A special thank you Carole for introducing me to Richmond Lake by Rory King

Carole, You and John Hendrickson were the ones who introduced me to Richmond Lake. Unbelievably, I had never been out there. I have such warm memories of the lake that summer of my senior year. I remember

Richmond Lake

that your Dad had one of the first pontoon boats on the lake (now they are more popular than speedboats), a home-made model built by his good friend Lloyd Fluke, with old oil barrels welded together. I remember John Hendrickson and John Ridgeway trying to teach me how to water-ski. I remember when we swam at your cabin, Bud would have all of us line up and pick up sharp rocks from the swimming area, as our little contribution to upkeep. I remember having lunch with you and your folks in the bright lakeside front room of the cabin--Ruth decorating the table with just the right touch of colorful wildflowers. They made me feel so welcome and grown up. I remember picking you up in the old rusty pickup to go to the American Legion races (we got my Dad to put our money on the horses). Your folks truly did share their cabin, and I would guess that it was the source of warm memories for many of your friends. The beautiful trees that we enjoy on the way to the dam and the spillway were planted by Bud--maybe with the help of you and Butch?

When I was at USD, my Dad bought a cabin on Richmond, and after Susie and I got married in 1975, we bought it from him, winterized it, and lived there for the first three years of our marriage (we had one floor furnace and a fireplace to heat the place). We

Richmond Lake Sunset

then kept it for our family, and my kids grew up on the lake. It was a rite of Spring for my sons, Alex and Patrick, to camouflage themselves, and sneak into the girl scout camp to ring the bell. My good friend, and our classmate, Jerry McNeary bought a place right next to ours, and our children grew up virtually as brothers and sisters. After Jerry died (he had a heart attack at the lake, and he died as I drove him into town), his wife, Cathy sold the house in town and moved to the Lake. Now our daughter, Caroline, and her husband and four children bought and remodeled an old cabin one lot from ours, and the two cabins combined are a treat for all six of our kids and our 13 grand kids, who are at the lake many weekends. I putz around in the garden, read, and just slow down--taking in the beauty of God's creation around me.

So, Carole, thank you for introducing me to Richmond Lake. It's been at the center of our lives, and probably will be of our children.