Michele Pavlick Todd, John Olesky, Sue Williams Dodd

Ripley wouldn’t believe this

This definitely comes under the “small world” department.

I attended the monthly West Virginia Club gathering Tuesday night at the Paradise Recreation Center in The Villages, Florida.

Because nearly all of the 400 club members were there, I had trouble finding available seats for myself and Paula.

So I plopped down in one of the only two chairs available. I turned to the woman across the table from me and, as usual, asked: “Where are you from?”

Her reply: “Clarksburg. Where are you from?”

My response: “Monongah.”

Her incredulous reaction: “Monongah! My grandfather and grandmother were from Monongah.”

Me: “What were their names?”

She: “Mitch and Ann Pavlick.”

An even more incredulous Me: “My father dated your grandmother after my mother and your grandfather both had passed away.”

Mitch and Ann’s son, Junior Pavlick, a Fairmont St. Peter’s High School graduate who moved to Arizona where he passed away at age 65, was Michele Pavlick Todd’s father.

So there we were, two people who had never met each other, seated across the table 864 miles from Monongah in The Villages, Florida – joined together by being related to long-ago lovers.

What are the odds of that?

 

Dad and Ann were together constantly until black lung finally did what two mine cave-ins couldn't -- killed him.

Junior’s wife, who remarried after divorcing the younger Pavlick, passed away four years ago.

Monongah’s Ruth Domico, married to Julius “GeeGee” Domico, nudged Ann Hanus Pavlick and my dad together. Ruth and GeeGee, like my parents – John W. Olesky, Sr. and Lena Futten Olesky, who lived on Church Street – celebrated their wedding anniversary every January at the March of Dimes Dance in the Union Hall with my parents.

Ruth also was good friends with Ann, so she was the matchmaker for her good friend and her late good friend’s husband.

Ann’s parents were the owners of the Hanus Grocery across U.S. 19 from Thoburn School in the same building just off Jackson Street as the Brzuzy family’s PNA Tavern and the Joe Hanus Garage operated by Ann’s brother. Rose was Ann and Joe’s sister.

I also had another reunion with Sue Williams Dodd, daughter of Roy Williams, Jerry West’s East Bank High School coach. We met last year, and legendary sportswriter Mickey Furfari interviewed and wrote an article about Sue, her dad and The Logo Legend.

Sue seems to be doing well after dealing with serious health problems. She also lives in The Villages, far from her Chelyan days.