Dad was the family provider. We lived in a two bedroom, one bath home, located at 3054 Olive St in Walnut Park, CA. Dad rented the house from a cousin at a discounted rate of $55 a month. He did not believe in homeownership at that time.
Dad's full name was Steven Jackson Reece, but his friends called him Smiley. As a child I didn't understand why they called him that; he did not seem overly smiley to me. Later on I realized he was a friend to everyone and it was a term of endearment.
As a small business owner, Dad had a lot of connections in the community. He was involved in the YMCA's local club. The friends he made all seemed to help each other out with various personal and community projects.
Mostly my memories are of Dad working. He and my two grandfathers partnered in the Lewis and Reece Painting Company. They painted residential and small businesses. The office was a converted chicken shed that also served as my brother's bedroom; it was located behind the garage. An intercom connected the office/bedroom with the house. There was also a business/home phone line. He had a separate shop for his men to pick up paint, equipment, and supplies needed for a current job. I enjoyed going to the shop with Dad and seeing some of what was involved in the business.
I remember when Dad made arrangements to lay a concrete patio in our large backyard. I watched each step of the preparation. And then the big day came. Early in the morning a cement truck was backed into our backyard. The cement started to flow and men smoothed it in the mold that, after drying, became our new patio. It was a very fun project to watch from beginning to the end.
I remember he loved hosting BBQs in our backyard during the summer months on that patio. He would invite his siblings and their families. My brother Jim would crank the ice cream maker to make the homemade ice cream.
Once a year, all of Dad's workers would come over for a meal and a poker game together. It was for men only, no women allowed.
Once Dad tried to teach me to paint a fence. Apparently, some level of skill was required that I lacked. However, it was really fun doing something with Dad.
Yearly, there was a community fair at our town park. The Y-Men's Club supplied hamsters for people to win from playing games. The reason I mention this is because all the hamsters were stored in cages in our garage until the fair started. It was very fun to play with them until they were taken away.
I did not have an early relationship with my Dad, but I learned from him by observing and listening. He was not the disciplinarian of the family or the one to talk to if I had a problem. He seemed to relate to my brother Jim, but Paula and I went to Mom for advice or help. This was not an untypical family dynamic in the early 1950s.
Related people
Dad, Jim, Paula