The attached photo was taken around May 1948 and hows four "first cousins"
with their Grandmother Garten. That is me in the middle having just been born a
few months earlier and beside me the "Garten Twins" having been born a few
months prior to me. Sitting in front is cousin Ralph who is a couple of years
older. These are Grandmother Garten's four grandchildren.
We all "grew up" in Grandfather Garten's Ford and Mercury dealership and
one or more of us often played together in the showroom during the early to
mid-50s. We would climb into new Fords and play like we were driving or we
would wander back into the shop while mechanics fixed cars. In 1955 my father
and mother divorced and, sadly, my mother kept me away from the Garten side of
the family until.............only a year ago, when I wondered what my three
first cousins were like and was determined to made contact with all three of
them. And that I did after all these years!
Susan and Judy are retired nurses living in Huntington and Summersville,
West Virginia, respectively, while Ralph is retired in Florida after a long
career with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
In late October, the "four cousins" are going to get together for the first
time since the attached photo was taken. For all of us this is a reunion over
55 years too late. And when we get together we will surely talk of our good
times playing in the Ford showroom. All four of us have been lifelong "car
guys" and "car girls." Curiously, we are getting together at a little
restaurant that is now located right across the street from the old
dealership.
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