Citizenship

My teachers, the Dominican Sisters of St. Gabriel's Elementary, are now all dead. They had dedicated their lives to teach Christianity to children and I was fortunate to be one of them. They taught about duty to God, to the Church and to the Nation. A part of duty to the Nation is to be a good citizen, i.e., take part in the activities of city, state, and nation. Others had supplied this abundant nation and all should take part to preserve it.

My high school history teacher, Mr. Chenoweth, furthered this duty by citing how important it was to vote. We had mock debates and elections during the Roosevelt and Dewey election period. I was shocked to fnd that there were people that actually wanted Dewey.

It bothered me not at all to serve my country in the Navy. It was the decent thing to do. And, when Korea happened and I was recalled to duty, I went willingly because my country needed me.

While working at Ford there was offered, on our own time, a class on politics and about twenty people attended. Four of us were republicans and the others were UAW members, all democrats. We learned about the theory of "Saints and Sinners", how to run a checkoff, the ins and outs of Michigan politics, insuring the maximum turnout for your side, and what it takes to win. This was impetus for Tom to run for the U.S. House of Representatives and he got Clarence to be his campaign manager. I was a distant advisor (I had classes at Wayne State to attend) and did what I could. The district Tom was in was heavily Democratic (Inkster was in the district) and he and Clarence did their best but they lost. Looking back on it all, it was best that Tom did lose, we, later in life, found his character to be deficient.

I ran for precinct delegate in Redford Township and tied. The tie was broken by drawing straws and I lost. During that election I was a poll watcher and oversaw four machines in the precinct. I became head of the Civic Association in our neighborhood and advocated for sidewalks on West Chicago. One person complained to me that the lounge on the corner of Joy Road and Hazelton was a brothel and should be closed. Nobody else ever complained and it stayed open even after we left.

While the kids were growing up in Florida, I became president of the area Civic Association and our main goal was to keep the area as a family community. We fought commercial development, high rises, and section eight housing. More than once our kids were used to deliver fliers to all houses in the neighborhood. This association eventually disbanded for lack of participation. No major issues had come up for a couple of years and the Association was no longer needed.

While living in Canton Township I became president of the civic association for "Royal Holiday Mobil Home Court". This was a seniors park and the old folks wanted equity for the rent that they paid. In their minds they were always getting screwed. We had meetings once a month and they always had lengthy complaints about conditions in the park. One night I had enough. I explained to them that the owner was a businessman and he wanted his park preserved and looking good. This park was one of the better managed in Michigan and had a handsome appearance, otherwise they would not have moved there. If better lighting was wanted, more snow removal desired, better security or anything else, someone had to pay. If they insisted on these things, and the owner paid, the rent would go up. From then on all the carping, sniping and nit picking stopped and we had peace in the neighborhood. I moved away for seven years and upon returning, once more, was elected to be president of that park.