Clyde’s Corner
What ‘small town’ means to a proud Stockbridge Panther
by Clyde Whitaker
Hello again, everyone. As I was mowing the American Legion lawn recently, I was thinking about my column for November. Nothing really struck me, until I saw two basketball legends from our 1971 championship team walking toward me on the sidewalk. Gary Allen and Rod Owen were the two starting guards from that team, and they still live in the Stockbridge area.
After chatting with them for about 20 minutes, talking about the old days, they proceeded to continue walking and I went back to my mowing. It then hit me; I would write a story about what “small town” means to me.
Small town to me means the whole town turning out on a Friday night to support our basketball team, with a dance in the gym afterward. It means driving uptown and stopping at the four corners with the single flashing red light, usually waving to friends you see walking or driving by.
It means driving to the local McDonald’s to grab a coffee, while seeing about 20 of your friends inside, talking about the news of the day. It means watching your kids and grandkids competing in the events sponsored by Community Education, and all the smiles and laughter from both the kids and the adults.
It’s also about community service, like noticing a new homeowner in town who needs help with her lawn and stopping to mow the grass—just because.
You can’t forget the post office, and stopping in there many times throughout the week, always seeing friends standing around talking, as other friends come and go.
It’s about seeing the many, many young men and women whom I coached as youngsters, still living here and now raising their families in our school district.
Walking around town, nothing has really changed since I was born here; I take comfort in our Town Square and other landmarks that have stood the test of time. They still are vibrant today, as they have been for the past many, many years.
Small town gives you a sense of calm and relief, knowing we live in a special place, far, far away from some of the troubles in the world today.
In closing, there is no other place I would rather live in than Stockbridge. I was born here, and I will die here, with no regrets. And I will forever be grateful to all of the people in our small town who made me into the person I am today; a proud “Stockbridge Panther” forever!
All photos by Clyde Whitaker.
Stockbridge Township Hall, in the square in the center of town, is as vibrant today as it has been for many years.
The Stockbridge Civil War Memorial Monument in the Township Square is a town landmark.
The Spanish-American War Monument is on the reverse side of the Civil War Monument in the Township Square.
Downtown Stockbridge, a small town Clyde Whitaker calls “a special place, far, far away from some of the troubles in the world today.”
The Mackinder-Glenn American Legion Post 510 in Stockbridge is a place where you usually can find a friend or two.
Clyde Whitaker is a 1973 Stockbridge graduate. He and his wife, Mary, raised four children in Stockbridge, and they still reside in the Stockbridge area.
