My Father- Ron Bader

My dad is from Reese, Michigan. His father was named Merkes and all I know about him is that he raced a 16 cylinder car in the Indianapolis 500. My father never got to know his own father very well. His mother, Dorothy Bader, on the other hand, doted on little Ronnie. He was her only child and meant everything to her. She worked very hard and died of a stroke when I was about 10. I barely got to know her, and this certainly had an effect on one of my opinions. Her mother, Emma, outlived her by many years. Emma was married to Charlie Bader, the tractor guy mentioned on my main page. Dorothy and her son Ron lived next to a farm. He worked as a farm hand. He worked in General Motors Steering Gear. He went to some engineering school in Michigan. Alas, he had too much fun and ended dropping out. He read Jack London and "We Live in the Arctic". Then he drove his mama's car to Alaska back in 1953 and worked as a cooks helper on the Alaska Railroad. Then he spent a winter in Kiana with a Russian Prospector. They each had their own cabin. They would cut down the black spruce and make bonfires and scoop out the mud and pan for nuggets.

He realized that he could not enjoy a decent living in such a harsh place without a decent job, so he went and got a teaching certificate. He came back and was offered a job at Clark Middle School. When Dimond (yes, that's how it is spelled) High School was opened in 1966, he was on the starting staff. He taught Geometry, Auto Shop, Transportation, Metal Shop and was a counselor. He bought a fishing boat in Clarks Point outside of Dillingham and fished there for several years. Then he bought some 4 plexes and was a landlord. Then he sold them and retired from school. Then he started an oyster farm. There's a lot of stuff that I left out, but I'm in a hurry.

These are some of his favorite links.