What I remember about Don was that when we lived in Canada, we had a wonderful school system with advancement for everyone.When we came to Schaumber there was 1 teacher for all 8 grades. Mrs. Sanders took Don and Lois and privately schooled them in reading and arithmetic and evidently they succeeded.When we came to Chicago Don and Fritz walked every day to Curtis school.

In Schaumberg we lived near golf course which had a pond.The pond would freeze over every winter so Dad got us all ice skates and we would hike over there and he taught us all to skate.Don was the best and I think he taught others to skate at St. Louis. When we moved to Chicago, Palmer Park was close by and it had a warming house.They would have the whole rink to themselves.

I took care of Don and Fritz for several months while Mom went to Edmonton Alberta to recover from a surgery I think.Hulda took care of the house.Mom would have German immigrants help with the housework and she would teach them English.

So I remember the years growing up, but another person’s memory will have to cover the years from St. Louis on.

Before he and I went to bed, Dad always told us stories.A lot of made up- about knights in armor (Gottfried and Poloma) and things like that.

We played together lots. Ran out in the fields in Schaumberg together.Hunted for golf balls like crazy people.

We were really close.At that point, I grew taller than he, I think that was a little difficult for him, but other than that the competition wasn’t too great.

He was more oriented to fixing things and making plaster of Paris figurines.He put things together.He was really good at looking for garbage.One of the deep pains in his life came of this.He and I used to scourge the allies of our neighborhood looking for scrap metal.When we had enough, we’d take it to Yitzkies, to get money.That’s how we had some money.From the crap we picked up here and there he put together a bicycle, fenders, and all sorts of extras, painted it all himself.I had a bike too but nothing on it.One day we went to the local park to go swimming.He took a big heavy chain to lock his up.I didn’t bring a chain.When we came out after swimming, his chain had been cut and his bike had been taken.He had to be humiliated to ride back on mine because mine was left there.

The other big event was when we were in Schaumberg.We were playing ping pong in the church basement.and Don smelled smoke.I told him he was fanaticizing.He said, “No man, I smell smoke.”There were some basement doors and he went through those and ran upstairs and the whole place was ablaze with fire.I ran home because someone else had called the police.The cops found it inexplicable that we would be playing ping pong in the basement and hadn’t started the fire ourselves.My Dad finally told them not to come anymore.Finally a week or two later a kid was caught trying to light another church and confessed to having started ours as well.

We also used to ice skate.My dad arranged with the park guy who turned lights out so that we could skate until he would pick us up. We both skated in silver skates.I never got any metals.Except once when the 2 guys ahead of me fell.But Don did.I always accused him of stealing my metals.Wasn’t true, but made for a good story.I remember I was chasing him one time on skates and didn’t see another guy and hit him hit full blast, fell back, was bleeding out of my ears- I had fractured my skull.With his ice skates on Don walked with me across bumpy field to get to a doctor.I of course blamed him.

Another time I was chasing him on foot and coming up to the avenue – it was a busy street with the streetcar line.He ran across the street and I ran and didn’t look and got hit by a car and rolled up on the hood.There was a cop right there but I tried to run away because I hadn’t changed my underwear, as Mom was always warning us to do in case we got picked up ever.

We used to ride the train out to a town called Holmwood.We went to a Jewish golf course named Raveslaw.And did caddying.Dad wouldn’t let us go on Sundays’ so we were always at the back of the line the next Tuesday when golf started again.

Don would save all his money.I would spend my all on ice cream.He would want a bite or lick.

Once in a while we would do a stupid thing.A train that ran near where we lived would slow down, and we would run and grab a bar and ride it to the next town.

Then we went off to college, to prep school. Mom wanted us to stay home, but we had to go when 15. And we were ready to go, because our 3 older brothers had already left at age 15.So Don and I followed.First time we were really split up.Lived in same dorm for a year or two but never roomed together, which I thought was always kind of strange in retrospect.

Then when in the seminary, we cleaned a private grade school every day together- the blackboards and the bathrooms.We sat at the same table to eat every meal.But he hung around with a different crowd because he was older than I was.

From there met he Marty, I can’t remember how.I knew her because I was the milkman to that area.I was really jealous because she was good looking.

After he graduated from seminary, then he went up to Canada.I really wanted to go to Canada and asked to be placed there- I had been born there, Don was up there- but got sent to New Jersey.

So we spent a lot of time together growing up.