Growing Up In Scott's Run

Growing Up In Scott’s Run

Written by George Sarris Illustrated by Alison Sommer

Growing Up In Scott’s Run

Written by George Sarris Illustrated by Alison Sommer

Hi there! My name is George.

My father had come to America from Greece. He grew up on the island of Crete. I think one reason he settled in West Virginia was because the mountains reminded him of Greece.

There were many Greeks in Scotts Run. But they were just one of many other nationalities. Scotts Run was filled with people who spoke different languages, came from different backgrounds and looked different from each other.

Perhaps you might think so many differences would mean trouble....

But, the opposite was true!

Despit their differences, the people Despite depend depended on their neighbors in times trouble and they celebrated with of trou ighbors in times of joy. neighbors their n

Back in my day, Osage was the business center of Scott’s Run. Grocery stores, restaurants, shoe repair shops, clothing stores, and even a movie theater... all could be found in Osage.

At that time, in order to go to Morgantown, people could either take a ferry boat across the Monongahela River or a car or bus ride through Granville to Westover and across the Westover bridge.

Since it was so inconvenient to shop in Morgantown, most people who lived in Scott’s Run shopped in Osage.

There were five children in my family.

Although my father worked in the mines for a while, my mother was afraid for his safety. There always seemed to be accidents at the mines.

So, eventually, my father opened a restaurant in Osage with his cousin.

They named the restaurant “Nick Nick and John John’s John’s.” s.”

s

age

Sometimes I worked in the restaurant so that my father could rest for a while.

I was only ten at the time, but my father never worried about leaving me there by myself. He knew that the customers would step in if anyone tried to take advantage of me.

In Scott’s Run, everyone looked out for children.

I had lots of Moms and Dads watching over me...

And they came in all colors!

One day, a man tried to give me a rough time.

My friend, who happened to be an AfricanAmerican, threw the man right through the door of the restaurant!

KA-POW

!

I would laugh when I heard people from Morgantown say that Osage was a rough town.

I felt safer there than any other place on earth!

My M ym mother othe ot herr an and d fa fath father ther er w were ere er e alwa ways good role modelss for me. always But I had another adult in my life who was also a very important influence.

His name na ame was Max Levine.

That’s me!

I believe that Max was probably the first Jewish man I knew.

Sometimes, we do not trust people who are not of the same religion as we are. But that was not true in Scott’s Run.

M

Just as we considered people of all races to be trusted friends, we knew that people may worship in a different way, but they still hold the same, good values.

R

ALS That was certainly true of Max.

Max owned a clothing store in Osage.

He sold every kind of clothing from boots and shoes to shirts and pants.

He sold clothing for men, women, children, and infants. He sold everything a family could need in the clothing line.

When I was in high school, Max gave me my first job. I worked at the store every day after school from 4-6 p.m. and all day on Saturday. During the summer, I worked every day from the time the store opened until it closed.

Max knew that the working families in Scott’s Run could not afford to pay the prices that were charged by the stores in Morgantown. He made sure that the same items sold in Morgantown could be purchased from his store at more affordable, prices. lower, mo

L

He was a smart businessman.

Since he catered to families, he knew that sometimes children decided where Mom and Dad shopped. He kept a bucket of lollipops behind the counter. We made sure to keep that bucket full!

lli

p

When a family with children came into the store, Max would tell the children to go behind the counter and choose a lollipop. So, the next time the family shopped for clothes, where do you suppose the children wanted to go?

p

To Max’s, of course!

T

When a family y ha had d a ne new w ba baby baby, by, he made it a practic practice ice to give the baby its first pair of shoes.

It was only one of the kindnesse kindnesses es he showed.

He kept aware of his customer’s concerns. If a father had been laid off because a mine had closed, he made sure to encourage the family to open a charge account so that they could continue to buy the things they needed for their children.

Max trusted that he would be paid once the father was called back to work. This courtesy was extended to all families, regardless of their color or nationality. He treated everyone with dignity.

C

M

PA S S I O N I have never forgotten Max. His store in Osage has long since closed. I am now older than Max was when I worked for him. He passed away many years ago, but I have tried to live by the example he showed to me.

I was privileged to grow up in a community like Scott’s Run. I learned so much from the people who were my friends and from the adults I met along the way. I count it as my life’s blessing...

...and I would not change even one thing about it.