[PRCo] Re: Pittsburgh-Some Place Special

[Edward H. Lybarger]

I was in the local Kiwanis some years back...we always had membership
problems.  Younger people -- the kind any group such as this desperately
needs -- are generally too involved with their kids' activities to be
supportive of service clubs.  I would also suggest the "me-first" attitude
of so many people these days also has a lot to do with the lack of
members -- you'd be surprised at how many thoroughly modern folks don't
really give a damn about their comminuty or anyone else's welfare.  Those
service clubs which seem to do well are the ones that meet at lunch -- the
members take the time away from their work, not their families.  And another
characteristic is that many of the members are local small businesspeople,
rather than the corporate types.

Ed

-----Original Message-----
From: pittsburgh-railways-bounce at lists.dementia.org
[mailto:pittsburgh-railways-bounce at lists.dementia.org]On Behalf Of Fred
Schneider
Sent: Sunday, January 19, 2003 2:37 PM
To: pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
Subject: [PRCo] Re: Pittsburgh-Some Place Special



My original statement was not a personal jab at the Mellon family ... just a
general
realization how many lower and middle income people felt in the Depression.

I would never think of saying the Masons, Lions, Rotarians, or any other
service groups
are bad.  My father was in the Blue Lodge and Shrine.

I suspect that much of the membership deterioration in these groups has come
from two
things ... television is entertaining so why bother to get off our
collective butts,
and the tax structure has forced families into having two wage earners and
therefore
two people to also maintain the house resulting in little time left over for
community
service.  While I cannot state that I had such an appreciation in my youth,
in the last
two decades I've come to the realization that we need to give back to the
community ...
hence my museum, historical society, and church roles.  My wife has also
served the
local symphony, several local historical homes, and heads up a local service
(and old
lady's) organization.

Harold Geissenheimer wrote:

> Greetings
>
> A comparison with wealthy churches in New York City.
>
> The Brick Presbyterian Church at 5th Ave & 37 street funded two
> neighborhood churches in Manhattan.  They funded Christ Presbyterian
> Church and Settlement House on West 36th Street between 8th & 9th Ave, and
> also the Covenant Presbyterian Church of East 42d Street at Tudon City.
>
> They built Christ Church before the turn of the century and funded it into
> the 1960's when there was no longer a nighborhood population.
>
> Christ Church still stands...the entire facility iwas sold to a theatrical
training
> school.
>
> My father belonged since birth in 1896, my mother left Bethany Lutheran
> Church  on 10th Ave after marriage.  I belonged until I moved to Pgh in
1950.
> My father was an elder and treasurer in my youth.
>
> The Settlement House was an important part of the church and the
community.
> My Boy scout troop met there.  The first time I appeared on a stage was
> in a play.  I was the tin soldier, age 10 or 11!  There was a bowling
alley
> for older youth.  There was a dentist office for a church sponsored
dentist.
> There was a large roof playground.  They had summer school.  There was a
> library.  There were after school programs.  There were many teams.  The
gym
> and theatre were also rented out.  The money from the Brick Church made
all
> this possible.  During the war, because of our many older Scotch women,
the
> church provided weekend beds for visiting British sailors.  Much good from
a
> single place.  I would like to acknowledge the Brick Church contribution.
> The facility was for both church members and the community.  Pres Bush
would
> be proud.
>
> They did the same at the Church of the Covenant but on a smaller scale.
That
> church is still there.  Brick moved uptown to Park Ave in the 90's.
>
> Many other New York churches also had Church Houses.  Catholic Churches
> had CYO.  I went there one afternoon a week with friends.
>
> Some churches in Pittsburgh must have had similar programs.
>
> I now attend the Middle Collegiate Church on the lower East Side.  This is
> funded by the Marble Collegiate Church on 5th Ave.  They also fund a
church
> on West End Ave and uptown in Washington Heights.  Dr Norman Vincent
> Peale was the Marble minister.  So the work still goes on.  Middle has a
stage
> but no bowling alley.!  The Church House is active all the time.
>
> When I moved to Pgh, I joined the Dormont Presbyterian Church, and then
> thanks to National Guard friends, I joined the Bethel First Methodist
Church
> on Library Road at King School.  This is on the Library trolley
(connection to
> this site).  When I joined they were meeting in an old one room school.
Now its
> a big church.
>
> I did join the masonic lodge of Morris Glick, Treasurer of the Harmony
Short Line.
> But my father was a life long mason in New York.  He came to my ceremony.
> I joined my boss Glick's Lodge after the Harmony was out of business.
>
> In the military, I joined the York Rite and Shrine with many other
officers in
> our unit.  I am still a mason.  But the first National Guard unit I joined
in
> New York (on West 14th Street) was 99% Italian.  Generoso Pope Jr,
> later publisher of the National Enquirer (and his father was publisher of
> IlProgresso, the Italian NY daily.) was my First Sgt.  The Battery
Commander
> was Gondolfo Monfilleto and my best friend was Bruno Bechelli  I made SGT
> in this all Italian unit.  So much for preference in the Guard.
>
> Perhaps New Yorker's are more open minded.
>
> Many people have joined their country club to meet people.  I joined
Rotary
> and found this group contributed much to the community.  Joining Rotary
was
> an interesting thing.  George Stuart was Editor of the Valley Daily News
in
> Tarentum.  He spent 20 years fighting with David I McCahill, President of
> the Harmony Short Line.  They hated each other.  When Community replaced
> Harmony, I went to see Mr Stuart.  He did not want to talk, was uneacy
being
> with me.  We had an interesting meeting and the next day he called me up
and
> invited me to join the Tarentum Rotary.  Meeting people halfway makes the
> world go round.  I later belonged to Rotary in Pittsburgh, Chicago and
S.F.
>
> Later, in the 1970's, I was walking along the tracks on 4th Ave downtown
> to inspect the switches on a Saturday morning.  Along came Mayor Flaherty.
> He was at odds with my old boss John Mauro (a very good man, good for
> Pgh, and later good for San Mateo).  They also hated each other.  The
Mayor
> and I talked at the corner and all of a sudden he invited me to stop in on
> Saturday mornings for coffee.  Unheard of?  No, just being willing to meet
> the other side made the difference.
>
> So I believe that people can  use the Old Boy Network if needed.  Much
good
> for the world can result.
>
> Harold Geissenheimer
>
> At the Port Authority, I was active in the PATMAS club and spoke at
> several meetings.  Many railroad and utility people had masonic
affiliations.
> But Bill Marm, PRC Supt of Road Operations had similar Knights of Columbus
> ties.  Today people seem to have lost many of their roots.
> Fred Schneider wrote:
>
> > I've heard of Mellon's Fire Escape too.  Says a lot for what people
thought of
> > the incredibly rich.  Remember that the gothic East Liberty Church was
built on
> > the site of the old one in the Depression.  East Liberty Presbyterian
contained,
> > in addition to the usual church facilities, a bowling alley and a
theater.
> > There was considerable resentment among the middle and lower ecomonic
classes at
> > that time aimed at President Herbert Hoover and big business, and
justifiably
> > so.  Most surveys showed that the public overwhelmingly hated those
people.  The
> > same surveys showed that the super rich continued to believe that money
belonged
> > to them and the lower ranks could go to hell.   No surprise that
Roosevelt won
> -- Trailing quotes stripped by Listar --

fws