Author: Donald Guenther
Uploaded: 10/25/2013

Jack and Mrs. Lapp frequently visited our home. Jack, old and crusty, chewed and spit tobacco in our living room and mom was not too fond of that. Jack built a wooden bench in front of our outdoor fire pit that we called Jack’s bench. It was harder than nails and everyone complained about it. I liked the looks of the bench.

Jack lived in Charleston with Mrs. Lapp and had once owned a small grocery and junk store in Coos Bay. He might have called it his junk antiques. Further back in time in the 1920s Jack taxied people around Coos Bay in his boat, called the Kid. Way back Jack’s dad was in the first group of settles to hike into Coos Bay. Jack said the deadly Indian conflict of Battle Rock in 1851 at Port Orford was nothing more than some drunken sailors firing their guns off. No wonder Jack got written out the Coos County history book. Come to think about it how can a community call a battle deadly when there were no casualties? He also refused to pay to have his name included in the book. He said if you had to pay to be included in a history book that the book wasn’t worth much. If you visit the North Bend museum you will see the 13 star flag he donated. 

Jack also built us a playhouse. It was very nice and as kids we played in the house every chance we got. When it was raining out the playhouse was the best place to be. We liked to climb up on the roof of the playhouse. That upset Jack, so to stop us he broke glass on the roof. Mom got wind of that and cleaned off the roof and told Jack that’s not the way to handle misbehaving children. Anjo maintains she made gravy but all I remember are the mud pies Anjo and Annie made in Jack’s playhouse.

I don’t remember much about Jack, only the Wednesday drives mom took Mrs. Lapp for drives after his death. Mrs. Lapp was very nice and due to diabetes had to have both her legs amputated. Mom would lift her in and out of the car. Mom was always taking care of old people. Mom never really considered herself old until she reached 92. At about that point in life she said she was at the getting off point.

Read by Jereme & Lillie Guenther