HUCKLEBERRIES: A local page-turner

The former Susan Hagen is known today for her Wee Sing songbooks and cartoon characters Mudgy Moose and Millie Mouse.

But 55 years ago, the Spokane native was a young woman in love.

She and former Coeur d’Alene High basketball star Charlie Nipp had graduated from Whitworth College in Spokane, according to an engagement announcement in The Press on Nov. 19, 1970. Her degree was in art, his in business.

Both were teaching in high schools — she at Marysville, Wash., and he at Lake Oswego, Ore.

They planned to marry Dec. 27, 1970. And then a honeymoon in Tahiti.

Susan was a seasoned traveler. She had worked as a secretary in Monte Carlo, The Press reported, and as a Trans World Airlines flight attendant stationed in Boston and New York.

Many of you know what happened next.

Susan joined Charlie in Lake Oswego. And in 1977, she and the late Pamela Conn Beall launched the thriving Wee Sing series, which has now sold more than 67 million books.

Then, Susan and Charlie moved to his hometown, Coeur d’Alene.

Charlie started a restaurant downtown and became a prominent commercial developer.

Susan followed her muse.

In 2008, she introduced Coeur d’Alene to Mudgy and Millie, two lovable characters, who, like Susan and Charlie Nipp, have become part and parcel of the Lake City.

Incredible journey

Buster was a wanderer in Point Loma, Calif., when Chief Warrant Officer William Greenfield of Rathdrum rescued him.

The two met before Christmas 1965. Buster was doing time in a dog pound; Greenfield was aboard the USS Kennebec in nearby San Diego.

The 9-year-old sheepdog was known as a “moocher” and a “roamer.” His owner let him roam to imbibe at local bars, dine at restaurants and share lunch with school children.

But Buster’s wanderlust fueled complaints.

Buster’s future looked bleak until CWO Greenfield arranged to send him to Rathdrum.

Before the mission was accomplished, however, Greenfield was shipped to Vietnam. So, a brother-in-law constructed a crate to dispatch Buster by rail home.

But Buster busted free, which delayed things slightly.

Eventually, Buster arrived in Rathdrum, where Christmas and The Press found him under the family tree. A reformed dog, Buster had finally made Santa’s “Nice List.”

Before Olaf

In December 2005, idle construction worker Donovan O’Keefe, 34, of Coeur d’Alene, wanted to build a snowman for three reasons: 1. He always wanted to, 2. His 6-year-old daughter, Zoe, wanted one, and 3. He was bored.

So, he began to erect Frosty in his front yard at Seventh and Reed. He wanted the snowman to reach as high as his two-story roof. After three days, however, he was burned out.

Still, his snowman was impressive — 13 feet tall, with a trash can lid for a hat, a carrot for a nose, sticks for arms, rocks for the eyes and smile.

By the time The Press called, Donovan’s snowman had lost one eye and half of his grin.

“He needs a little work,” Donovan admitted cheerfully,

Still, Frosty was a neighborhood sensation. Among the many comments that Donovan received was — “best snowman ever.”

Donovan’s mother worried that the Christmas lights encircling Frosty’s torso would cause him to melt. But Donovan assured her: “It’s too big. It’ll probably be here in June.”

Mush! Mush!

In December 1980, Idaho Lt. Gov. Phil Batt really didn’t want to fly in bad weather to Coeur d’Alene to address the Idaho Farm Bureau Women’s Luncheon.

His day-after agenda was full. And he didn’t wish to be stranded here by snow or fog. But organizers persisted, promising to have a dog sled on standby if the weather worsened.

Gamely, Batt addressed the lunch crowd and offered several good one-liners. He said, for example, that, as second in command, he always had important things to do, like “going to the Capitol dome and watching for the approach of glaciers.”

Afterward, the farmers and ranchers proved true to their word.

They parked a dog sled outside the North Shore Resort convention center. And the future governor of Idaho climbed in and smiled through the snowflakes.

Huckleberries

• Poet’s Corner: One or two cookies,/and one or two Mounds,/one or two egg nogs,/and presto: 5 pounds — The Bard of Sherman Avenue (“The Holiday Magic”).

• Smack ‘Em: Coeur d’Alene once had two elaborate Christmas trees downtown — one at Tubbs Hill and the other at the old Fourth Street parking lot entrance. The lights on the trees attracted gawkers and naughty boys. During Christmas 1965, five “lads,” 8 to 10 years old, were caught destroying lights and decorations. Police turned them over to their parents with the recommendation: “Spank them.”

• Name Game: On Dec. 10, 2015, ground was broken for the Lola and Duane Hagadone Boys and Girls Club. At a reception earlier, Duane, who had donated $2 million of the $3.65 million to build the facility, revealed the name. Joked his wife, Lola, “I’ve lived with him for 35 years; I want my name on the building.”

• Computer Whiz: Before developer John Stone envisioned Riverstone, he was a computer instructor at North Idaho Junior College. As such, in December 1970, he managed the new $74,000 IBM 1130 computer. The system was used for business and engineering courses. But John said the amazing machine could do much more, including counting ballots on Election Night to speed things up.

• Santa Knows: Gene Zeckser knew what kids wanted for Christmas 2000 — for the girls, anything Barbie, and for the boys, trucks, remote control cars, and fire engines. Gene had served for four years as the Silver Lake Mall Santa — and had inside info. The retired naval seaman loved everything about Christmas — music, lights, movies. But his wife complained at night when the jolly old elf belly-laughed himself awake.

Parting shot

Chuck and Lorna Sears, the kind couple who ran Wilson’s Pharmacy downtown for 23 years, treasured their customers.

They dispensed Christmas cheer year-round along with aspirin, cough drops, prescriptions and whatnot. And they served their church and community, too.

Many remember the couple as their Sunday School teachers at First Presbyterian Church. Among myriad other activities, Lorna served on the Panhandle Health District board and Chuck was a North Idaho College Booster of the Year and a founder of Hospice.

Why am I telling you all this? On Dec. 12, 1985, the couple announced the sale of Wilson’s Pharmacy at Fourth and Sherman (now Moose’s Lounge).

But they remained to manage the historic business and to model how residents in this City with a Heart treated one another — once upon a time.

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D.F. (Dave) Oliveria can be contacted at [email protected].

    1970 engagement photo of Susan Hagen Nipp.
  

    Sheepdog Buster poses at his new Rathdrum home with George Greenfield, son of Chief Warrant Officer and Mrs. William Greenfield, in 1965.
  

    Donovan O’Keefe poses with his 13-foot snowman in 2005.
  

    Lt. Gov. Phil Batt braces for a long ride to Boise in 1980.
  

    Two community Christmas trees attract young vandals in 1965.
  

    Kaitlyn Miller, 8, gives flowers to Duane and Lola Hagadone after their sizable donation to the Boys and Girls Club in 2015.
  

    Instructor John Stone, center, and students Mike Sawicki and Vickie Seller survey a new computer in 1970.
  

    Santa (aka Gene Zeckser) dispenses Christmas cheer in 2000.
  

    Owners Chuck and Lorna Sears announce the sale of Wilson’s Pharmacy in downtown Coeur d’Alene in 1985.