Small Town Characters
by Jeff Meiners
Crest’s only home since 1947 has been Ashton, Illinois. We are about as rural as a small town can get…our popu- lation has been 1000 since I can remember – the interstate runs close by, but we don’t qualify for an exit – the domi- nant feature on our skyline is the grain elevator – the FFA is the most popular club at school – the landscape around town is defined by corn and soy bean fields – two little bars and Casey’s convenience store dominate the nightlife options around town. You probably get my drift. Oddly enough, we embrace this rural culture and it is a true part of who we are as a company. While this may sound like the end of the world to most, there is a certain charm, sense of community and pace of life that can be found only and uniquely in such a setting. I grew up in this Mayberry kind of place…..an outcast townie in a class full of farm kids. One of my favorite memories of growing up is of all the different characters who called Ashton their home during my youth. While the population hasn’t changed in sixty years, the unique cast of characters that have come and gone will for ever be part of my childhood memories. Today’s society would probably frown on them, but those of us who grew up in those years will always remember: Hank Jugenat – He never stopped fighting World War One. He wore his uniform every day – lace up gaiters and all. I never talked to him when he wasn’t on an important mission for the colonel. He carried a loaded pistol (My Dad always told us not to mess with him). He ran Hank’s fast delivery service from his pickup truck long before Federal Express thought of the idea. I’m pretty sure my dad even used him to deliver payroll information to the bank. Mrs. Bowhart – I’m pretty sure she was a witch. She perfected the look of wearing a dress (usually more than one at a time) and army boots. She mowed her grass with the combination of an axe and a pair of scissors. She always pulled a green wagon around town and as kids we always ran when we saw her – because, of course, she was a witch and there was no reason to take chances. Pigeon Ed – Ed lived on the corner by where Forney trucking is today. His entire yard was covered with cages that contained any kind of pigeon imaginable. I’m not really sure what he did with them, but I was one of the lucky kids he gave a pigeon to…needless to say my parents were very impressed. Red Hansen – He was the local garbage man. He really wasn’t all that eccentric, but he let us ride on the back of the garbage truck around town and pull the lever to compact the garbage and that alone makes him one of the all-time favorites. Glen White – Glen was the modern day black smith who fixed almost anything for the farmers. He’d even weld on a full gas tank…even the kids from town were smart enough not to stand around and watch him. Gayle Robinson – Gayle was the local barber. He was Floyd the Barber from Mayberry before there was ever that show. He was the nicest guy around, talked all the time, would often draw blood with his scissors when trimming around the ears and I remember being really afraid of his wife, Mildred (I think Gayle was afraid of her too). Minnie and Albert – They were our neighbors. Neither of them had any teeth, but they both chewed tobacco and each had their own spittoon in the living room. Albert let us ride in the back of his trailer when he hauled stuff to the open dump outside of town and my Mom was always pleased when I brought back a treasure from our trip that I found in the dump.
20 Crest Ink July, August & September 2018
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