Wednesday, November 9, 2011
When I first moved to Milledgeville, Il., My mom and I stayed with Aunt Edna, Peggy, Jewel and Ron at the house on 6th street. Dorothy had married and moved away. I remember the fun I had with the family. My dad came up from St. Louis, bought a house and we moved. I was still quite young and had to stay in my neighborhood on Second Street. Ron didn't come by our house very much. But, we would be together during the holidays, and I would see him at school. I remember Ron working at the gas station at the corner of the Polo blacktop. He had a 53 or 54 Ford. One cold day he put a cardboard in front of the radiator and drove it to Sterling. He forgot to remove the cardboard and the engine was really smoking when he got to Sterling. The last time I was in Milledgeville, Karroll Phillips told me the story about Ron and Donovan Diehl having a watermelon in the back seat and how Ron handled himself talking to the Police about it. It is quite funny. The last time I saw Dorothy and Ron together, was at Aunt Edna's funeral in Marion, Il, in 2008. A very cold and windy day. After the service, Ron and Dorothy were surrounded by family and wellwishers. Many years ago, Ron told me about an opinion in the local paper about the American flag flying at his house in honor of his daughter serving in Iraq. The opinion was that the flag should be taken down in inclement weather. Ron said he was going to leave it up until his daughter returned from overseas. Ron was proud of his association with the Steel Workers Union. He made many comments about the company and how the union supported the workers. In 2008, the last time I saw Ron, he told me about the issues he was having. And the last time I spoke with him, he had high hopes of the treatment he would be getting from a new medical facility. I feel I have forgotten many details about my cousin. I salute him for his courage in dealing with his health issues. Paul Ensinger
