HOMESTEAD VILLAGE FOLKS GET TOGETHER FOR REUNION

Author: DORIS MOCK, SPECIAL TO MECKLENBURG NEIGHBORS
Date: August 31, 2003
Section: MECKLENBURG NEIGHBORS

Earlier this summer, at the Marriott on Tyvola Road in Charlotte, old friends greeted each other during a reunion of Homestead Village residents.

The village was about six miles west of downtown Charlotte in the Paw Creek township. It was the village of Leaksville Woollen Mills, built in the early 1920s.Some people came using walkers and canes, and others were assisted by their children. It was a time of laughter and hugs for people who lived in the village during the Depression days of the '20s and early '30s, and on into the '40s, '50s and '60s.

Whitey Lockman, a former baseball player for the New York Giants, hosted the buffet luncheon. Whitey now lives in Scottsdale, Ariz. Other baseball players for the big leagues who attended were Ken Wood, who drove from North Myrtle Beach, and Tommy Helms, who came from Cincinnati. Ken played for the Washington Senators, Boston Red Sox and St. Louis Browns. Tommy played for the Cincinnati Reds.

Homestead was definitely baseball country and the baseball players were the stars. We were honored to have Ron Green Sr. and his wife, Beth, as special guests.

After the luncheon, everyone assembled in another room for a time of reflecting on memories.

Everyone agreed those were some of the best times of their lives. Neighbors cared for one another in times of need. They were very close-knit and all the neighbors were considered one big family. Doors were never locked and everyone was welcome.

Ken Wood told of the many times people ran through a neighbor's yard at night and the clothesline caught you under the chin. Tommy Helms told of delivering The Charlotte Observer to the different homes. He collected the money for the paper on Fridays.

He just opened the front door and got the money that was left for him on the mantel in the front room.

Doris Nell McCall Faber told of taking piano lessons from Ms. Margaret Saterfield, who worked for the WPA in the '30s and early '40s. She taught in the Homestead community building, which also was Homestead Methodist Church.

Those who did not have a piano to practice on were given a cardboard keyboard.

Laughing, Doris Nell said "that was probably the reason I never learned to play
the piano."

Lillie Edwards told of the thrill of receiving a treat bag every Christmas that
consisted of fruit, nuts and candy. It came from Leaksville Woollen Mills.

Eighty people attended the reunion. Everyone felt they were fortunate to have
been part of such a great neighborhood.

DORIS MOCK GREW UP IN THE HOMESTEAD NEIGHBORHOOD AND ATTENDED THE REUNION IN LATE JUNE. SHE IS STILL A CHARLOTTE RESIDENT.

Author: DORIS MOCK, SPECIAL TO MECKLENBURG NEIGHBORS
Section: MECKLENBURG NEIGHBORS
Page: 16M