Thanksgiving tables with room for one more

JERRY PERSON

Today is Thanksgiving Day and as we gather around the dinner table to

enjoy its bountiful feast with friends and family, let’s remember

those tables with an empty chair for someone serving our country in

some far-off place.

In 1943, many of our country’s foods were being rationed and the

Thanksgiving meal would become very special for the families who had

their sons away in the military.

This was a time when many residents found togetherness and shared

their Thanksgiving dinner with boys stationed here from all over the

country. Some of these young men were away from their family for the

first time and spending their first Thanksgiving away from home.

Local churches played a vital role in keeping the holiday

tradition alive. The First Methodist Church held a special community

Thanksgiving service and invited all the churches in town to attend

an evening of music with a trumpet solo by Stanley Smith and a

special Thanksgiving sermon delivered by Pastor James G. Hurst.

Over at the Golden Bear Cafe, the Huntington Beach Rotary Club was

holding a special Thanksgiving luncheon program. Rotary President

Lawrence Whittaker introduced the members to the Vera Downs Singers.

Included in the program was Mary Vidal singing “Cosi-Cosa,�

vocalists Dorothy and Maxine Murdy, Anita Vidal and Sylvia St. Clair

performing several selections, and a flute solo, “Wind Among the

Trees� performed by Rico Gilbert.

The Huntington Beach Women’s Club had a Thanksgiving program,

entitled “Amber Waves of Grain.� It featured an autumn landscape with

a miniature farm at harvest time, complete with a field of wheat and

heaping bins of grain.

One of the highlights of the Women’s Club program was the singing

of “America the Beautiful� by the eighth-grade girl’s glee club from

Ocean View Grammar School. Swedish-born Mary Echburg told of how

important it was for her to become an American citizen.

Sts. Simon and Jude Catholic Church hosted its annual Thanksgiving

turkey card party at Memorial Hall on the corner of 6th Street and

Orange Avenue. The public was invited to play 500, Auction and

Contract Bridge for prizes.

Helpers at the card party included Mrs. Robert P. Mandic, Mrs.

Julien Lecrivain and Mrs. Alban Holtz.

The spirit of Thanksgiving has always been a time of giving as

M.B. Maher of California Street found out when he was presented a

wheelchair by Bonnie Mays and Juanita Folkert of the Royal Neighbors.

Maher had been a shut-in for five years.

It was also a time for a few of our boys to return home to

celebrate the holiday with their family. One of those boys was

Clifford Overacker, who was home with his family.

Then there was Jackie Wilcox, who was shipped overseas and

couldn’t be home with his family.

During this time, Parino “Pete� DiFabio, our future postmaster,

received a promotion to sergeant technician at Fort Mason. DiFabio

was attached to the Army’s Post Office there.

Speaking of post offices, it was at the Huntington Beach Army Post

Office that a wedding took place between Jonnie Grace Stanley and

Gerard Byrd.

Those who didn’t want to fire up the old oven for Thanksgiving

could go over to one of our local cafes for their feast. Teddie &

Lee’s Cafe at 406 Ocean Ave. was offering a complete Thanksgiving

turkey dinner with soup, stuffed tomato salad, roast turkey, candied

yams, celery curls, cranberry sauce, mince or pumpkin pie and a drink

for $1.50.

Hazel Allen of Allen’s Malt Shop at 508 Ocean Ave. went one better

with a special roast turkey dinner for only $1.25. By the way, the

building that housed the malt shop was just recently demolished to

make way for the new Strand shopping mall project.

The night before the big day, you could work off some calories

dancing to the music of Ken Story and his orchestra over at the

Pav-a-lon.

This year, before we partake of that first mouthful of

Thanksgiving food, let’s say a small prayer for all those men and

women who will be away from home here in Huntington Beach, and for

their families who will be celebrating this day with an empty chair

at the dinner table.

Let us hope, just like the Huntington Beach families of 1943, that

next year our sons and daughters in the military will be home to

celebrate.

* JERRY PERSON is a local historian and longtime Huntington Beach

resident. If you have ideas for future columns, write him at P.O. Box

7182, Huntington Beach, CA 92615.