Faith and Freedom club meeting highlights history

Medina’s Faith and Freedom Club hosted a rousing December meeting featuring the photographs of Tony Simons and Christopher DeLeon as well as stories from longtime resident Linda Buckelew.

The pictures of Medina provided by Simons and De-Leon played on a loop to the delight of the crowd.

Linda Buckelew told (in her words) “tall tales and historic stories” about Medina.

She began with stories about the two grocery stores in town – Stokes’ and Hatfield’s. Both were groceries but also provided dry goods. Buckelew told a story about a teenager who burglarized one of the groceries but only took some food and left a signed note about how much he owed. She then moved on to other Medina businesses, including the movie theater and pharmacy. Buckelew reminisced how candy and little green army men were a big draw for her brothers and sisters during their weekly trip to the pharmacy.

Remembering the pharmacy’s old-fashioned penny candy and toys brought smiles to the group.

Model A and Model T car parts were available in town. Buckelew remembered that there was always a mechanic in town as well as a gas station. Buckalew noted her grandparents on the North Prong were the first to have a car in Medina. In 1911, it was the first car to make it over the mountain to go into Kerrville. Cars did need an extra boost to get over the mountain at that time.

She noted the hardware store Ben Adams ran. Richard Johnson had a blacksmith shop. There was a lumber yard and feed store where she and Alana Stokes played.

Buckelew remembered Vernon Williams gave haircuts, though most at the time received home haircuts. Williams gave Children’s Home residents free haircuts. She recalled that there was dry cleaning available through the local laundromat and also told of Elaine’s Beauty Shop. Buckelew spoke about the telephone office and operator Dorothy Ware. The audience laughed about the hijinks stemming from the party line in Medina. Buckelew remembered that their ring was two longs and a short. A telephone call from San Francisco was the talk of the town. They wondered if the call came through Kerrville or San Antonio. Many speculated that the human-interest information on the back page of the newspaper, the Medina Light, came from party line gossip.

Sandy Vannatter read from an old page of the 1939 Medina Light about Christmas in Medina. Few could afford Christmas lights, but a lot of businesses used spray snow in their windows. Buckelew recalled a story about when Hosey Sutherland ate seven-and-a-half Christmas pies.

“Everybody did a lot of jobs,” noted Buckelew, adding Mrs. Hatfield paid the children three cents each for a salted hide.

Cecil LeStourgeon remembered that everyone worked. Sometimes cans of beer were traded for odd jobs. Buckelew also remembered there were several active churches in Medina. There was a Baptist Church and a Church of Christ, though the churches were too small for events. The auditorium of the school was used for Dorothy Ware and her husband Orville’s marriage ceremony and for Brown Stokes’ funeral. Of course, Buckelew mentioned the Collins purse factory and said almost all Medina women worked for them over time. She said each worker received a silver dollar for Christmas along with a handbag. Collins had a big Christmas Party with food and dancing, according to Buckelew. A two-story dress factory was run by Miss Elliot which sold to upscale stores like Neiman Marcus.

She remembered that her family only went to Kerrville every three or four months. ‘You could get everything you needed in Medina,” she remarked. Buckelew remembered it as a time when everyone liked each other and took care of each other. “It was a great place to grow up.”

The next meeting of the Faith and Freedom Club of Medina will be Jan. 9; refreshments are served at 3 p.m. and the program starts at 4 p.m.

It is held at the Medina Community Library in the Rodney Camp Pavillion.