Alaska in St. Louis...Winter 1976 or 77

I was working at the time as a carpenter for Higginbotham Bros., a custom home builder. As you can see we had a heavy snowstorm in the area and as a result work was called off. It was really cold at about 10 degrees for the high and everything was frozen over. I decided to take Alaska in my 1968 Rambler American and drive to the St. Louis riverfont overlooking the Mississippi River where a few years prior I worked as a deckhand on the riverboats.
There was hardly anybody outside at the time and virtually no traffic. Alaska felt right at home in the cold weather as it was like summertime for him.
The old St. Louis Court House is in the background. On the right are towers of an old apartment building that would become the Adam's Mark Hotel. I worked there as a carpenter until its grand opening in about 1987.

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Alaska at Babler state park...Fall 1978

Alaska had great markings, a keen eye, and a big heart. I trained him when he was a pup to sit & stay by hand signals. I could indicate to him to stay and then walk 100 yards away. He would not leave his postion until I slapped my thigh, whistled to him, or called him to come. Sometimes I would make him stay and then go hide from him. He always found me.

Alaska overlooking the Meramec...1978

Alaska is pictured sitting atop the edge of the limestone bluffs. I got him when he was 6 weeks old and he was pure joy.

Alaska...

Here's a side profile of Alaska. This was taken at Castlewood state park and this location is close to where my Grandpa Froehly's old clubhouse was located.

Alaska of the Northern Lights...1976

This self-portrait pictures my Alaskan Malamute, Alaska with me. This photo was probably taken on the bluffs above the Meremec River at Castlewood state park. You can see the alertness and curiosity of Alaska as he hears the camera clicks. He was a very bright dog and quite protective of me and he was always at my side.

Jackie & Bob at Disneyland...1999

Jackie & I drove to Southern California for a real estate training program and also to spend some time enjoying the area. We decided to visit Disneyland. We went on a ton of rides and had a terrific time.

Cava & Daddy...1998

Jackie & I got Cava when he was just 6 weeks old. What a beautiful pup he was and what a character! Personality Plus! He was born in a litter of 11 and when we found him he was the last to be taken. Jackie had already picked the name for him as Cava is a type of champagne in Spain. We had planned the type of dog we would get and his color too. When we saw him for the first time we were very impressed with his amount of curiosity and his level of energy. Jackie asked me "Is this Cava?" I nodded me head in approval and said "Yes, it is." and so... Cava came home with us.

Marienda time in the desert...November 1998

Jackie's holding our new pup, Cava. Notice our lawn chairs and "Lil Smokey" BBQ grill in the background. If you enlarge the picture by clicking on the picture you will see downtown Las Vegas. The location of this picture is now called Summerlin and it is the largest master-planned community in the US. At one time this land was owned by Howard Hughes. This area is now completely covered with homes. Jackie, Cava, and myself lived in the condo back then and we would often drive up to the desert to have a little BBQ with a few beers or wine. On some occassions we would have a small bonfire as the sun set. These are some great memories for us.
We currently live in a wonderful house that is close to the mountain range on the left side of this picture.

Mom at Dusty Winds Ave.

Pictured at our previous home is Mom with my wife Jackie and our male cocker spanial, Cava. Our chocolate cocker is getting to know JoAnn.

Good Times in Sin City

It was a thrill for Mom to visit Las Vegas & her "Baby Boy" as she has called me from day one. It was a thrill for me also to see my Mom having a good time. I know Mom was also very happy to have JoAnn & Karen travel with her and for that I will always be grateful to them too. For a young girl to have grown up in St. Louis during the Great Depression it must have been amazing for my Mom to witness Las Vegas with all its glitz and glamour. Mom loved the lights, the Bellagio fountains, and all the excitement that Sin City had to offer.

Mom & her little girl

Mom & Jackay pose for a portrait.

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Mom & Jackay

Mom's holding her little girl in the living room of her house at #5 Fordyce Manor, Town & Country, Mo. I'm not sure of the time period that I took this picture. I would guess perhaps 2003.I'm quite sure she was living there by herself at the time.

Big Money in Las Vegas...circa 2001

My Mom enjoyed flying out to Las Vegas. On this occassion she flew out with my sister JoAnn and my niece Karen and they stayed at the Bellagio Hotel & Casino. It was my Mom's favorite place as it is truly beautiful and located right in the heart of the Las Vegas strip. Mom always enjoyed watching The Wheel of Fortune on TV in the evenings at home. Here she is posing and laughing in front of the Wheel of Fortune slot machines.
In order for Mom to get around on the strip at this time she started to use a wheel chair. Karen and JoAnn can tell some stories of wheeling Mom on the strip as she wanted to get around and see all the sights.

Mary & Mom...circa 1960

Mary & Mom look like they could be sisters in the photo that was probably taken at Mary & Lou's house on Queensridge Dr. in Olivette, Mo. This must have been quite a move for Mary & Lou as the had previously lived at an apartment on Dale Ave. in Richmond Heights. The location of this house was about a mile from where my parents had moved to on 1135 Olivaire Lane, also in Olivette. My niece Karen was around 6 at this time. Mom would have been 41 and Mary 26.

Bobby Simmons...Cub Scout, Troop 498 Clayton, Mo

Chances are this photo was taken of me in about 1958 while I was living in Clayton and going to school at St. Joseph's grade school on Meremec Ave. Those were some fun years for me. I was in the Cub Scouts, I was on a baseball team, and during the summers I went to summer camp at the Glenridge public school with all my Jewish friends. I had my bike and I was getting around town very well. I was shooting archery and swimming at the new Shaw Park pool in the summer too. As one can see I had lots of freckles. That's a sign of being very outdoor oriented.

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10001 Dusty Winds Ave, Las Vegas, NV 89117

When Jackie & I started living together I had a 2 bedroom, 2 bath 1072 Sq.Ft condo. We were both selling real estate when we met and when we got together we became a team. I would be on the phone setting listing appointments and Jackie would handle the appointments and also take out buyers. She was great at it and still is for that matter.
After a few months in the condo she told me about 3 houses that she had become aware of and so she asked me to look at them with her. She said the properties were close by and would not take long to see. So we got in the car and went to check them out. The first property was OK, but no big deal. The house in the picture had a nice appeal about it and when we went in to see the interior it looked really good. Little did I know that I was being sold by my partner & buyer's agent. We moved into this house on August 15, 1999. On August 15, 2002 we would be married at the Little Chapel of the West located on the Las Vegas Strip.

John Simmons...March 1978

Here's John standing along my bike in the early desert spring of 1978. He and his family lived in this area for many years. At some point they moved fairly close to the mountains in the background.

John Simmons & Uncle Bob...March 1978

My nephew John & I went for a ride to the Space Museum on my new motorcycle. The museum had gold reflective windows and so John & I posed together for our picture. The location was Alamogordo, New Mexico where my brother Jack, his wife, Coby and John & Margaret lived for many years. Jack was in the service stationed at the Air Force base.
John would later join the Navy and worked in a submarine. After serving his time in the Navy he moved to Alton, Illinois which is across the Mississippi river from St. Louis. He still calls Alton home.
This was the initial cross country trip I made on the 1978 BMW R-100. It handled wonderfully.
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Christmas...circa 1956

This photo was taken probably on Christmas day around 1956 in front of my family's residence at 7525 Byron Place in Clayton, Missouri . My niece Karen is on the left and my cousins Jerry & Gary McCune are in the center of the picture as they are playing with the toy machine gun I recieved as a Christmas gift. The good looking kid on the 3-speed Schwinn bike...well that's me in an action photo going really fast. I had learned to ride a bike before getting the black Schwinn. The bike I learned on was a hand-me-down from my cousin Bev who was a few years older then me. It was a red & white girls bike with training wheels and it served its purpose. However, I was now ready to hit the streets with my new wheels.
Back then my Grandparents Joseph & Della Froehly lived in the same apartment building as my family. My older sister Mary lived on the 3rd floor.
Christmas Eve was a wonderful time as we always celebrated at my Grandparent's place and my Aunt's & Uncles would bring their families over too. It was a great time! On Christmas day we would have dinner at Grandma & Grandpas with everybody in the family. Those were wonderful times together.

Cabin #3...Tok, Alaska 1985

Here's my bike parked in front of my little log cabin. The place is not very big, but it had a bed and I was able to shower at this site as well. I had been up for a long, long time driving and covering a many, many miles in the last 24 hours. I could drive all day and all night as it did not really get dark then. I was on my bike constantly traveling thru forest and mountains. There were many lakes and rivers along the way and the temperatures were also quite cool even tho I was wearing snowmobile outerwear.
The highways I traveled were not the concrete roads we think of here in the states. The roads were of gravel and just dirt. Often times they were rather muddy and similar to riding on an old washboard. It was difficult to travel above 35-40 MPH much of the time because of the vibration. The were many potholes along the way. You'll notice that at this time I have no windshield. It had snapped off on the Top of the World highway between Dawson City, Yukon and Tok, Alaska. I was so tired on my bike by this time that I started to doze off momentarily coming around a mountain when I hit a pothole. It was quite a jolt to the bike and now the cold wind was hitting me straight on. Fortunately Tok was only about 12 miles away. When I found this little cabin I was so relieved as I was truly exhausted.
You will notice a spare tire on the back portion of the bike. It would come in handy latter as these roads really ate up the tires. When I arrived in Fairbanks a few days later I would pick up a new windshield. That was a must.
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St. Louis to Alaska...June 1985

This was my first of three motorcycle trips from St. Louis to Alaska. My journey crossed the Plains to Montana, thru British Columbia and the Yukon Territories and into Alaska. On this trip I made it just 60 miles short of the Artic circle at the time of the summer solstice. There was virtually 24 hours of sunlight at this time & location.
My trips lasted around 30 days and I did a lot of camping out along the way. Quite frankly there were not many hotels or motels along the way much of the time. This picture was taken in Washington state on my return trip. My bike is a 1978 BMW R-100 and it rode like a champ. I still have it today.

Ghia & Midnight...Babler State Park...November 1978

Alaska was my Alaskan Malamute and he was given to me by my Mom & Dad as a graduation gift when I finished my carpentry studies at Ranken Tech in 1976. Midnight was my Dad's Black Labrador. I would often take the dogs along with me to Babler State Park. My car was a blue 1968 Rambler American and I always had my camera with me. I made the mistake of driving slowly thru the park one evening with the windows down as the 2 dogs spotted a deer along the edge of the woods. Alaska & Midnight were suddenly both out the window doing their best to catch the deer. About 20 minutes later they returned panting heavily with their tongues hanging low.

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Karen...my Niece...July 1978

Karen was a young 24 year-old at the time. I'm thinking she may have been carrying Lisa about this time. It looks like she's got her hands full with the cocker spanial.

Gene & JoAnn Grant...August 1977

Gene & JoAnn were visiting my Parents on Woods Hill Drive at the time. Here's a great picture of my sister & brother-in-law looking terrific.

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Amel & Jackay...March 1991

Here's a closer view of Dad and his buddy, Jackay.

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