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OPPrairie.com life & Arts
the orland park prairie | July 18, 2019 | 17
Muddy and musical memories of Woodstock
MARY COMPTON
Freelance Reporter
The ’60s.
It was a time of restlessness,
a time of the Vietnam
War and a time of the largest
concert ever put on:
Woodstock.
It was estimated that
400,000 attended. For the
50th reunion, Republic
Bank brought that time to
residents in Orland Park.
“Bringing this exhibit
here is our way to give
back to the community,”
said Tom Bugielski, President
and CEO of Republic
Bank. “The 50th anniversary
of Woodstock is
a tremendous social and
cultural issue. We thought
it was a good idea to provide
this bit of history.”
Bugielski was 12 years
old when Woodstock happened
in August 1968.
“I do remember
the event,”
he said. “It was a memorable
event back then. It
sparked both social and
cultural issues that exist
today.”
Photographs from
Woodstock hung about the
room Thursday, July 11, at
the Elements Banquet Hall
in Orland Park.
Roy and Renee Crews
from Orland Park weren’t
around in 1968 but felt
the need to attend because
they enjoy the music from
that era — songs by artists
Janis Joplin,; Crosby,
Stills, Nash and Young;
and Joan Baez.
“We were wondering if
anyone in this room would
find themselves in these
photos from Woodstock,”
Renee said with a laugh.
“I’m a Grateful Dead
fan,” Roy said. “I’ve even
got a tattoo of them on
me. I would have loved to
see them live. I think they
played Day 2. This event is
very impressive.”
Originally billed in
1969 as An Aquarian Experience:
3 Days of Peace
and Music, it started Aug.
15 in Bethel, New York
on a farm owned by Max
Yasgur. It came to be
known simply as Woodstock.
Mark Rice from Naperville
shared his experience
at Woodstock. He brought
his ticket stub from almost
50 years ago.
“Woodstock was a defining
moment in everyone’s
life,” said Rice. “I
was fortunate enough to
be there. Who would have
thought 50 years later I
would be telling the story
of me and [my] best friend
hitchhiking 250 miles to a
rock concert. ... That is the
Woodstock generation.”
Rice went through his
version of making his way
to the largest concert at
that time to the experience
of being covered in mud.
“Our parents weren’t
happy we were going but
we went anyway,” said
Rice “When the cars were
stopped near the freeway,
we began to walk. We
found out later, we walked
over 10 miles to be at
Woodstock. We got to the
festival when Richie Havens
was going on. We
slept in the woods and the
rains came. The rain came
again then the mud came.
The mud was so thick it
pulled the soles off of my
shoes. In those three days,
it was such an odyssey for
two 18 year olds who just
graduated high school.
Fifty years later we still
celebrate what is called
Woodstock.”
Jerry Kammeyer from Orland Park smiles while looking at some of the photos taken at Woodstock. PHOTOS BY MARY
COMPTON/22ND CENTURY MEDIA
Aristotle
Halikias
(left),
chairman of
the Board
of Republic
Bank, along
with Tom
Bugielski
(right), CEO
of Republic
Bank, stand
with Mark
Rice, of
Naperville,
who is
holding his
ticket from
Woodstock.