3 make it to May BJ retirees lunch

There were three people at the monthly BJ retirees lunch at Papa Joe’s Restaurant at Akron/Peninsula Road and Portage Trail Extension May 8. The lunches are at 1 p.m. the second Wednesday of each month.

A report on the May lunch by Advertising Art retiree Mike Williams (BJ 1968-2012), fresh from trips to Ecuador and the Outer Banks of North Carolina.

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Carl Nelson and Al Hunsicker from Composing were there this month. Plus me.

Mike Williams

Carl had his camera, took a photo of me with Al.  I had talked about sharing some photos via email with him, but Carl said he and his wife have an ancient computer that he hardly uses.  Will try to reach him to see if he can get a copy of the photo he took to you.

Shared some reminiscences of times past.  I kidded Carl about being a go-between when his daughter sold me a skunk -- yes, a skunk -- in 1978.  Rosebud the skunk had great fun with Jane and me for a couple of years until our first born became ambulatory, though our cat Gilda held a more jaundiced view.

It was fun watching these two old friends -- Carl, who retired in 1991 and Al, who retired in 1998 -- gently poke fun at each other, and bring me into their circle. The two of them have been regulars at the Wednesday lunches since the beginning. They'd love to see more attendance there.

No, I haven't made any trips since Ecuador this year, but for a quick trip to the Outer Banks to see my nephew Eric Chima get married.

-- Mike Williams

The Outer Banks are a 200-mile long string of barrier islands off the coast of North Carolina and a small part of Virginia. It’s where the Wright brothers accomplished man’s first flight on Kill Devil Hills off Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.

Mike and wife Jane have two sons. Eric Chima is the son of Mike's sister, Cindy Williams Chima, who writes fiction novels for young adults.  Cindy worked in the BJ classified phone room in the 1970s.