by Joe Stout
One of my childhood friends all through grammar and high school was John Ben Nelson. He was always known as “Benny.”
Benny’s family lived in the first house on Broad St. east of the downtown business district. This was between M & B Motor Co. and the Pan Am Service Station.
Benny had an older brother named Quinn and a sister Violet. Both served as officers in the U.S. Navy during World War II. Violet worked in the top secret code breaking section that was instrumental in breaking the codes of Japan and Germany which saved many lives during this great war. Violet married John Dean Overton upon returning from the war and still resides in Greenfield.
Many of us had the “habit” of skipping school whenever we felt we could get away with it during our high school years in the 1940‘s. In those days they did not have the record keeping system they do today to know where the students were at all times.
One day during those high school years Benny decided to skip school and stay out in his parents garage which also served as a woodshed. Not having a watch, Benny took the alarm clock with him so that he would know what time school was out so that he could then appear to come in from school and then go out to play.
Sometime during the day Mrs. Nelson happened to look for the alarm clock and after a search of the house could not locate it. She decided to call the school to ask Benny where it was. This of course revealed the fact that he was not in school.
Benny received the type of punishment from his father that is uncommon today. He was taken back to the woodshed for the use of a piece of leather on his rear end.
Jack Gill, who was instrumental in giving nicknames to most all of us in school, tagged Benny with the name “Termite” since he stayed in the woodshed all day. This name stuck with him the rest of our high school years.
I had the nickname Moe for quite some time until I took up practicing magic tricks and showing them to all my classmates. Jack then tagged on “dini”, referring to the great magician Houdini, and I became Moedini. Some of my classmates still call me Moedini to this day.
I have only seen Benny twice since we graduated in 1948. The last time was in 1998 at our 50th class reunion. I still thought of him as “Termite.”
Benny’s family lived in the first house on Broad St. east of the downtown business district. This was between M & B Motor Co. and the Pan Am Service Station.
Benny had an older brother named Quinn and a sister Violet. Both served as officers in the U.S. Navy during World War II. Violet worked in the top secret code breaking section that was instrumental in breaking the codes of Japan and Germany which saved many lives during this great war. Violet married John Dean Overton upon returning from the war and still resides in Greenfield.
Many of us had the “habit” of skipping school whenever we felt we could get away with it during our high school years in the 1940‘s. In those days they did not have the record keeping system they do today to know where the students were at all times.
One day during those high school years Benny decided to skip school and stay out in his parents garage which also served as a woodshed. Not having a watch, Benny took the alarm clock with him so that he would know what time school was out so that he could then appear to come in from school and then go out to play.
Sometime during the day Mrs. Nelson happened to look for the alarm clock and after a search of the house could not locate it. She decided to call the school to ask Benny where it was. This of course revealed the fact that he was not in school.
Benny received the type of punishment from his father that is uncommon today. He was taken back to the woodshed for the use of a piece of leather on his rear end.
Jack Gill, who was instrumental in giving nicknames to most all of us in school, tagged Benny with the name “Termite” since he stayed in the woodshed all day. This name stuck with him the rest of our high school years.
I had the nickname Moe for quite some time until I took up practicing magic tricks and showing them to all my classmates. Jack then tagged on “dini”, referring to the great magician Houdini, and I became Moedini. Some of my classmates still call me Moedini to this day.
I have only seen Benny twice since we graduated in 1948. The last time was in 1998 at our 50th class reunion. I still thought of him as “Termite.”