Small Town America, Framingham, war poster from Hollis Theater

When we went to the Hollis Theater, on Hollis Street, I remember seeing this poster.  There were so many of them, but this one, I took very seriously, I thought even the children were being called upon.

Small Town America, Framingham and....THE JEEP!

When we were "kids"   longer ago then you know... the boys came home from the war and we saw this fabulous vehicle...It had a removable canvas roof!  We loved it and ran after it as it cruised down Hollis Street, from one of the side streets, near Waushakum Blvd, where I lived...Madeline, Marie, Bobby and me...we all begged for rides in the Jeep

Small Town America, how did students earn the right to sit at a desk from the internet

The final period of the day came and as the puzzled students sat on the floor of the deskless classroom, Martha Cothren said, 'Throughout the day no one has been able to tell me just what he or she has done to earn the right to sit at the desks that are ordinarily found in this classroom. Now I am going to tell you.'

The teacher, Martha Cothren, went over to the door of her classroom and opened it.

In the opened door came twenty-seven (27) U.S. Veterans, all in uniform. They came into that classroom, each one carrying a school desk.

The Vets began by placing the school desks in rows, and then each soldier would walk over and stand alongside the wall. By the time the last soldier had set the final desk in place those kids started to understand, perhaps for the first time in their lives, just how the right to sit at those desks had been earned.

Ms. Cothren said: 'You didn't earn the right to sit at these desks. These soldiers did it for you. They placed the desks here for you. They went halfway around the world, giving up their education and interrupting their careers and families so you could have the freedom you have. Some were wounded, some never returned.

Now, it's up to you to sit at these desks that were earned for you. It is your responsibility to learn, to be good students, to be good citizens. They paid the price so that you could have the freedoms of the USA and to get an education. Don't ever forget it!

By the way, this is a true story. And this teacher was awarded Veterans of Foreign Wars Teacher of the Year for the state of Arkansas in 2006.

She is the proud daughter of a WWII POW.

*Please consider passing this along so others won't forget either that the freedoms we have in this great country were earned by U. S. Veterans. Always remember them and the rights they have won for us. Blessings abound in the USA !*

This was checked with Snopes and it is true. Below is Snopes website confirming the above story and adding information about this amazing teacher.

http://www.snopes.com/glurge/nodesks.asp

Small Town America, Framingham ...we grew up blanketed in Heroes

 Why is my generation different?  We grew up with Heroes, men and women who sacrificed their lives and careers to keep the children and adults who remained at home safe from enemy invasion.
We went to school in security, we had air raid drills, we had news on the front page of enemy subs off our coast....but we were safe!  We went overseas, and helped the Brits and the rest of the Allies get their lands  and homes back in their possession.  We fought for the lives lost at Pearl Harbor and endured years of war and terror because one man wanted to control the world. We saw the end of this terrible war,  with the dropping of the atomic bombs....and endured the questions ..."Did we do the right thing ?"

  The generations of today never cried for the men and women who went to war.  They did not cry when the pictures of the devastation of the atomic bomb hit the newspapers....they will never really know.....Yes, we lived thru an era that the generations coming up behind us will never really know or understand, because the history of the 2nd World War is not alive in those generations as it was with us.   The terror of the war, the loss of our family members  the loss of our world wide youth, is forever with us, everyone sacrificed, some gave more than others, like 5 members of the Sullivan family ....like the horrific battles and the jungle wars, our men endured..  Read "Ghost Soldiers", for a picture of what it was like . I can't explain it all here, but that was the motivation for my book,   Small Town America, Framingham, to give a picture of the time...thru my eyes as a child.

These people who endured, who went off to the unknown were Heroes!  They were our safety blanket in a world darkened with bullets, tanks, bombs, crashing planes, air raids by rockets and more, like submarines lost with crews of men drowned and lost forever.... 

Here is a copy of what is circulating on the internet and you can see how children like myself looked at these people who kept us safe as HEROES and always will...

World War Two Posters Found! I got a lump in my throat when I read this. I "grew up" thinking: patriotism, it is the AMERICAN way! I am glad to see that somebody saved these posters. The statement at the end says it all!

 

Small Town Framingham, Memorial School

Our elementary school was an old grey wooden building, torn down long ago.   In between the classrooms was a hallway with a big soapstone sink.  I will never forget the day that Bernie Cloud swore and the teacher took him into the hallway and washed his mouth out with lye soap!  Oh my gosh!  Even then I knew it was a bad thing to do.

But nothing was as bad as the day Miss Cronin , first grade , put him in the coat room as punishment, and at lunch time when she let him out......oh, my , oh oh....he had eaten all our lunches!  We were totally distressed...no school lunches in those days, no refrigeration available for the school.

Tomatoes melted into the sandwich and I hated that....please Mom, no tomatoes in my sandwich...the bread gets too soaked!

Mayday dances ...were still in vogue.  In the playground  we danced around the maypole... today, I am not sure many know about that old tradition.

I often thought thru the years, how nice it would be to have our children meet the children of our long ago classmates...when they got to be around 18-20 and might feel comfortable doing that....at one of the reunions....bring the family....kind of picnic idea...  Who knows?
 

JCPenny, Framingham and Small Town America

JC Penny was a mainstay in our little town, way back when I was a child.   We got hotdogs , popcorn,ice cream and more at the counter near the front door.   It was like a small department store, where you could find almost anything you needed for sewing, tools, clothes, etc... I think it is sad that JC Penny could be losing its place in America...so if you want to see this company maintain a position in the world of the future, think about buying some back to school clothes, and maybe a few other things this season...every little bit might help the bottom line, and Penny's might survive this tough time in its history.

From the JC Penny site....a little story

Our History

Modern jcpenney stores are a far cry from the small dry-goods store that James Cash Penney opened in Kemmerer, Wyoming in 1902. In those days, frontier miners and farmers and their families turned to jcpenney for blue jeans and other work clothes, shoes, fabrics and sewing needs. Today, busy working families turn to jcpenney in cities, towns and suburbs and to jcp.com for affordable fashions and home accessories.

Originally, Mr. Penney called his stores the Golden Rule because it was his personal and business philosophy to treat others the way he himself would want to be treated. In 1913, his growing chain of stores incorporated in Utah as the J. C. Penney Company, Inc. and the Golden Rule name was phased out. In 1914, the Company moved its headquarters from Salt Lake City to New York City to be closer to its major sources of merchandise. Since 1992, the Company has been headquartered in Plano, Texas.

As jcpenney grew, it became “A Nationwide Institution,” as one of its early logos proclaimed. At one time, more than 2,000 jcpenney stores dotted Main Streets and downtown shopping districts across America. After World War II, the Company followed its customers into the new suburbs, and later into regional shopping malls. The jcpenney catalog debuted in 1963, and in 1994, the forerunner of today’s jcp.com began offering merchandise via the Internet.

jcpenney’s commitment to serving its customers with style, quality and smart prices has led the Company through many transformations over the years as society and shopping habits change. Furthermore, through more than 100 years of history, the Company has stayed true to its Golden Rule beginnings, with a continued commitment to care for the communities where it does business in and operate in an ethical and responsible manner. Today these commitments live on in the Company’s dedication to make “Every Day Matters” for all its stakeholders.

View Company Milestones

New Framingham, fun at the Wayside Inn and if you can't afford that CJ's diner at Nobscot remember that?

Remember when, George Washington slept at Longfellow's Wayside Inn!  Did not think you would...but here is Friday night fun in our area now...and it is a lot different than then, support your local history places...they need to pay their bills and if we forget them , we lose them

Upcoming Events      Learn to paint like the folks of yesteryear! Live Celtic is back!

Friday, August 9th 5th All American Craft Beer and Food Experience featuring Sam Adams Brews 6pm - 10pm under the Tent Purchase tickets by calling The Inn at 978-443-1776   Food and Beer Pairings White Water IPA & Latitude 48 IPA Pulled Pork Oktoberfest & Noble Pils Beef Brisket Boston Lager & White Lantern Enchilladas & Lobster Quesadillas Boston Ale & Black Lager Black Bean Soup and Spinach & Artichoke Dip   $30.00 per person includes food and entertainment Bottled Beers available at $3.00 each   Entertainment provided by Jazzed Up *Outside food and drink is not allowed at Wayside Inn events.

Small Town Framingjham and now a comic strip of our thoughts as children

100. CARL SAGAN: Pale blue dot   Growing up in Framingham, Mass...it was not much different in most small towns around the country.   As a child walking to school from the Ashland line on Hollis Street to the Memorial School, I jumped the sidewalk lines with Madeline and Marie, Arlene and Lorraine, we called the lines in the concrete sidewalk.... something to do with the Devil....I looked at the trees and wondered if they "died" in the fall and came back to life, could we?  It was frustrating to a child to think these thoughts and find no answers within, and then to ask Mom and get no satisfactory answer either!  If as Mom said, there was a God, why couldn't I know him ?

I sat on the fireplace my father built of stone in our yard, at 604 Hollis Street, looking at the stars, wondering why we were here as  people on this planet earth.  Were we here for a reason?  What could that reason be?  Was it special ?

Was there a mission for each of us?  If not?  Why in the world were we here, and why was I here?
In the awesome moment, I felt that there must be a God, an overall plan for this majesty in the sky, and the wonder of the world being populated.....

It took me a long time to figure it out...and when I stop and think about it, it is awesome that we can't see it sooner.  Everything is about lessons in love, because love is the biggest heart/soul filling emotion in the world.  Stop and think about it. what do I know?  We have searched for the answer for centuries, helped by a few outstanding people of the world, who preached the message of LOVE!

This came to me today because last week, I read about another little girl who had the same thoughts as realization set in for her, too!  We know we are not alone in these thoughts, everyone thinks them at one time or another....  It is such a magnificent scheme, one can't help but wonder through out life at this wonderful spectacle we are part of, and what have we got to lose to try and practice encompassing love.

Framingham, was truly a special place for growing up, but so was the whole country, at the end of the 2nd World War...so much happened in that period, that spurred me to write my little book, "Snall Town America, Framingham"    Everyone that grew up in the period, no matter where in the country once they read my book tell me, yes!  I felt it and knew it too!  We lived in a very special time!