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Community Corner

1968: Peaches and Cream

News from the December 5, 1968 edition of the Lemon Grove Review when 'Grove women were hailed with every title under the sun.

Centennial Queen:  Norwegian native Theresa Rover, Dayton Drive, celebrated her 102nd birthday on Thanksgiving, but the party lasted well into December.  With five surviving children, nine grandchildren, 12 great grandchildren and slews of friends, the birthday girl's extended bash required multiple birthday cakes and extra trays for the greeting cards. 

The family repaired multiple times to Grove Pastry Shop (estab. 1947) for the centenarian's favorite, peaches-and-cream cake with butter cream frosting.  Oh, to be 102 and cholesterol-free!

Mrs. Rover left Norway for North Dakota in 1887, at 21 married Mr. Rover and had eight kids, then moved to Lemon Grove in 1920.  She exercised daily to keep in shape and embroidered and tatted her own collars (see photo).  In 1966 when she was only 100, she received a key to the City of San Diego and congratulations from President Lyndon Johnson.

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Queen of the Twirlers:  Mt. Miguel High School junior Jeanne Veliquette, Orange Place, was named Queen of the Long Beach Invitational All-Western Band Review.  As twirler-in-chief of the high school band she led the troupe to honors at the Rose Bowl Parade (see photo).

Queen of Fair Share:  Debbie Brewer, Alton Drive, was named Miss Fair Share by United Way ("Give your fair share today!").  Duties involved handing out plaques like the Merit Award to the Lemon Grove branch of First National Bank, where employees topped the charts for contributions.  Employee chair Mack Lanham accepted the prize.

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Miss Lemon Grove:  Christine Collier, Miss Lemon Grove of 1968, hosted the Chamber of Commerce Open House in its new digs at 3415 Imperial (site of modern Empire Beauty Supply).  Chamber president Frank Shugrue, Jr. greeted 350 business and service club worthies and Miss Lemon Grove, garbed in a modest sash--tiaras were yet to come, sliced Christmas cake for the crowd.

Once and Future Queens:  Susana Reyes, 17, Uruguay, and Gabriele Muschalek, 16, Germany, exchange students at Monte Vista High, were voted "most likely to succeed" by enthusiastic classmates, who had welcomed the girls to a year of study under the American Field Service exchange program.

We were slack-jawed at Susana's comment, "Beaches in Uruguay are better than those in California," but regained our poise with Gabriele's homage to  "California's delicious tacos, which I'd never eaten before."

Mrs. Goodwin Takes the Cake:  Even the old pro, Max Goodwin, 34-year editor of the Review, had a power behind the throne.  Mrs. Goodwin, a petite blonde with a mind like a steel trap, made sure the books were balanced, the doors were locked and the paper was in the forefront of good works.  She accepted the Award of Appreciation and a peach upside down cake from Goodwill Enterprises for the Review's championing of services to the handicapped.

Lorne N Sheds the Missus:  Max Goodwin normally stuck to his winning formula of kids-clubs-classrooms-kudos-cars-churches-chainstores-cut rates, and railing against almost anyone holding public office -- except when there was steamier stuff to report.

"Lorne N" (Goodwin protected the guilty by using initials) was splitting from Mrs. N over her misuse of the family coffers to buy used cars, used furniture, used clothing and, gasp, a used incense burner for the patio.  She was unrepentant, according to Goodwin's editorial (yet), "in her relentless need to acquire useless goods."

"But we can hardly blame her for her spendthrift ways," continued Goodwin, "as she is undoubtedly in an emotional state over Lorne N's waywardness."

That meant Lorne had strayed from the fold and taken up with a peach of the cling variety as revealed in the divorce court filing. Goodwin lamented the breakdown of yet another marriage in a national tidal wave of separations and divorces, many involving The Other Woman or The Other Man.

Ironically enough, the Ace Drive-In was showing The Mini-Skirt Mob wherein  the jilted leader of a female motorcycle gang, driven by jealousy, instigates a sadistic reign of terror against her ex-lover and his new bride.

This charmer was on a double bill with Psych-Out, involving a deaf runaway searching for her missing brother among the hippies of Haight-Ashbury.

And to think all of this erstwhile social comment could be had for a 75-cent ticket and some popcorn. 

Queen, Robbed:  "Someone stole my stole," wept Mrs. Fred Milton, Imperial Avenue, who had won the mink version in a Christmas drawing at Brumley's Shoes, 7763 Broadway.  

She'd left her prize on the back seat of her Datsun, but, in a priceless piece of police work, the mink-napper was nabbed at noon, peddling the pelt in a local pawn shop.  The pawnbroker called the cops, who stormed in and cuffed the creep as Mrs. Milton came running to recover the wrap just in time for that 85 cent lunch with the girls at Michael's Pub & Grill on Broadway.  

"Leave it on the seat and you'll lose it in the street," intoned Sheriff's deputies in a burst of wit and wisdom.

Speaking of which…

Wisdom of the Ages:  The Review's fillers continued their upward trajectory into the Humor Hall of Fame.

     Any dog that eats a toad is in for a shock.

     The famed Canadian Mounted Police spend more time in planes than on horses.

     Scientists are convinced that whales once lived exclusively on land until plant Earth flooded and solved the problem.

     It is believed that Uncle Sam was inspired by Dan Rice, a circus clown with a tall hat, long beard and striped pants, only Uncle Sam looks smarter.

     Life expectancy is increasing and just in time for the holidays.

And so it went in The Big Lemon 45 years ago when women were peachy and almost all of them were Queen for a Day.    

About this column:  Compiled by Helen Ofield, president of the Lemon Grove Historical Society, from newspapers archived at the H. Lee House Cultural Center.  Each week, we take a peek at the past with some news and advertising highlights from a randomly chosen edition of the Lemon Grove Review.  Ofield was awarded first place in 2013 and second place in 2012 in non-daily column writing from the Society of Professional Journalists.  In 2013 she received third place in the "History" category from the San Diego Press. 

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