1982 Letter from Mom/Dad - Feb 18

Mostly written by Mother, but last two paragraphs by Dad.  Who is the generous couple that left the money for the EC Library?  Same people that helped fund the Sabina Library??  Transcription follows.

Thursday – Feb. 18, 1982
Dearest Family –

Just got back from New York and glad to find letters from Catherine and also John – sorry that we are late in getting letters off to all of you.  Thank you, Wendy, for the Valentine – would sure like to see you in person in your new red dress.  Also got two letters from Roberta and a phone call from Serena before we went.  Do hope that you are all over your flu, Berta, you sure had it rough for quite a few days.

We were happy to hear that John and X are planning to go to Chicago with us to see you, Serena, the 12th of March and that you don't have any classes that Saturday.  Looking forward to us all being together.  The toy show there doesn't open til that Saturday afternoon but hopefully we'll be able to work it all in, – at least see that Dad gets there.

Our three days in New York went so fast – we flew over Sunday afternoon (TWA's $35 fare) and enjoyed our stay at our bed and breakfast house, an interesting brownstone on 87th Street.  Its location was good in that we were close to the 86th Street crosstown bus and also a block and a half from the Broadway line and even closer to the other bus routes.  The upper west side is an area that we hadn't been too acquainted with but feel that we know it much better now and is so much more pleasantly atmospheric that the Times Square area and more appealing.

We looked into tickets for a couple of plays but 12.50 and 14.50 (these were the half price ones available the day of the performance were not that appealing – wonder who wants to pay the $25 or $29 prices.  We ended up going to see "On Golden Pond" with Katherine Hepburn and Henry and Jane Fonda – well done but not the sweetest language.  The lines were so long Sunday evening but did go on Tuesday with no line at all but well filled theater.

Monday evening we had dinner in our area with the sales representative and his wife from Houston and found that  they also have been square dancers for a number of years.  Dad spent Monday and Tuesday at the Toy Bldg. at 23rd and 5th Ave. and saw most of the salesmen that work for Wells.  Had lunch on Monday with Jack and Bill Bozung [or Bezung?] from L.A. and especially happy to get a $8500 order from a California account the next day.  Another of our salesmen was complaining to me that our California competitor is selling an item comparable to our $2.88 item for $2.43 dz. PLUS six months dating - it is a crazy world.  It does irk me that the manufacturer does not get a fairer share of things when I see Woolworth taking an item that they pay us 17¢ for and it retails for 99¢ (their suggested retail is 54¢).

Your mother made a shopping trip down to lower Manhattan where the bargains are suppose to be, including the usual stop at Barnes & Noble BIG bookstore on 5th Ave. at 16th Street.  Also a visit at Alelxander's across the street from Bloomingdales where the prices are literally out of this world for people from N.V.

We met the girls at the high school last night as there was a dedication program for the new addition and an open house.  Mie Young helped with refreshments and we enjoyed seeing the new facilities.  This couple in Sabina left some $400,000 in a trust with the income to go to the EC Library, so there should be a lot of sprucing up in that area in the years to come.

[Love, etc.]