaurant CafĂ© stores. He devoted his time to the expansion of the business, which at one time grossed $1.5 million a year. There were three stores in Salt Lake, one in Ogden and in Provo. I remember and enjoyed the many trips to the chocolate, and ice cream factories in Salt Lake City, and in Provo. My favorite treat was the baked halibut fish, French fries and limeade ordered in the restaurant.       
             Many times on Saturday mornings we would drive to the SLC store where Grandpa would treat me to pancakes and ice cream while he counted silver coins in the upstairs president’s office. After finishing my breakfast, I would climb the stairs to the offices above the restaurant and watch him count the weekly income from the five stores. Today, I think back of all the silver dollars and dimes that passed from the cashier to the banker’s vaults and their value in today’s market. Other memories of my Grandpa are the many hours we spent camping, fishing, doing puzzles, playing games and building model airplanes. NEXT TIME: Courtship & Marriage Stories.