Bush Gets Up Early for a Worthy Charity

(Here is a brief, charitable article I wrote long ago to go with articles I posted on 3/4/19...and several others I have had published.  More to come, and this is one of my favorite areas in which to write!)

     In some respects, Saturday morning was like any weekday morning for Mike Bush.  The KDSK-TV and KSD-FM "Breakfast Club" sportscaster had to get up very early, and give his brief, comical spiel.  But instead of delivering the "Sports in My Shorts" report from his basement, Bush was allowed to venture into the public eye.

     Bush, serving as emcee and honorary chairman, addressed a throng of some 600 shorts-clad participants in the opening ceremonies of the third annual Cystic Fibrosis Corporate Sports Challenge at John Burroughs School.

     "They asked me if I wanted to do it, and I said, 'Why would I bypass a chance to get up at 7 o'clock? Sure, I'll do it," Bush said in his soothing, baritone voice.  "But seriously, I was involved in a lot of charity work when I was in Kansas City and New Orleans.  Like those, this is a well-organized, worthwhile event, and I like to do things to give back to the community."

     The community itself responded well to this year's fundraiser.  The group of entries increased from 33 corporations last year to 47 this time.  While the $500 team entry fee and other donations totaled some $25,000 last year, this year's goal of $30,000 was nearly achieved.

     "I think the response was just great, but this is a most worthwhile charity," said Lu Ann Pate, Cystic Fibrosis' director of special event fundraisers. "It's a frightening thing for parents of healthy children when they try to understand what these kids go through.  The only way to raise money is to get the message out, and this is a fun way to do it."

     The fun consisted of an eight-person, one-mile relay, and 10-team action in the basketball shoot, obstacle course, rubber raft relay, standing long jump and tug-of-war.

     Besides money raised for participation, generosity was also displayed in the area of refreshments by sponsors National Super Markets and Vess, as well as Eagle Brand Snacks and Alderton Brokerage.

     The St. Louis Business Journal was the third major sponsor of the event which benefits those who are afflicted with America's No. 1 genetic killer of children and young adults.  Youngsters with cystic fibrosis not only suffer through a series of lung and digestive disorders, but rarely live beyond their 20s.

A Prince of a Man

(This is for all of my fellow big-time baseball fans who are missing the sport right now. This is from The Sports Journal of Calgary, Alberta back in August 1985.)



     One of the most colorful announcers in sports history, long-time radio voice of the Pittsburgh Pirates, Bob Prince, died on June 10 of complications following cancer surgery on his tongue.

     Prince was the Bucs' play-by-play announcer for KDKA-Pittsburgh for 28 years before he and his partner, Nelli King, were fired following the 1975 season.  Born July 1, 1916, Prince was let go because of personality conflicts with station management.

     Some of the popular lingo of the Pirates broadcaster was 'kiss it goodbye' after a Buc roundtripper, 'he lit up the lights on Broadway' after a called third strike, and 'We had 'em all the way,' which was said after a huge Pirates lead was nearly squandered in the ninth inning.

     In the early 1970s, Prince devised a whammy for Pirate opponents.  He would dangle a 'green weanie' from the press box as an enemy batter stepped to the plate in a crucial situation.

     Prince attended 15 different colleges in the '30s and '40s and finally earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Stanford and the University of Pittsburgh and Oklahoma.  He also spent one year in Harvard Law School before entering broadcasting in 1941.

     While in school, Prince earned great acclaim as a championship swimmer.  Years later, he went overboard in accepting a dare.  He successfully (he survived) dove into a swimming pool from an open window of one of the higher floors at the Chase Park-Plaza Hotel in St. Louis.

     The eccentric sportscaster was also known to agitate ballplayers.  After the Pirates were finally able to knock out old nemesis Don Drysdale in a home contest with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Prince leaned out from his broadcast booth and shouted, "We got you, you big donkey!  We finally beat you!"  Drysdale countered by grabbing some gravel from the warning track and fired it up at Prince.

     While Prince was always fired up for his Pirates, whether on or off the field, his awards speak for themselves.  He was selected sportscaster of the year 14 consecutive times and is a good bet to be voted into the broadcasters' wing of the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY.

     

   

Songkran Festival All Wet…just in time for spring mating season!

(This article was published in International Travel News way back in Feb. 1981.)

     Thanks to modern technology, travelers whiz around the globe via jumbo jets with the world seeming to shrink as previously remote corners become quickly and easily assessable. Yet, cultures from hemisphere to hemisphere remain as diverse as ever.

     If you visit Thailand; especially the northern village of Chiang Mai from April 13-15, you will agree that even a rocket ship could do little to narrow the culture gap between that country and ours!

     This is the time of the Songkran Festival.  Southeast Asians know it as the lunar New Year, but visitors recognize Songkran as the ‘water-throwing’ festival. 

     The first day of this event is a public holiday.  Tens of thousands of local residents and Thais from the south country join to literally drench one another.

     Originally, Songkran was a highly religious time of ‘bathing the Buddha.’ Although the festival probably derives from ancient fertility rites, there is another reason water is so important.  Mid-April is the peak of Thailand’s dry season, and all of Buddha’s creatures and creations thirst for the cooling waters that are unleashed.

     The festival starts out slowly, as people march to their temples, or wats, in colorful native costumes.  They sprinkle a little water here and there as they await the grand procession.  Leading the group is a handful of monks clad in bright yellow robes.

     The costumes of parade participants are simply stunning as is the entertainment.  Music consists of young men playing Java pipes, gongs, cymbals and conical, 12-foot-long drums.  Other men take part in the ramwong folk dance, while young women in burgundy costumes perform the sensuous fawn leap.

     Foreigners hardly notice the passing out of silver bowls and squirt guns, but after the chant of “Sawadee Pimai,” meaning “Happy New Year,” all hell breaks loose!

     Most youngsters set out to dump water on members of the opposite sex, for Songkran has long been known to bring a boy and girl together.  In fact, this type of courting activity is encouraged by their parents.  No wonder most Thai weddings occur prior to the June monsoon season!

     I guess it would be trite to say that the Songkran Festival is good clean fun!  But when you go, remember not to take along your good clothes, any important papers, a camera or wristwatch.  Maybe bring a washrag and a bar of soap!

Home Schooling is a Viable Option: Don’t Assume You Can’t Do It

***Here's an article I had published online for pay through the Yahoo Contributor's Network in 2013.  The main reason I am posting it now is because within a couple months, I will be doing a very lengthy article with several people interviewed regarding comparisons of all forms of schooling in West St. Louis County and St. Charles County. 

Jeffry Greenberg, Yahoo! Contributor Network

About five years ago, I went to a Mensa monthly meeting at the Washington University (where the final Obama-McCain presidential debate was recently held) extension in suburban St. Louis. The topic was different methods of schooling.

A panel was set up with one representative apiece from public, private, Montessori, magnate and charter schools. There was no home schooling member. But as one of some 50 Mensans in the crowd, I was happy to tell of my opinions and experiences...especially in regard to that time-worn generalization about a home-schooled child's lack of socialization.

What I did, in a nutshell, was stand up and tell the entire crowd why home schooling my son David was not only the best decision I have ever made in my life, but the most rewarding one.

How did I find out about home schooling? I had interviewed a young, soon-to-be state diving champion who was home schooled for about five years prior to middle school. Once there, she was in the top five in her class academically for three years straight. So, I thought...why not my son David?

I started back in September 1994, when David was four years and four months old. In Missouri, the calendar year for home schooling was July through June. I simply chose to start when regular schools were in session. But after that initial Sept-June 30 year, I did adhere to the July-June schedule.

The regulations for Missouri were to have 1,000 units in a calendar year, 600 of which had to be core units. Non-core units were art, music, physical education, religion and the like. I learned that units were different than hours. Many of the units I taught took far less than an hour. Nearly every calendar year, we did some 1,750 units...about 1,300 of which were core units.

Other home school requirements...in case one was ever challenged...were being able to show proof of regular lesson plans, grading assessments, and work samples.

Home schooling worked for me because I had a three-times-a-week part-time job, plus I covered high school sports and did other freelance writing...when print journalism was still in vogue. However, one can home school no matter what hours he or she has available. Unlike "regular" school, there is absolutely no need to conform to a 9-to-4 schedule.

Actually, the beauty of home schooling is LACK of conforming! I took that to an extreme regarding curriculum. Unlike most teachers, I did not use any pre-packaged one. From the outset, I went to Target, Kmart, Venture and other stores, and bought a variety of pre-school through third grade workbooks, miniature text books and other things to help teach...like a variety of flash cards.

I also went to the annual St. Louis County Book Fair and always got a shopping cart full of textbooks, workbooks, reading books, and other items at greatly reduced prices. These were all donated by the general public, with proceeds going to charity.

How did I do it? By pure logic, starting with the most basic in every subject, then moving on when I knew my son had developed a great understanding and proficiency. Also, I somewhat combined teaching him reading with phonics, spelling, English and writing. In fact, I had him write at least two very lengthy papers every week before he was six. He had to write each misspelled word from those 100 times. When he got older, it was 500 times. After awhile, he was careful NOT to misspell anything.

Through all this, David won two or three Home School Spelling Bees, including a championship against all the private school kids. He was also a high finisher in the Science Fair, had read more than 3,000 books...all well beyond his age level...by the time he was 10. David was also telling time before he was five, writing cursive before the age of six, and doing complicated high school algebra when he was seven.

In social studies, David could take a blank map of the United States, and name every state, name and location of its capital city, plus other major cities, major rivers, and national parks. He also knew the capitals of all 230-plus countries in the world...including their spellings. We also had contests where we would name every president in order from start to finish...and time each other to see who was fastest. These are just some of the things I remember off the top of my head!

There was a lot of work...some in the morning, some in the afternoon, some in the evening and some very late at night when children well older than David were already in bed. But I also made things really fun.

Every year, we went on at least 50 field trips...obviously more in the warm weather months. That included nearly every tourist type and educational type attraction in the entire St. Louis area, including Illinois and St. Charles County in Missouri.

David also adopted a tree, we did great autumn leaf collecting and matting, lots of hiking, learning and playing a variety of sports. I also made sure he had a good deal of socialization. Not only did David play with neighborhood kids, but we also did picnics, roller and ice skating, bowling and a variety of activities with both the North County and West County Christian Home School Groups. I also got him involved in Cub Scouts and a bowling team.

The result of all this? In June 2008, David was one of 33 in his high school class of 429 to graduate Summa Cum Laude. He just completed a perfect 4.0 in his first semester of college...of which he will attend the first two years totally free except for books. David has also worked at the same place some 24-32 hours per week for well over two years, and also has several dozen friends.

It is just David and me living here since late October 2001. We have an incredible bond between us, have never had any real argument, he has never been in any major trouble beyond a couple traffic tickets, and has a great sense of self, including self-esteem, self-reliance and self-control.

Obviously, David is just one example of a home-schooled person, but in the years I home schooled, I learned that the average home-schooled child is in the 93rd percentile if and when they go to a regular school. That is a major result of one-on-one instruction.

Is home schooling worth a try? That is an option you may want to check out in your state. And please, do not automatically use the excuse that you are not smart enough or don't have enough patience. Just like with me, it just may turn out to be a labor of love.

Author's Bio

     Yay! I finally have my Author Bio up on West Newsmagazine!  Here is my final version after about a dozen edits from a 225-word start!

    

     Jeffry is a freelance writer with some 3,500 published pieces for West County Journals and other local, regional and national publications since 1979. He’s also written and hosted several adult and children’s theme parties with props, storytelling events for Rockwood School District and a Bridgeton shelter for abused women, puppet shows, a “Wacky Olympics” and humorous spoofs with song parodies of “The Wizard of Oz” and “Oklahoma.”  This is mainly while working full-time jobs. Jeffry homeschooled his son David for six years, has traveled and hiked in all 50 states and internationally, led a “Selling Non-Fiction Articles” workshop for the Ellisville Writers Club, is former editor of MSLaneous (St. Louis Mensa Monthly newsletter), a dog lover, scrapbooker and wild dancer.

Gem of St. Louis, The Arena Marks 60 Years of Community Service

(As many of you know, I’ve covered a wealth of sports & other topics in my life. Here’s a major historical piece assigned to me for a Sept. 1989 edition of a publication that still exists, the West End Word. My family had Blues season tickets for several seasons there. I’m thrilled to share this as we still savor our 2019 Stanley Cup champs & great memories of The Arena!)

     Diamonds are a girl’s best friend, and Sept. 24 marks the diamond anniversary of the grand old dame of Oakland Avenue, The St. Louis Arena.

     The Arena has been a real gem to the St. Louis metropolitan area.  So it is only fitting that employees of the establishment honor her 60 years of service to the community.

     “We made the decision to make it a year-round celebration instead of one specific event,” said Arena marketing manager Ann Eggebrecht.  “We want to get the word out that having an arena in St. Louis is important.”

     No one can reasonably dispute that, and The Arena will continue to offer a wide variety of quality entertainment.  What it will have in store for its visitors, which number about 3 million per year over some 200 booking dates, includes the following family attractions through March 1990:  an NBA exhibition basketball game (Oct. 15), women’s Olympic volleyball (October), Walt Disney’s Magic Kingdom on Ice (Oct. 31-Nov. 5), the Mud Bog (Nov. 18-19), Olympic gold medal ice skaters Torvill and Dean (Dec. 17), Missouri vs. Illinois Busch Braggin’ Rights basketball game (Dec. 20), the Harlem Globetrotters (Jan. 7, 1990), Stars on Ice (Jan. 26), Truck & Tractor Pull (Feb. 23-25), the Ice Capades (March 20-25) and two WWF wrestling cards with dates to be announced.

     “It’s a great entertainment facility providing all the touring acts to the area,” said Arena general manager Roger Dixon.  “Besides all the family entertainment, what’s also helped is that rock ‘n roll became such a viable entity—not to mention the St. Louis Blues!”

     Hockey has indeed played a major role in The Arena’s existence, although all has not always been rosy with the sport.

     The building’s first hockey team was the American Hockey Association’s St. Louis Flyers, which began Arena play the last week of 1931.  A few months later, depression-era times left The Arena with a delinquent electric bill, resulting in a playing surface that was more water than ice.

    

     In order to remedy the situation, management opened every single window on a bitterly cold day, freezing all the water the natural way.  The Arena crowd also froze that night while watching the only indoor hockey game ever played in St. Louis on non-artificial ice.

     Following the Flyers to the ice for only the 1934-35 season, was the St. Louis Eagles of the National Hockey League.  (As Yogi Berra used to say, you can look it up!) A couple decades later, the Chicago Black Hawks played some of their home games as The Arena, followed by the St. Louis Braves, Chicago’s Central Hockey League farm club.  That entity, coached by long-time Blues color man Gus Kyle, featured such future NHL stars as Phil Esposito, Roger Crozier, Dennis Hull (Brett’s uncle) and Fred Stanfield.

     When the NHL had its first expansion in 1967, St. Louis and The Arena were a natural choice.  The St. Louis Blues have been a popular commodity ever since.

     Its early owners, the Salomons, certainly helped improve the building’s facilities by adding escalators and expanding the seating capacity from 13,000 to 19,000.  A March 31, 1973 against Pittsburgh drew an Arena record crowd of 20,009 before the fire marshall forced a reduction in seating the following season.

     Ralston Purina, which briefly rescued the team from bankruptcy, added air conditioning and a more sophisticated sound system while temporarily changing the name of the building to The Checkerdome.

     Besides hockey, The Arena has boasted big-time boxing, including Primo Carnera’s stunning 1933 title victory over heavyweight champion Jack Sharkey.  St. Louisan Archie Moore captured the light heavyweight title at The Arena in Dec. 1952.  Joe Louis and Max Baer fought there, too.

   Other sporting events have included rodeos, sport and auto shows, a few seasons of the American Basketball Association’s Spirits of St. Louis, and unusual events like indoor baseball and football, a six-day bike race and midget auto races.

     Prior to the rock ‘n roll era, The Arena hosted such outstanding entertainers as Frank Sinatra, Cab Calloway, Guy Lombardo, Sally Rand and unsuccessful 1940 presidential candidate Wendell Wilkie.

     The Arena got off to a rollicking start, opening with a fabulous banquet on the evening of Sept. 24, 1929.  According to long-defunct City Beautiful Magazine, “At its dedicatory banquet, more than 3,000 people were served at 80 tables; each 50 feet long.  Three hundred people sat at the head table—the largest head table in all American history.”

     The 475-foot-long by 275-foot-high structure saw few reasons for celebration in its early years.  It took one year and three days to build The Arena at a cost of $2 million.  The Arena was, according to the May 26, 1928 edition of the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, “designed primarily for the use of the annual two-week (National) dairy show.  It was expected to make St. Louis the center of the dairy industry of the United States.”  The Arena was also hailed as unique for its total avoidance of pillars and posts.

     But that event was only held for one year—Oct. 12-20, 1929—on The Arena’s then dirt floor.  It was obvious that the building either had to modernize its facilities or be destined to be nothing but a tremendous financial flop.  So, shortly thereafter, a cement floor and ice plant were installed, along with ticket booths.

     Nevertheless, The Arena faced great financial woes during the Depression years.  The Arena’s first owner, Ben Brinkman, lost a fortune on the building.  After a foreclosure was held and the building was sold in 1933, a new group of owners sold 6,149 Arena chairs to finance the $1,681 needed to reopen the building.

     By 1926, the entire property was valued at just $150,000.  The building had become such an undesirable entity, that it was rumored that even St. Louis University had turned down The Arena as a gift.

     But The Arena not only survived the toughest of financial troubles, but also a killer tornado that ripped the roof off in 1959.  Perhaps The Arena’s greatest challenge lies ahead.  Plans for a downtown sports arena have put the building’s future in jeopardy.

     “Chances are, they’ll tear it down and build something in its stead,” Dixon said.  “Whether or not its time has come and gone, it’s still a viable building.  But a new one is needed; no question about it.

     “The push we’re putting on the 60^th anniversary is not where The Arena is heading, but what it has meant to the St. Louis area.  I came to St. Louis from Miami and grew up in southern Illinois.  I remember as a kid coming here to see sporting shows.  It was great because there’s so much character here.  It will be a sad day when The Arena closes.”

Moolah Shrine Circus Event Set to be Greatest Show on Earth and Above

(This is my brief, unedited piece soon to be published in the MidRivers Newsmagazine)

     There was not a moment’s hesitation when Circus Director Ron Reynolds was asked about the featured performer at this year’s Moolah Shrine event, held March 19-22 at the St. Charles Family Arena at 2002 Arena Parkway.

     “We actually have Bello Nock this year!” Reynolds announced. “He’s the famous clown daredevil with orange hair. He’s a really big name who gets around, and used to be with the Barnum and Bailey Circus.”

     Not only does Nock’s orange hair stick straight up to the sky, but his entire being is often seen high up as well. Born just a year before Neil Armstrong first walked on the moon, Nock has been known to do a variety of death-defying events far off the ground like atop cruise ships and over the Statue of Liberty.

     Back in the summer of 2017, Bello Nock was shot from a cannon over the rotating blades of a helicopter.  That occurred on an episode of “America’s Got Talent.”

     But Nock is not the only performer at this year’s 78^th annual event with strong…ahem… pedigree from that popular television show.  Patrons will even be able to pose for pictures with the Olate (family) dogs that captured the $1 million grand prize in the 2012 season.  The Olates have also appeared at numerous college and professional basketball game halftime shows, circuses and several other venues.

     Tickets for those photo opportunities as well as elephant, pony and train rides plus face painting, a giant slide and a bounce house can be purchased and enjoyed starting an hour before and immediately after each show.

     “We have tigers and five elephants,” Reynolds said.  “The elephants are for the shows and for riding.  The State of Illinois doesn’t allow elephants, but we have them here!”

     The authentic three-ring circus also features incredible high-wire trapeze artists, beautiful Arabian stallions, hilarious clowns, and the show is capped off by an unforgettable FMX motorcycle finale. The venue also offers a wide array of popular carnival type refreshments.

     Tickets for all of the eight shows, ranging in price from $18.50 to $38.50, can be purchased at various times at the Family Arena (636-896-4200) or 24 hours a day from Ticketmaster at https://familyarena.com/ or the Moolah site, https://moolah.org/.  The latter site also offers a free child ticket for age 12 and under for each paid general admission ticket.

     A decent amount of the events’ profits go toward helping with the annual budget of the Moolah Shrine Center at the 12545 Fee Fee Road location.  They have been in that former Parkway North Jr. High building since 1987.

     Per the Moolah website, “Shriners are distinguished by an enjoyment of life and a commitment to philanthropy. They enjoy parades, trips, dances, dinners, sporting events and other social occasions. They support what has been called the ‘World’s Greatest Philanthropy,’ Shriners Hospitals for Children, a network of 22 pediatric specialty hospitals, operated and maintained by the Shriners.”