My father, James Athanus, came with his Mother to America in 1914 from Albania, escaping from the torture and repression with just what they could carry and a whole lot of hope for a better future. They landed at Ellis Island and made their way to a small mill town in the center of Maine. My Grandfather followed them in the next few months and they set up a new life just like many in this factory town.
My grandfather was a baker so he baked bread, my grandmother pulled teeth so she was on call for those that couldn’t afford a dentist and there were many, and my father as a 6 year old started shining shoes to help support his family. Life was hard, a new culture had to be learned, a new language, new food, new fears, new everything! My Grandfather died a couple of years after arriving in America and my Dad was alone again with just his Mother. He shined shoes more hours a day to keep their life afloat.
He soon hired other young men to help him out at his other “locations” outside factories and businesses. Shoes were a big investment and no one would have dreamed of wearing dirty, unpolished shoe so this young emigrant had a captive market and he could work! By 17 years old he had a store front location with 6 shoe shine chairs, started repairing shoes and steaming hats. He worked real hard but life was good! He bought a house for him and his Mother, a big fancy car and had time and money to be social.
Time purred away as my Father worked hard for the American dream and then he got ill with Tuberculous and it all was over in the blink of an eye. He lost everything and was ordered to be quarantined in a sanatorium, he recuperated slowly. It took over a year. When he was given a clean bill of health he returned to rebuild the business that he had lost and now with a new energy to work harder but smarter. Within 6 months he had doubled the shoe shining chairs, steamed hats, started to clean and press clothes and was known for his fast friendly service and his big heart. He had a good friend/guardian angel that told him to buy heels, buy lots of heels because when the Depression “hits” no one will be able to buy new shoes and you need heels to repair people’s shoe. He negotiated 3 train cars full! He made it through the depression and prospered, he was determined not to lose everything again.
As America slowly came out of the Depression he had a very lively business and the time had come to be naturalized. His proudest moment of his life was when he became an American citizen and he vowed they he would never travel out of this country, it was his country and he was proud to be here for the rest of his life.
My Father was walking down the street with a friend when he saw my Mother crossing the street in front of them, he asked his friend if he knew who she was. His friend did know who she was and then my Dad turned to him and said “I am going to marry that woman” And he did! My Father has been gone for over thirty years and perhaps some of the memories have faded a bit but with the luck of having such a great Father with such a strong life’s force he still lives in my Sister and me and we could not have been more blessed....
Brenda Athanus runs a small gourmet food shop in Belgrade Lakes, Maine with her sister Tanya called the Green Spot.
The Green Spot
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