A Drink for The Three Vets

Yesterday afternoon I walked the lot with Tom, the gentleman who will do the tree-cutting at 7112 Kauffman Blvd.  I asked him to look at those two oaks near the lakeshore, because a woodpecker had worked on one.  Tom assured me that tree would be there, growing happily, long after I'm gone to dust and glory.  We also agreed that the driveway should start at the middle of the lot (roughly at the right edge of the photo below), angle into the property, and then run along the south lot line.  That way, someone looking up the drive would see woods, not the house.  I like the idea that the house will be private, at least on the street side.

Then, after dinner Sharon and I drove over to the Presque Isle Cemetery to give The Three Vets a drink.  Messrs. Priest, Green, and Piepkorn served together in World War I, survived, and became drinking buddies after returning home.  So tight was their bond that they agreed their graves should be equipped with two pipes, one for a flag, and the other to permit the occupant to enjoy a shot of whiskey from time to time.  Mr. Priest died first, in the 1930s, and as agreed his two friends saluted him by pouring bourbon down his pipe!  Mr. Green followed a few days before the start of World War II.  Mr. Piepkorn faithfully kept up the tradition for another quarter century.  Finally, at nearly 80 years of age, the last of the trio was gathered to his ancestors.  Thus it has fallen to others to honor these three friends in the manner they thought most appropriate.

Shoulder-to-shoulder in death, as in life: Piepkorn (left), Green, and Priest

Frederick Piepkorn was the last of the friends to "muster out"

Sharon gives Bill Green his well-deserved drink


This evening I'm back in Grand Haven again.  I have to check my mail, pay bills, and get a haircut!  Alas, by leaving today I missed tonight's performance of the Petoskey Steel Drum Band at Rogers City.  There's a lot going on in this area, both summer and winter. •••