7 Days 'til Christmas
Each year I had an appointment to meet with Dr. Vandermark in Sioux Falls. These annual trips were always scheduled between Thanksgiving and Christmas. As I later learned, the check-up was actually a secondary reason for the visit…the primary reason was for mom and dad to acquire the “Santa gifts”.
I don’t remember much about making the trip down to Sioux Falls. I do recall mom waking Tim and I up in the “dead of the night”, and as we awoke, we were told to grab our pillows and a blanket. As we made our way downstairs, we’d be greeted by Mrs. Lang. She would spend the weekend babysitting the brothers and sisters who remained at home. We would get to Sioux Falls just in time for my Friday morning appointment, and afterwards we would spend the rest of the day, Saturday and sometimes Sunday roaming the local stores.
The first place we shopped was always the Red Goose Shoe store. Because I wore corrective shoes, this store is where I had to get these shoes made. After I was fitted with my next pair of brown high top shoes, I was told to reach into the treasure chest and retrieve a golden egg. I don't remember what was inside, but some of you may remember seeing these golden eggs lying around the house. See "Ugly Shoes".
What I remember the most were the downtown Christmas lights …the big city of Sioux Falls was incredibly exciting for a child living in small town Eureka. We stayed at one of the local downtown Sheraton hotels, which made it convenient for shopping.
In the earlier years, we would follow mom and dad from store to store, but over time they let us go by ourselves. Sure we had seen all the black and white reels at school on “stranger danger”, but we never sensed any potential harm. Compared to Eureka, this place was "fun", and it was filled with crowds of people trying to make their way from one store to the next. There were names like…Lewis Drug, Younkers, Kreskes, Shrivers Department Store, Fantels Department Store and even Sears & Roebuck. For many years, it was the only place that I had seen (and rode) an escalator. I don’t know how many times I went up and down those moving stairs, but it was one of the high points of our visits. On some visits we even found time to see a first run move either at the Orpheum Theatre or State Theatre. It was in Sioux Falls that Tim and I saw “Bridge over the River Kwai” for the first time. Yes, Wendy …there was also a J.C Penneys, but in those days it was mostly a Five & Dime store, sort of a cross between Michaels Craft Stores and JoAnne Fabrics.
One of my memories was seeing Santa Clause in each department store. Because he was in so many places at the same time, I began to question whether he was real. When I asked dad about it, he looked at me and said, “oh, most of them are Santa’s elves.” As part of my annual pilgrimage to Sioux Falls, I would tell Santa what I wanted for Christmas, receive a candy cane for telling him my secret, and off I’d go happy as a lark.
There were luncheonettes and coffee houses that we frequented, and I do remember eating at a few department store lunch counters. At least once per visit dad would take us to a Chinese restaurant. It’s been so many years now, and I'm trying to recall the name…maybe it was the Peking Restaurant or something like that. One of the luncheonettes near the hotel made a great hamburger, but its French fries were less than desirable. When I was in Junior High, I ordered those fries, and when it came to my table, it was a ball of fries and hardened grease. When the waitress came back, she noticed that I hadn’t eaten the fries. I told her that I couldn’t separate the grease from the fries…she looked at me and said, “I knew you were from out of town because none of the regulars ever ordered the fries.”
Downtown Sioux Falls in the '50s. The two Sheraton hotels can be seen in this photo, along with Shrivers on the left. click to enlarge
If we had a little downtime, and wanted to relax after a long day...we would take in a movie.
McKenna hospital in the early 1900s. I remember visting Dr. Vandermark in the basement of the hospital. I don't remember it being very modern.
This was the Sheraton Cataract, We generally stayed at this hotel, as it was convenient to downtown shopping. This was before Holiday Inn made its way onto the hotel landscape. All I can say is that the hotel had character...
The Return Home
I have a few memories of returning home. Mostly, the surpeise of seeing the back of the car filled with so many presents, department store bags and boxes. My thought was "how did that happen"? Every time I got into the car for the trip home, I couldn't believe how much stuff was crammed into the back of the station wagon. We were told "not to look back" or "touch" any of the bags behind us. Well we tried very hard... but occassionally would sneak a peak. Knowing that there was a treasure trove sitting behind us made the trip home seem more thrilling.
