CVC June 2013

Pam and I are unable to attend the June monthly
club meeting, but we will be there in spirit. With
both the president and the VP of activities gone, we
will leave you in the capable hands of VP of public
relations, Jeff Levine. Prior to accepting the
nomination for CVC office last October, I was
already booked to attend a convention in
Charleston, West Virginia on behalf of the
International Right of Way Association of which I
am president of the Central Valley chapter.
About 200 miles from Charleston is Cincinnati,
Ohio where I was born on June 3, 1955. Our family
moved to Stockton in March of 1956. We’ve not
been back since. But for as long as I can remember,
I have always wanted to return to Cincinnati and
visit the house we lived in at 8675 Cottonwood
Drive, see Christ Hospital down the street where I
was born and catch a ballgame at Crosley Field.
The house looks much the same today as it did in
our black and white photos taken when we lived
there. The hospital, while in the same location has
been completly rebuilt. Crosley Field was
abandoned by the Reds in 1970 and demolished in
1972. The Reds next home, Riverfront Stadium,
lasted about 35 years before it was imploded to
make way for another new facility. So on June 14,
2013 it will be the Reds and Milwaukee Brewers at
Great American Ballpark. Little did I know it would
take 57 years to finally fulfill an item on the bucket
list.
Pam and I will be accompanied by my sister who is
14 years my senior and she can fill in the blanks.
Also on the itinerary is a visit to the suburb of
Norwood, Ohio where GM assembled automobiles
for seven decades, including the Chevrolet Camaro
and Pontiac Firebird. In 1987, GM shuttered the
plant. Our 1969 Camaro RS/SS 396 convertible was
built at Norwood on June 3, 1969 which was my
14 th birthday. The plant is long gone, but just to see
where it all took place, I still find intriguing.
Other stops before reaching the convention include
the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, the Rock
and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Niagara Falls,
the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown NY and
the Performing Arts Center and Museum in Bethel
NY which was the site of the famed August 1969
Woodstock concert.
Our last stop will be Gettysburg PA to view the epic
Civil War battlefield in which over 50,000 union
and confederate soldiers died in July 1863. The
outer wall of our bedroom at the bed and breakfast
we will be staying in still contains several bullet
holes from the three day event 150 years ago.
It promises to be a memorable trip. Now if only we
could exchange our run of the mill rental car for a
Corvette!
Craig