Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Bob & John, friends for 76 years

John Olesky made his annual summer visit to Bob Kasper, both Class of 1950, at Bob’s Presque Isle, Michigan summer home on Grand Lake July 24-28, 2014.

John visits Bob on Grand Lake every summer and Bob visits John in Tallmadge, Ohio for their journey to Mountaineer Field every autumn for a West Virginia University football game.

Bob and John have been friends since first grade at Sts. Peter and Paul School in Monongah. 


They have exchanged the same two Christmas cards since 1955. The card reveals the two families’ histories – births, marriages, deaths – because the names of all family members for each year are listed.

John flew into Alpena, Michigan airport. Bob met him and provided transportation, meals, golf and conversation about Monongah High and sports and family for five days.

I won’t reveal the actual golf scores at Rogers City Country Club, to prevent embarrassment, but Bob, who plays in a weekly golf league at Rogers City, beat John by 9, 10 and 7 strokes. 

And John, who golfed only once in 2014 – in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio – before heading to Michigan to renew his 76-year friendship, cut 9 strokes off his Ohio score on the first day, matched that on the second day and reduced his 9-hole total by another 3 strokes on the third day. That’s called trending in the right direction.

Bob’s sister, Evelyn Kasper Boggess, Class of 1953, still lives in their childhood home in Frogtown, south of Monongah and just north of Swisher Hill on U.S. 19 between Monongah and Worthington. 


Her husband is Okey Boggess.

To see the online photo album of John’s 2014 trip, click on the next blue line

Click on the next blue lines to see photos of previous visits by John to Bob in Michigan.
Click on the next line to see photos of the 2011 visit by Bob to the home of John in Tallmadge and the LSU-WVU game in Mountaineer Field

If you have memories of the Kasper or Olesky families, email John at jo4wvu@neo.rr.com and he’ll add the information in a Monongah High Alumni blog.

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