TERRE HAUTE —
In my mind’s eye, it will always be Memorial Day Weekend and Mr. Tilford will be cheerfully scrambling to keep artificial flowers and wreaths on the shelves and display poles of his 12 Points variety store.
A Puccini opera — or maybe Duke Ellington — will always be on the sound system.
Reality will be bent and Tilford’s Variety Store and USPS contract postal unit will bustle into an endless future, selling stamps and money orders, sewing notions and kids’ puzzles, Adam’s Clove Chewing Gum and alarm clocks, and polyester flowers for all seasons.
The store’s proprietor, Cecil Tilford, will always be behind the counter, his pale blue eyes focused on a column of figures or dancing in amusement at yet another long yarn spun by a customer who’s forgotten what she or he came in for in the first place. A pot of coffee will always be on the warmer plate and, outside, an American flag will always be snapping in a strong breeze.
Time will fly and stand still at the same moment. What it will not do is run out.
In truth, Mr. Tilford has not been in his store since April, when long-simmering health issues landed him, first, in the hospital, then in The Waters of Clinton, a long-term care facility at 11th and Elm streets in the home of next weekend’s Little Italy Festival.
For the record, he looks and sounds great. (Amazing what three squares a day, physical therapy and someone to help navigate a maze of prescription meds will do for an 85-year-old guy.) And his roommate is someone he’s known and loved most of his life, his little “twin” brother, Wayne, who was born on the same day as Mr. T, only five years later.
Mr. Tilford said the other day that for a few months after his hospitalization, his business neighbor and friend, Rich Curtis, tried to hold down the fort in the variety store and post office. But Curtis lost his own piano shop lease and had to move out of 12 Points. The post office closed at the end of June. Last weekend, all the fantastic and amazing items in Tilford’s Variety were auctioned off.
The 42-year term of the Mayor of 12 Points was over.
As might be expected, Mr. T is not happy about this. Despite his physical pain, he cherished coming to his store. “I’ve enjoyed every job I’ve had,” he said the other day after lunch at The Waters. “Except when I was first married and I worked at Stran Steel. I did not like that job.”
His beloved wife, Doris, didn’t like it, either. Sometimes, she deliberately let him sleep through the start of a night shift. So, in his 20s, he went into retailing — for F.W. Woolworth downtown on Wabash Avenue — a field he stayed in for the rest of his life.
Doris’ beautiful photo is on Mr. T’s night stand, next to the plaque he was given in 2008, commemorating his 40 years in business in 12 Points. A full-size Marine Corps flag hangs over his bed. On the window ledge nearby is a desktop name plate that says, “Mayor Tilford,” another gift from his many admirers.
As sad as he is about being forced to call it quits in his store and post office, Mr. T characteristically channels his energy toward remembering the good times and being grateful for such a long, rich run. “I’ve always been an optimist,” he said.
Instead of obsess over not being able to get to the store for the auction, he chooses to emphasize the sizable turnout.
“The Shadow people gave me copies of all the sales — 192 people bought merchandise,” he said, shaking his head in wonder. “That’s pretty good. And they included all their names and phone numbers.”
In other words, if he feels like it, Mr. T can call some of those buyers to discuss their purchases and their plans for them, catch up with the folks he knows (probably all 192) and talk business. One of his favorite parts of being in retail, he said, has always been interacting with people — customers, suppliers, the U.S. Postal Service employees he met over the decades.
Even when he talks about the disastrous 2002 fire that destroyed his original, big variety store across Lafayette Avenue, Mr. T tends to concentrate on how lucky he was not to be in the place when the front windows blew out from combustion. Things were never the same; he and Doris went from a sprawling space in which they sold everything from small appliances to jewelry, to a nook less than one-third the size.
And yet he says (and means), “I still really enjoyed every minute in the small store. I loved being around all the people.”
Mr. T met Doris Harbrueger at Fontanet School when he was in the second grade. “She was this skinny little tow head, and I went home and told my mom about her and said, ‘I’m going to marry that girl.’” And so he did.
During his 26 months of active duty during World War II, most of it in the Mariana Islands of the Pacific, Mr. T carried the photo of Doris that sits on his night stand. All of his Marine buddies said no one that pretty would ever wait for him, especially since he was sending her most of his pay for their nest egg. The boys were wrong. Doris waited and stayed married to Mr. T until her death in 1999.
“She was my one and only, of course,” he said, swallowing a little hard.
Other than doubting pals, the Marine Corps fit Mr. T like the proverbial glove. One of 10 children, he’d learned his fierce work ethic from his mother and coal miner dad. The Marines honed his determination and toughness.
“Semper Fi,” he said. “I believed that in the Marine Corps, and I believe that in almost every phase of life. Ever faithful — to your spouse, your family, your work, your friends, your morals, everything pertaining to your life.”
That credo carried him the last several years, when men half his age would have hung it up from the physical pain and the frustration of watching big box retailers grind local independents to dust. Even now, pretty much confined to a wheelchair, Mr. T pictures his store and post office and weighs a reopening.
“I really think I could do it,” he said, “but I’m afraid I wouldn’t do a good enough job.”
For now, he and Wayne and some of the other guys in The Waters take meals together and often gather to discuss current events. As he rolls down the hall toward his room or the dining room, Mr. T is greeted with “Hi, Cecil!” by aides and residents of the facility. It’s as though he has switched from being the Mayor of 12 Points to the Mayor of The Waters.
Yes, he confesses, he gets bored and sad and, always, he misses Doris. “But, otherwise, everything’s fine,” he said. “And whatever’s around the corner, well, we’ll see.”
Fortunately, Mr. T has one of the finest collections of great memories any man could own. Old friends from 12 Points who might care to share them need only drive to Clinton. Mr. T will start up the time machine, and you can go for a ride to a favorite day in either incarnation of Tilford’s Variety Store.
I’ll be taking a pack of clove chewing gum on all my trips.
Stephanie Salter can be reached at (812) 231-4229 or stephanie.salter@tribstar.com.
Opinion
Related Photos
-
Tribune-Star columnist Stephanie Salter.
Discussion
STEPHANIE SALTER: The Mayor of 12 Points has relocated his office
- Opinion
-
-
READERS' FORUM: May 20, 2013
The dangers of a little knowledge
Students enjoyed Rose study trip
-
Mark Bennett: High-profile mural connects historical dots from city to river
At 96 feet wide and 2 stories tall, the power, impact and value of the Wabash will be evident.
-
EDITORIAL: Waging the ‘readiness’ campaign
Almost every Hoosier who starts college intends to finish. Unfortunately, those who arrive on campus unprepared in key academic areas are far less likely to fulfill that aspiration.
-
READERS' FORUM: May 19, 2013
• Flawed reasoning on gun checks
• A hint of things yet to come?
• Are the ‘makers’ doing the ‘taking’?
• The ‘Obamination’ is finally revealed
• Pondering effects of Obamacare
• Fantasizing on the ‘Apocalypse’
• Another view of Hinduism
• Great experience for HCMS students
-
FLASHPOINT: A legislative session of missed opportunities
Given the nature of politicians, grand claims of accomplishments and overblown rhetoric about “historic” efforts are to be expected at the close of any legislative session.
-
RONN MOTT: Mushrooms = Hoosier happiness
Someone wrote or said a few years ago a statement that would define the word “Hoosier.” According to this urban legend, a Hoosier is somebody dribbling a basketball around the Indy 500 while eating a fried, morel mushroom. It did not define me, at the time.
-
EDITORIAL: Insult to an independent press
Distrust of government secrecy has been elevated to an exceptional level with the disclosure the Justice Department covertly examined two months of Associated Press phone records to determine who leaked details to the AP about a foiled terrorist plot.
-
READERS' FORUM: May 17, 2013
Hinduism doesn’t deserve ridicule — Shefali Purohit, Terre Haute
-
RONN MOTT: Israel’s Air Force
Recently the Israeli Air Force bombed and rocketed a convoy leaving Syria going to Lebanon with rockets that were going to be used to attack Israel. It did not get there. It was destroyed.
-
EDITORIAL: Noteworthy in the news: Dashing finish for the Sycamores
It’s always thrilling to see Indiana State University’s athletic teams do well in high-level competition, and two specific teams rose to impressive heights last weekend in the Missouri Valley Conference outdoor track and field championships.
-
Readers' Forum: May 16, 2013
Moving Deming folks sounds ‘nuts’
-
Readers' Forum: May 15, 2013
Participants rise to the challenge: I would like to write a letter congratulating all the Wabash Valley Roadrunners that competed in the One America Indianapolis Mini Marathon.
-
RONN MOTT: Media merry-go-round
Round and round it goes, where it stops nobody knows. That isn’t a unique phrase to this writer or to this era in time. But, when it comes to the musical chairs of broadcasting, it certainly applies.
-
LIZ CIANCONE: Courts see a different appearance than cops
Have you ever noticed the transformation between the arrest of an accused lawbreaker and the first appearance in court?
-
READERS' FORUM: May 14, 2013
ISTEP failure exposes flaws
Community hasn’t changed its spirit
Egregious threat to nation’s defense
-
READERS' FORUM: May 13, 2013
• Women’s group criticizes Bucshon
• Let’s hope this doesn’t come true
• Many get thanks for fest success
-
MARK BENNETT: Life at face value: Mom’s simple advice still presents a valuable daily challenge
Most moms don’t base their advice on scientific research.
(Unless, of course, your mother is a scientific researcher. If so, carry a No. 2 pencil and take good notes.) -
EDITORIAL: Better monitoring needed to prevent local environmental messes
The nasty, hazardous messes lurking in the community raise a bottom-line, red-flag question. Could these environmental problems have been monitored and, thus, prevented?
-
GUEST COLUMN: Nursing more than medicine and bandages
Being a nurse … Like most nurses, I chose this profession because I had a strong desire to help others and no other career would allow me the opportunity to touch lives the way I have been able to through nursing.
-
READERS' FORUM: May 12, 2013
Vigo Youth Football, entering 45th year, seeks new support
Media ignoring important case on abortions
Proud to be old-fashioned
Guns in school? What’s next?
Promoting hate not a ‘brave’ act
-
FLASHPOINT: Again in 2013 General Assembly, middle class generally ignored
Last year, the people of Indiana entrusted the Republican Party with some of their most precious possessions.
-
RONN MOTT: ‘Raccoons II’
In the Algonquin Indian language, raccoon means “working with hands.” They are really cute little fellows until they injure a child, or a pet, or leave feces around where you certainly do not want it.
-
Readers’ Forum: May 11, 2013
I just wanted to express my disappointment at the lack of response shown by President Obama after the Boston Marathon bombings.
-
Readers' Forum: May 10, 2013
CANDLES event plants new seed: On April 26, CANDLES Holocaust Museum and Education Center hosted an event called “Sowing Seeds of Peace: A Celebration of Spring” at the Apple House. Our purpose was to introduce people to our concept of forgiveness as a seed for peace.
-
RONN MOTT: ‘NRA Convention’
At the recent NRA Convention in Houston, Texas, where the right-wing political hot air almost lifted the convention's building off its foundation, the NRA trotted out the forever yours political dame of the right wing, Sarah Palin. Sarah did not disappoint.
-
EDITORIAL: Memo to U.S.A.: You can ‘SPPRAK’ just as we do in Vigo County
Our kids, truly, are ‘Making a Difference’
-
Some words in praise of boring government — Indiana’s
A conservative Republican governor has super majorities in both branches of the legislature. One might suspect such one-party government leads to major changes in public policy. This did not happen in 2013 in Indiana.
-
EDITORIAL: Doc’s prescient prescription
Viewed through a 2013 prism, Doc Bowen’s response to the AIDS epidemic looks merely prudent, routine.
-
RONN MOTT: ‘Heritage gone’
The last high school I attended was being torn down just a few days ago. I didn't learn about it until I saw classmate Dick Mills on television and a display he had put together about State football championships in the middle 1930's. I began elementary school with Dick Mills. That was Matthew South Elementary School on South Sixth Street in Clinton, Indiana. After seeing Dick on TV, it dawned on me that all schools I had attended in Clinton have been torn down.
-
LIZ CIANCONE: We always want more than we need
Washington seems more preoccupied with the unemployment rate than they are about the constant stalemate. Still with thousands out of work and the unemployment rate hovering somewhere between 7 percent and 9 percent, it does deserve more than a passing nod.
- More Opinion Headlines
-
READERS' FORUM: May 20, 2013
Raw: Tornadoes Spotted in Kansas
Tornadoes, Storms Strike Midwest
Probe Begins After Conn. Commuter Trains Crash
Raw: Heavy Tornado Damage in Shawnee, Okla
NTSB Begins Investigation Into Conn. Train Crash
'Babyland': Camp Lejeune's Toxic Legacy?
AP CEO: Records Seizure 'Unconstitutional'
Fatal Hot Air Balloon Accident in Turkey
Obama Exhorts Good Deeds by Morehouse Graduates
Winning Powerball Ticket Sold in Florida
Lotto Fever Sweeps the Country
Coffee Run Leads to Hatchet Hitchhiker Arrest
Today in History for May 19th
Raw: Accused US Spy Reportedly Leaves Russia
One Million Evacuated As Cyclone Hits Bangladesh
Conn. Commuter Trains Collide; 60 Go to Hospital
Raw: Germany Protestors Picket Barbie House
ABC Stars React to Jolie News
Today in History for May 20th
CDC: Fecal Bacteria Common in Swimming Pools
RAW: Russian dash cam catches car 20 feet in the air
Singer Miguel Accidentally Lands on Fan At Billboard Music Awards
Who is $600M Powerball winner in Fla.?
Justin Bieber Gets Booed After Winning at the Billboard Awards
Singer forgets lyrics, makes up words to National Anthem
Top 5 Plays of the Day
Sailor Surprises His Mom At Her CU Denver Graduation Ceremony
Twiggy, the Waterskiing Squirrel
Official: ‘Amazing’ No One Was Killed In CT Train Crash
Coffee Stop Leads To Arrest Of YouTube Sensation Wanted For Murder
Bearded Dragon Reunited With Owner
Marine Reunited with Warzone Companion
Raw: Crash Sends Car Into Fla. Pool
Beyonce Is Pregnant!
SF baseball player overpaid $500,000 RETURNS money -- and team says KEEP IT
$1 Million in Jewels Stolen at Cannes Film Fest
Dad returns from Afghanistan, surprises family during Rays' first pitch
