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NEWSLETTER May 2010 EDITOR’S NOTE Jean Mutrux, Eleanor Withers, Jeff Lowell, Anne Hefler, Mike and Karen Godar, Etta Taylor, Judy Giraud, Jo Stern, BJ Clutter, Peggy Droege, Elaine Moss, John Rindlaub, Jr., Mary Abkemeier, Alan and Mary Wright, Reta Madsen, Melissa Arning, Amy Buxton, and Andy Dorris contributed to this edition. Thanks. Fred Giraud, Editor THE ALLEY CAT It was early afternoon on a beautiful day. I was seated on a bench in Washington Park as my friend the Alley Cat approached and said, “I stopped by your home looking for you. Your wife said you had come to the park.” “Yes, it is such a beautiful afternoon, I decided to enjoy the park with its lovely trees and beautiful flowers.” The cat went on to say, “While I was at your home, Judy and I had a nice conversation about Parkview. Then as I was walking towards the Park I ran into John Forbis, who stopped me and wanted to talk. He and I had a long conversation about our neighborhood. From my talk with Judy and John, I came up with some good ideas for Parkview.” “I’m dying to hear. What are they?, I asked. “I was inspired by humans’ penchant for making lists so I compiled my list of 10 things for Parkview residents to do during the summer months.” “I’m sure you are prepared to tell me what is on your list.” “Here it is.” 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. This summer take time to sit on your porch or steps and watch people go by. Invite a neighborhood friend to sit on the porch with you. Take a slow walk around Parkview and admire the beautiful trees and the canopy they form. Admire the beautiful and varied flower gardens your neighbors have. Come to the June Picnic in Washington Park on the 13th at 5 pm. I’ll be there. The food is excellent and the fellowship is great. 6. Get to know one resident per month whom you knew not before. 7. Sit in one of the three parks of the neighborhood, admire the view, and savor the urban oasis. I understand it is good therapy and may even lower blood pressure. 8. Admire the various architectural designs of the homes. Notice how different each is and how some are similar. 9. Bring your dog to the Dog Show at Greg Freeman Park (in Skinker DeBaliviere) Tuesday, June 8 at 7 pm. 10. Participate in National Night Out on Tuesday, August 3 from 5:30-9:00 pm. “That’s a very impressive list. You must have spent some time working on it,” I said. The cat responded, “No, it was easy. Now it is up to every resident to follow the list. I’ll be watching,” he said. “I’m sure you will.” As the Alley Cat left he said, “See you at the Picnic”. 1 NEWS OF RESIDENTS Abby Mutrux, a freshman at U. City High, and daughter of Jean and Chris Mutrux (Westgate), has just been selected to be a member of the United States Saddle Seat World Cup Team. This is a big deal for many reasons. First, the World Cup Team will be competing against other countries, which usually include Canada, Great Britain, South Africa, Namibia and others. This year is very special because the competition will be held in conjunction with the World Equestrian Games, which will be in Lexington KY--the first time they have ever been hosted outside of Europe. These games are considered more important than the equestrian Olympics and are expected to draw 570,000 spectators. But here are more facts about Abby's accomplishment. She is the youngest member of this year's team at age 14, and may be the youngest ever. Applicants have to be at least 14, but there is no upper age limit. There are two different US teams competing, 3-gaited and 5-gaited, and Abby's scores qualified her for both; she's one of only three applicants who accomplished this. To be chosen for these teams, the applicants first had to submit videos of their riding ability and get 6 letters of recommendation from the horse community. After being chosen as a finalist, the riders first were judged on their interview skills-how well they might represent the US in international competition, but more importantly on their riding. This was done the weekend of April 10-11 at William Woods College. Each rider drew the names of 4 horses and had to compete against each other doing patterns and ring work on these mounts whom they had never ridden. (In Abby's case 8 rides because she tried out for both teams.) There was a panel of 5 judges who then scored each ride and in one round, Abby received the highest score of all. Only 5 finalists were chosen for each team, so you can see how challenging it is to make one team, much less both! This girl can ride a horse; trainers and owners from around the nation often ask Abby to show their horses for them in amateur and juvenile events. Certainly there aren't many 14 year olds in any sport or competition who have been named one of the top 5 in the nation regardless of age. (This article and photograph provided by Jean Mutrux.) Anne Hefler and her family (Westgate) are hosting Alina Volobuyeva, the intern for the St. Louis Shakespeare Festival, while she is in town (now until the end of June). Alina is from the Ukraine and is currently attending Bates College in Maine. She's a theatre major and has just spent the last semester in London. She was delayed arriving in St. Louis due to the volcanic ash! But she's here now and absolutely loves Parkview. Alina can't believe that such a peaceful, verdant place is just one block away from the lively Loop. She's already had some FroYo, checked out the Tivoli, and strolled the shops. This is the 10th anniversary year of Shakespeare in the Park. The dates are May 28 through June 30 with Previews May 26 and 27. (This article provided by Anne Hefler) NEW RESIDENTS David and Shannon Ross, 6219 Washington Phone: 972-4413 Former owner: Janina Walek CLEAN-UP CREW After the storm on April 24, Jo Stern, BJ Clutter, Eli Shuter, Lucinda Santiago, and Fred Giraud cleared fallen tree limbs in the neighborhood. It was a wonderful, free, work out! 2 MEET YOUR NEIGHBORS Mike and Karen Godar In preparing to go interview a Parkview family, I usually look up their house in what is referred to as “The Parkview Book” and see who has lived there before. In the Godars’ case, I noted that they were the 18th family to live at 6366 Waterman since the first owner moved there in 1915. That is a lot of different owners over the 70 years before Mike and Karen made it their home in 1986. Would that houses could tell their stories, but we are here to learn about the present owners… Mike was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, but only lived there for six months before his father, an electrical engineer, moved his family to St. Louis because of a job with Sverdrup-Parcel. They lived in a small house in Webster Groves until Mike was joined by six siblings and that house got crowded. The next move was to the Sunset Hills area where his father had bought a small lot and put the finishing touches on a house for all of them. After attending grade school at St. Catherine Labouré, Mike went on to Chaminade for high school and after that to the University of Missouri at Rolla, receiving his degree in mechanical engineering. He says he did enjoy the technical side of this education but was intrigued by the possibilities of combining engineering and law. So in the fall of 1972 he started law school at Mizzou and got very interested in patent law, which was a pretty obscure area of law back then, he says. After graduation he interviewed with the St. Louis firm now called Senniger Powers, LLP. He became a partner in1980 and Managing Partner in 1985. This firm specializes in Intellectual Property Law – that is, in patents, trademarks, copyrights and the like. By 2004, Mike reports he had had enough of being a manager and is now just practicing law, albeit mostly in the area of patents and, says his wife, he is ever so much more relaxed and even having fun! Karen was born at the “old St. Luke’s Hospital on Delmar” in 1945 while her father was still in Germany serving with the army. She and her family lived with her grandparents in Webster Groves for a bit, before moving to an apartment on Big Bend. The family moved to Carthage, MO for a few years before coming back to St. Louis and to a place in Woodson Terrace. Karen went to Ritenour High School and following graduation, to Southeast Missouri State in Cape Giraudeau. After her junior year, she got married and moved to Michigan, finishing her academic career at Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti with a degree in elementary education. She then taught for eight years before the marriage ended and she came back home. With her sister, she moved into an apartment in a “swingin’ singles complex” just off Dorsett Road. There, in 1976, she met “the guy upstairs – Mike” and they married two years later. In an effort to earn more money, Karen switched from teaching to a job with Southwestern Bell in marketing. She pursued this course for six and a half years – and hated it. She says her profession has been “homemaker’ since 1981. The Godars’ son, David, was born while the family was occupying a condo in the Moorlands in Clayton. Back then, in 1979, “condo” was sort of a new concept, and they lived in one of the first conversions, for seven years. At three and a half, David started his primary education at St. Michael’s School on Wydown. When he was old enough to lean over the balcony in the condo, giving his mother fits of anxiety, the move was made to the house on Waterman. David went to St. Roch’s for K-8 and then on to St. Louis University High School. Then he did six years of college at UMSL, majoring in international business and got a job with a small scrap metal brokerage company in Illinois. It needs to be noted that he took four years of Chinese at St. U. High and another year at the University of Indiana – which undoubtably puts him in good standing, globally! David met Kristen, his wife, at a Starbuck’s several years ago. They and daughter, Violet, are now living in Overland in a house that belonged to Kristen’s grandfather. Maintaining a family tradition, Violet is now enrolled at St. Michael’s School. 3 Mike and Karen enjoy being active; both belong to a gym and use its facilities regularly. They love to hike, having done so in Canada - around Lake Louise and Banff - and many times to the White Mountains of New Hampshire - and in Colorado. They often head to Nashville for antiquing opportunities; examples of “finds” abound in their home. Karen has been an active volunteer in groups associated with St. Roch’s, as well as with Giant Steps and Nurses for Newborns. She is also finishing up her seventh year as Secretary for the Parkview Agents and because of term limitations, cannot stand for re-election. She firmly states that her choice of titles for what she will become after May 17 is “Volunteer Assistant to the Agents”! Many, many thanks, Karen and to you, Mike, for all that you have done, and hope you will continue to do, for Parkview. (Written by Etta Taylor) ***************************************** John Rindlaub, Jr. Washington Avenue’s newest resident, John Rindlaub, moved into 6355 in late February from an apartment he was renting in the Central West End which had a serious leakage problem. In his new residence, the kitchen floor dipped quite a bit eastward and so that issue is being addressed by redoing the whole kitchen, starting with the floor. To get out the kitchen door, one needs to straddle joists. Not so inclined, I viewed from the living room window the unique swimming “tub” that the former residents, the Kleppers, had added -much to John’s delight. Born in New York City, not as an Army, but as an “ad” brat (his father was in advertising) John and his family lived in many places in Europe and Canada before settling down in Connecticut. His parents still reside, in Riverside. John went to high school in Newport, Rhode Island and to Williams College, graduating in 1979. He was a history major, but his first job, not unexpectedly, was with J. Walter Thompson, an advertising firm in New York. A bit later he went back to school, to Columbia University, for an M.B.A. in marketing. He was married in 1985, worked for several companies, and with his family traveled to many places, just as he had done as a child. When he was with PepsiCo, they lived in Philadelphia, Harrison, New York, Riverside, Ct. and even for a bit, in Dubai, which he says is like “Disneyland on steroids!” John and his former wife (they were divorced two years ago, and she lives in Wellesley, MA) have three children. The oldest is Claire, also a graduate of Williams, who is now teaching at The American School in London. Her next assignment is a year’s internship in Thailand. Caroline is next in line and is an English major completing her sophomore year at Connecticut College in New London. Thinking she wanted something different, she tried attending St. Andrews University in Scotland, but soon found that she preferred the U.S. and came back “home”. Andrew, almost 17 now, is the youngest, and is a sophomore at Phillips Andover Academy in Massachusetts. His dad reports he writes for the school paper, aspires to sing, and plays football and lacrosse. His children are passionate skiers and most recently John spent time with all of them on the slopes of Quebec’s Mt. Tremblant. John has two brothers: Curtis lives on an island off Portland, Maine and is an author and sailor; David is an architect living in Paris and is involved in the design and construction of what will be the tallest building in Europe. In early 2008, after being recruited for a job with Express Scripts, John moved to St. Louis. He is now Vice President for Marketing and Sales Training for that company, which has some 14,000 employees in this country. About 5,000 of them are in the St. Louis area, in two office buildings on the campus of UMSL. 4 A new facility of some 250,000 square feet is now being built here and will serve as a pharmacy where it is estimated that 80,000 prescriptions per hour can be filled! Needless to say, John is pretty busy these days with his new house and a booming business career. His girlfriend, Ann-Marie Knott, who teaches corporate strategy at Wash. U.’s Business School and has a loft downtown, often helps out by bringing some dinners to microwave in the living room. She grew up in Las Vegas and New Jersey, but loves to ski and they have done that together. She also is good at taking Oliver out to play in Washington Park across the street. Oliver is a 12 & 1/2 year - old full chocolate Lab and very friendly; he was another powerful incentive to move from a rented CWE apartment to a house with a yard and places to walk. A lover of sports, John says golf has begun to lure him, having played at Forest Park, and is looking for other courses to challenge him. He would also very much like to get involved with the community. Welcome, John - to your family, to your friends, and to Oliver. We eagerly look forward to your involvement! ANNUAL MEETING OF PARKVIEW RESIDENTS MAY 17, 2010 7:30—9:30 P.M. at GRACE METHODIST CHURCH 6199 Waterman at the corner of Waterman and Skinker COME PARTICIPATE IN MAKING DECISIONS FOR YOUR COMMUNITY RESIDENTS SERVING OUR COUNTRY This Memorial Day we honor those from Parkview who are in the service of our country. NATHAN E. ABKEMEIER, USA Sergeant First Class(SFC) Nathan Abkemeier. UNIT: 402D Brigade Support Battalion (BSB), 5th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division(5/2 ID). MOS (JOB): Interrogator/ Human Intelligence (HUMINT) Location: Southern Afghanistan, Kandahar Airfield (KAF) Duties: Battalion Security NCOIC. Collect and Analyze Intelligence information to make determinations on what the enemy is capable of doing, and to brief the battalion about current enemy actions so that leaders can make determinations on how to conduct missions. (This provided by Mary Abkemeier.) 1LT CAROLINA G. DORRIS, USMC ‘Lina was born on November 17, 1981 while we lived on Waterman. She attended St. Roch grade school, graduating in the spring of 1996. Rode her first RAGBRAI (Registers Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa) at age 12 (riding the entire 511 miles) and has remained an avid bicycle rider. She has also accompanied her Dad on rides in New York, Wyoming and Montana. She attended Visitation Academy, graduating spring of 2000. She attended Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota 2000-2004 graduating with a major in 5 Economics. She participated in Carleton’s Cambridge Program spending the summer of 2002 in England then bumming around Europe until Christmas. In the summer of 2003 she interned at LEAF Group in Chicago. Upon graduation in 2004 she was employed by LEAF Group, then Chicago Partners, doing economic research. Becoming bored with life in the big city and looking for a challenge, she applied for admission to Marine Corp OCS (Officer Candidate School). She began training in the fall of 2007 at Quantico, Virginia. She was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in November 2007. She attended TBS (The Basic School) in early 2008 also at Quantico, where newly commissioned Marine officers are trained. Upon completion of this school she was assigned to the Logistics School at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, then assigned to the Engineering Battalion of the First Marine Division at Camp Pendleton, California. Her duties included command of a vehicle maintenance platoon as well as Battalion Armorer. She has been reassigned and her current duties are as a convoy commander with the same outfit but now located at Camp Leatherneck, Helmand province in the Southwest part of Afghanistan. The normal deployment for the Marines is seven months so she is scheduled to return stateside in the fall. She reports that it is hot and dusty. (Written by Andy Dorris) CAPT MANNING W. KALISH, USA Manning is the oldest of three boys having lived in Parkview from birth until he left for college. He attended the St. Michael School and then matriculated to MICDS. From there he went to the University of Washington, graduating in 2005 with a degree in political science. Manning enlisted in the Army Reserves his freshman year, completed basic training at Ft. Jackson, SC, and his job training (as a medic) at Ft. Sam Houston, San Antonio, TX, in 2003. In September 2006, he commenced Officer Candidate School at Ft. Benning, GA, and was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in January 2007. At the end of November 2007, he deployed from Ft. Polk, LA, to Iraq until January 2009 as an Infantry Officer and platoon leader assigned to the 4th Brigade, 10th Mountain Division. Manning, who will be 28 on June 4th, currently serves as Commanding Officer of HHC, 2-30IN, 4-10th Mountain Division and expects to commence Captain's Military Intelligence School at Ft. Huachuca, AZ this summer. (Written by Eleanor Withers) JEFFREY LOWELL (Waterman) is a LCDR, MC, USNR, attached to OHSU Camp Lejeune (as a General Surgeon). He previously had assignments at NORAD/USNORTHCOM, and has spent time on the USNS COMFORT in 2007 and spent a brief period at Walter Reed Army Medical Center (while in the US Public Health Service). 2LT BRADLEY D. NAERT, USMC LTJG JAMES SHELTON WRIGHT, USN Lieutenant Junior Grade (Navy equivalent of Army and Marine 1st. Lieutenant) James Shelton Wright was born October 8, 1982, and is the second son of long-time Parkview residents, Alan and Mary Wright (1975), 6212 Waterman. James is a 1997 graduate of St. Roch Elementary School and was a starter on the School's St. Louis Archdiocesan CYC boy's championship basketball team. He then graduated from SLUH as a National Merit Scholar Semi-finalist and was a defensive starter on the lacrosse team. James earned a B.S. degree in Accounting from Washington & Lee University in 2005 and was then accepted into U.S. Naval 6 Officer Candidate School at Pensacola, FL. Dramatized by the movie, "An Officer and a Gentleman," Naval OCS training is rigorous and closely supervised by senior Marine drill sergeants. Graduates take pride in being "Owned by the Navy--Trained by the Marine Corps." Lieutenant James Wright currently serves as the damage control officer aboard the minesweeper, USS Sentry, based in San Diego, CA, after returning from an eight month Persian Gulf deployment on the minesweeper USS Gladiator. Prior service includes deployments to both the Persian Gulf and the Western Pacific aboard the Guided Missile Destroyer, USS Higgins. Lieutenant Wright was married in July of 2009 to Sara Jane Young, of St. Louis, in a beach wedding on Coronado Island, San Diego, CA. (Pictured are James and Sara Wright with James's parents, Alan & Mary Wright) ANNOUNCEMENT by Reta Madsen I would like to let Parkview neighbors know that the series NTLive, which used to be shown at the Art Museum, is now being shown at the Tivoli. These are performances recorded at the National Theatre in London, which can be seen in simulcast there, but are shown elsewhere as DVDs. The first play shown at the Tivoli is Alan Bennett’s THE HABIT OF ART, which will be repeated on May 15 at noon. Coming up is LONDON ASSURANCE, with Simon Russell Beale and Fiona Shaw, and there will be another season in the fall. I managed to talk Landmark Theatres into picking up this series when the Art Museum theatre closed for construction, but Landmark is not doing any publicity! So I have been working to let people know about this opportunity. I saw HABIT OF ART on May 8, and was so excited about it that I will go again on May 15. If you love poetry, music, theatre or acting, you should not miss this complex and rewarding depiction of the final visit of Benjamin Britten to W. H. Auden and their conversation about Britten’s new opera, DEATH IN VENICE, a play within a play with a wonderful cast, headed by Richard Griffiths (HISTORY BOYS) and Alex Jennings. For more information, you can go to www.nationaltheatre.org.uk. WOOD DUCK MOM AND BABIES by Melissa Arning On Sunday morning (May 9), Amy Buxton and I had quite an adventure. Eric noticed a momma duck and a few ducklings in the very back of our backyard. I was so excited to have ducklings in the yard; it's been over two years since I've raised ducks, so they definitely came to the right yard! When I got out there, I heard the "baby duck trouble" squeak, and saw momma was pretty upset. Out of 10 babies, 7 of them had fallen down the water drain in the back yard. I called Amy, and she came rushing over to assist. We were able to fish all 7 of the babies out of the water drain, catch the other 3 (smart) non-drain ones, and then (after numerous unsuccessful attempts) capture momma wood duck. The babies couldn't have been more than a day old. We transported them to Forest Park and released them in a duck safe area (with other duckling families). I'm very curious if any of the other Parkview residents happened to see this wood duck family walking around. I'm sure if someone has been keeping an eye on momma duck, they'd be happy to know the details. If no one has seen them, I have to wonder if they hatched out of our neighbor's yard (Doug Killebrew) and just wandered over on their first day. (Photos by Amy Buxton) 7 June 13 5 p.m. p.m. Washington Park THIS IS A NEIGHBORHOOD POTLUCK/PICNIC WITH THE AGENTS PROVIDING HOT DOGS, BURGERS AND CHICKEN. PLEASE ADD YOUR TASTY CONTRIBUTION TO THE FEAST: We need your delicious contribution to the potluck dinner to guarantee the success of this gathering. Plan ahead and get your supplies in the house right now so that you can bring something to share with all of us. Maybe your contribution will the THE one all of us rave about on June 13. The following is a suggestion of a category of food you could bring, depending on your street. However, this is just a suggestion. For example, if you live on Pershing and you have the world’s best potato salad recipe, then by all means bring it. Pershing: Appetizers, other than chips and store-bought dip. How about cheese cubes or a cheese ball or layered bean dip? Washington: side dishes in the pasta/rice category, such as a pasta salad or rice casserole. McPherson: desserts, such as brownies and/or cookies. Don’t homemade chocolate chip cookies sound good? Westgate: snacks such as chips/dip, popcorn and pretzels Westminster: side dishes that are in the vegetable category, such as baked beans, green beans or potato salad. Waterman: salads, such as any lettuce salad, cole slaw or fruits, such as watermelon, strawberries or some kind of fruit tray. If you have any questions about food, please check with Mary Abkemeier at mary.abkemeier@fontbonne.edu or 726-5084. For those that don’t cook, or simply don’t want to, ice, wine and soda will be welcomed by all. SEE YOU THERE!! 8 FOR PARENTS WITH KIDS The Parkview Agents have approved a kid to kid yard sale in Washington Park on June 13. If your kids, ages 5-15, would like to participate, please contact Elaine Moss for details - emoss@bjpc.Com or 726-5668. NEWSLETTER DEADLINE If you have a news article for the newsletter please mail it to me at giraudstl@sbcglobal.net by the 10th of the month. This will help me in preparing the Newsletter for delivery around the 15th of the month. PARKVIEW HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY TREE WALK by Judy Giraud On Sunday, May 2nd the Parkview Horticultural Society held a Tree Walk around Parkview. We gathered at the large elm in Pershing Park. Those who did not already have their Parkview Tree Guide picked one up at the starting tent. Arborist Roger Branson led the walk, beginning at Pershing Park then on to Westgate, and finally, Waterman. Roger shared information on tree identification, about the best types of trees for various situations, and about tree problems and how to deal with them. The event was attended by about 20 people. After the walk the group adjourned to Peggy Droege’s and Betty Renard’s porch for refreshments of lemonade and cookies and a chance to purchase Roger’s beautiful wood bowls, his wife, Edith’s, handmade soaps, and Judith Giraud’s note cards. All agreed that it was a very interesting and informative day TELEPHONE DIRECTORY An updated Parkview Telephone Directory will be prepared in early June. If you have changed your name or your phone number, please contact me at giraudstl@sbcglobal.net to give me the new information. Attention Parkview Horticultural Society Members Save the Date Mark your calendars now for the Members Garden Tour and Luncheon on June 12 and watch your email next week for your invitation. Be sure to RSVP to get your name on the list. BECAUSE THE ANNUAL PARKVIEW MEETING IS THIS COMING MONDAY, THERE ARE NO MINUTES OF PARKVIEW AGENTS IN THIS ISSUE OF THE NEWSLETTER. 9 . PARKVIEW AGENTS Matt Wohl, President and Legal matthewwohl@charter.net 6235 Washington 726-2321 George Fujii, Infrastructure and House Plan Review gmf@tarltoncorp.com 6363 Waterman 725-2842 Robert Mahon, Vice- President, Municipal and Insurance bmahon@farmersagent.com 6246 McPherson 323-0290 Lee Lawless, Lighting and Legal lee_lawless@fd.org 6301 Washington 727-4097 Karen Godar, Secretary, Pedestrian Gates kargo60@sbcglobal.net 6366 Waterman 727-2649 Elaine Moss, Legal and Hospitality emoss@bjpc.com 6377 Pershing 726-5668 Karlah Dorn, Treasurer Karlah.A.Pogue@bankofamerica.com 6254 Pershing 725-7792 Chris Mutrux, Center Gates jacmutrux@charter.net 217 Westgate 863-4134 Mary Broun, Trees and Parks mbbroun@sbcglobal.net 6348 Washington 862-2240 Eli Shuter, Trees and Parks ers7345@bjc.org 6240 McPherson 863-0220 Amrit Gill, Infrastructure, Lighting, and House Plan Review aagill1@aol.com 6218 Waterman 727-5200 Christopher Smith, Security christopher.bartlett.smith@gmail.com 6210 Westminster 443-0832 10