Ed at age 21
Ed was the 2nd born to John A. Bogard and Eva Mae Fuller. The family moved to Akron, around 1918 so that John could take advantage of the Tire Factories for a job. Ed followed his father into the tire making industry and began working for Firestone Tire & Rubber Co. He worked there for 34 years. Ed married Ruth L. Guthrie and they had three children, Louise, Evie and Ed II, (the third being me!) My dad was, by all accounts, a serious man. He loved hunting and maintained a large gun collection. He reloaded all of his own ammunition and was very knowledgable in electric, plumbing, carpentry, etc. He held several degrees in electrical engineering. He also held a patent for a machine he created. He was a 32nd degree Mason for 32 years and a ruling elder in the church for over 25 years. He also spent over 30 years as a Boy Scout Leader in the Boy Scouts of America. He loved the Boy Scouts and always wanted me to join. I enjoyed time with him and his troop at camp many times plus at the church gatherings, but I never joined. He never pushed me to. In 1957 he and my mother bought property in Cook Forest, Pa. and he built a house there as a retirement home. But, after ten years of working on it on weekends and summer vacations from work, and with only the upstairs ceiling to finish, he became sick and was found to have cancer. He lingered for two years untill his death. I remember a short story my mom told me. In the early 30's they were driving an open roadster in the country when they were stopped by a policeman. My dad had one hand around my mom and the other on the steering wheel. When the cop told him to use both hands he replied, "I would, officer, but I'm a little scared to take the other one off of the steering wheel."
Dad never drank alcohol. Not because he was a christian, but simply because he didn't like it. He once told me that during proabition, his father made beer in the house for himself and friends. Dad said that the smell of the hot beer through the house was terrible. He would sit on their front porch and do his homework. He said that ruined his taste for any booze. But several of his friends drank. That was alright with him.
Dad would help anyone in need. And never took pay for it. But he loved to dicker. Around 1963, at Low's movie theater in downtown Akron, there was a black gentleman who had a popcorn wagon out front. He sold popcorn to moviegoers. Something went wrong and the man couldn't get the machine to work. I'm not sure how, but dad heard about the man. He told dad that he couldn't afford to have the wagon fixed and he had three kids and it was his only income. I remember seeing that popcorn wagon pulling into the driveway in the old Packard. We got it into the garage and he worked on it untill a little after midnight. The man was so thrilled and wanted to give dad something. He told the man that, whenever we went to the movies, he owed us free popcorn. It was a deal! We never went to the movies.
In 1964, in Segal, Pa., Our barber heated his barbershop and his apartment upstairs with a single coal stove. Needless to say, the place was always chilly. Dad struck a deal and got an old gas furnace from Firestone and took it over to Pa. in our trailer. He worked several days installing it and converting it from natual gas to propane. After that the shop and the man's apartment stayed around 80 degrees even in the coldest winters. He was delighted. The pricetag - three free haircuts a year.
Around 1962 a friend of dad's owned a balloon factory somewhere around Revenna, Ohio. One of his main machines went down. It was going to cost a small fortune to fix it. Dad and I went every evening after he got off work for several days and he findly got it up and running. We got cases and cases of free balloons for dad's grandkids.
One Saturday morning around 1960, a homeless man knocked on our door. He asked my dad is he could wash dad's car for a dollar so he could get a bowl of soup down the street. Dad took great pride in his cars and washed them himself. However, he told the man to go ahead and do it. The man spent around three hours in 85 degree heat washing the '58 Packard in the driveway. Dad went out to check when he was finished and praised the good work. He gave the man a $10.00 bill and thanked him. The man was overcome. Mom, always being the skeptic, watched the man walk down to a bar two blocks away. She told dad, "He's going to buy beer with that money!" Dad told her, "the man did a beautiful job on the car and worked hard. It's his money! Besides, they also sell soup there."
That's the kind of man that he was. And I'm proud to have known him ~
Dad never drank alcohol. Not because he was a christian, but simply because he didn't like it. He once told me that during proabition, his father made beer in the house for himself and friends. Dad said that the smell of the hot beer through the house was terrible. He would sit on their front porch and do his homework. He said that ruined his taste for any booze. But several of his friends drank. That was alright with him.
Dad would help anyone in need. And never took pay for it. But he loved to dicker. Around 1963, at Low's movie theater in downtown Akron, there was a black gentleman who had a popcorn wagon out front. He sold popcorn to moviegoers. Something went wrong and the man couldn't get the machine to work. I'm not sure how, but dad heard about the man. He told dad that he couldn't afford to have the wagon fixed and he had three kids and it was his only income. I remember seeing that popcorn wagon pulling into the driveway in the old Packard. We got it into the garage and he worked on it untill a little after midnight. The man was so thrilled and wanted to give dad something. He told the man that, whenever we went to the movies, he owed us free popcorn. It was a deal! We never went to the movies.
In 1964, in Segal, Pa., Our barber heated his barbershop and his apartment upstairs with a single coal stove. Needless to say, the place was always chilly. Dad struck a deal and got an old gas furnace from Firestone and took it over to Pa. in our trailer. He worked several days installing it and converting it from natual gas to propane. After that the shop and the man's apartment stayed around 80 degrees even in the coldest winters. He was delighted. The pricetag - three free haircuts a year.
Around 1962 a friend of dad's owned a balloon factory somewhere around Revenna, Ohio. One of his main machines went down. It was going to cost a small fortune to fix it. Dad and I went every evening after he got off work for several days and he findly got it up and running. We got cases and cases of free balloons for dad's grandkids.
One Saturday morning around 1960, a homeless man knocked on our door. He asked my dad is he could wash dad's car for a dollar so he could get a bowl of soup down the street. Dad took great pride in his cars and washed them himself. However, he told the man to go ahead and do it. The man spent around three hours in 85 degree heat washing the '58 Packard in the driveway. Dad went out to check when he was finished and praised the good work. He gave the man a $10.00 bill and thanked him. The man was overcome. Mom, always being the skeptic, watched the man walk down to a bar two blocks away. She told dad, "He's going to buy beer with that money!" Dad told her, "the man did a beautiful job on the car and worked hard. It's his money! Besides, they also sell soup there."
That's the kind of man that he was. And I'm proud to have known him ~
Mom and Dad seated, me in hat, dad's friend from Firestone, Art Carmack at the house in Cook Forest, Pa., 1959
Edward & Ruth Bogard w-daughter Louise and dog Tiny@1934
Dad building pumphouse at the house in Cook Forest, Pa.
Edward (youngest) with brother, Fuller and their parents, John A. & Eva Mae Bogard, 1912
