I asked readers who had moved away from their hometown but continued to take the local paper to contact me. A long time reader from Richmond, Diana Windsor, who has written me in the past, recently wrote the following:
“Dear Mr. Hackley,
I look forward with pleasure to your articles in the Richmond News, and I am writing in response to you appeal to hear from we “ex-pates” who still subscribe to our home-town paper.” She explained to me she moved to Littleton, CO, to be near her youngest daughter. Her other daughter, Karen Bush, is curator at the Ray County Museum. She ends the letter by saying, “As the widow of a serviceman I’m always interested to hear of your escapades!” Yours very sincerely, Diana Windsor
I have misplaced a couple of letters from readers. One was from Dallas, Texas, who was a friend of ball player Mort Cooper and had moved away from New London 55 years ago but continued to take The Ralls County Herald. Another woman who was an extra in the movie “Adam at 6 A.M.” had lived her working life in L.A. and now was retired to Florida, continues to take the Richmond News.
However, one of my favorite stories is about Jack Stubbs who I have not seen since his family moved from Oak Grove to California in 1944. I called him to get some information about Howard Hughes, who he had worked for and knew. When I called him, I told him I wrote an article called “Jack Remembers” for the local paper. And he replied, “I read it every week”. I said, “Oh, do you take the Focus on Oak Grove?” He said, “No, but my niece who lives in Independence subscribes and she mails it to my sister in San Diego. When she gets through reading it she sends it to me and when I get through I send it to my other sister here in L.A.” Just in case his niece forgets to mail the paper to California, I think I’ll send him a free subscription.
Jack can be reached at PO Box 40, Oak Grove, MO 64075 or jackremembers@aol.com
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