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Eastlake Celebrates Its Seniors
Jack Gressley

	Jack Gressley

By Jackie Pacholke

Jack Gressley is a retired railroad engineer. For many years he drove a train from Collinwood to Buffalo and back. He retired in 1985, after 44 years of service to the railroad. During those many years he could not count the many cars that he had hit from drivers trying to beat the train. When he drove, mandated safety features were implemented. Crossings had flashing lights and gates that came down. He would whistle an alert at each intersection, but people would still try to get across the tracks before the train approached. His advice to everyone is DON'T try it! The trains are traveling faster than you realize. Jack's three brothers and father were also train engineers.

Jack David Gressley was born March 23, 1923, in Collinwood, OH. His parents were Ivan and Catherine (Rausch) Gressley. They lived in an apartment on East 150th St. He and his three brothers were all born at home. His mother didn't like hospitals. Back then doctors still made house calls. Jack had twin brothers that were born on his birthdate. Another brother was born on the same birthdate as his mother. So, for six people there were only three birthdates celebrated. The apartment was located next to a fire station. The fire alarms bothered the children so the family moved to Saranac Street in Euclid.

Early in his life Jack had worked as a fireman for the railroad. Because of this he was offered four deferments. He still served in the Navy during World War II, but saw no action. Jack was given a medical discharge. He had trouble with a knee that he had injured swimming, before he had entered the Navy.

Jack married Margaret Davidson, Jan 23, 1943. They were married at a home on Lyons Ave., in Willoughby. Margaret graduated from the Willoughby Union High School on Friday and married the love of her life on Saturday. The couple has been married for 67 years. Jack's mother-in-law liked him immediately. The couple met at Euclid Beach. Margaret and her date, not Jack, had been on a ride called the Bubble Bounce. It had made Margaret so ill that she had thrown up all over herself. Her date had abandoned her. Jack came to her rescue and offered to take her home.

The first car he owned was a dark green 1920 Model A. It was stick shift and had mechanical brakes. It also had a rumble seat that flipped up in the back to carry extra passengers.

The couple moved to Victor Drive and have lived there ever since. When they first moved in they could hear cows mooing down the street. Here they raised two daughters: Gail Young, who resides in Florida, and Janet Miller, who resides with the couple in Eastlake. They have five grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

The house was already in place when Jack dug the basement for his home by hand. He put the dirt in a 4x6 foot trailer and would dump the dirt at the corner of Erie and Lakeshore Boulevard. A gas station located there, called Babsick and Bostic, accepted the dirt to fill in a creek that went through their property. Now Jack must ride a chair lift down the steps to the room that he once created. Jack has no strength in his back or legs. A television is in the basement. He likes to watch "Judge Judy," "The Price Is Right" and "The Lawrence Welk Show."

The couple remembers when school didn't start till after Labor Day. They had a travel trailer that they loved to take to Peterborough, Canada. Going into Canada was much easier then. Patrol Guards would stop one at the border; ask where they were going, why and how long they were going to stay. Then they would just let them pass. The same was true for when you came back into the states. Now one must have a passport to in and out of Canada.

The family also enjoyed docking a boat along the Chagrin River. They used the Yacht Club across from the Eastlake Middle School, or Junior High as it was called then. It cost them $35 a year to rent a dock. They liked to gather driftwood and make a fire to roast hotdogs on the beach near the mouth of the river. The boat was great fun for water skiing and walleye fishing. The yacht club always had social activities like pig roasts or pot luck picnics. Some people had boats with sleeping compartments in them. Over Labor Day weekend many would stay at the river all weekend. The Grassley's boat was small and they lived close enough that they just went home to sleep and would return the next morning.

Mr. and Mrs. Gressley are snow birds. Six months out of the year they live in Bradenton, FL. This is located along the west coast of the state. They have been going down there since 1989. At first they drove down by car, but now they fly out of Cleveland Hopkins Airport. Instead of the trip taking two days it now takes just a little over two hours. Jack gets around by wheelchair. Because he has a pace maker and two knee replacements he is always taken into a little room to gain clearance to travel on the plane. They take the plane to Tampa. The airport is huge and awkward to get around, but the Gressleys can only say good things about the treatment that they receive once they are there.

Margaret is able to transport Jack around in the family Pontiac Grand Prix. The wheelchair is very light weight and easy to maneuver. They enjoy going out to eat. Their local jaunts are Anthony's Family Restaurant, Flavors on the Vine and Nick's which is located on Lakeshore Boulevard across from Timberlake.

Jack is a member of the Masonic Order out of Euclid. He is also a voting citizen and believes that it's not so much what party you vote for but that you vote for the person who will do the best job.

This article is courtesy of the Eastlake Historical Society.

Read July 2010's article about Tom McDaniel

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