Guest Posts on County 10 are provided by contributors and the opinions, thoughts, and comments within are their own and may not necessarily reflect those of County 10.
Every town has one or more of these people. The woman who asks hungry kids in for a meal. That anonymous guy who buys a pair of basketball shoes for a youngster whose family is too poor to afford them. The couple who put a little “extra” into the fundraising jar. The man who pays for a hot dog with a $20 bill and tells the kids running the concession stand to keep the change.
It’s what small communities thrive on.
Perhaps no one portrays this type of person better than Burt Lancaster did as Dr. Archibald Graham in “Field of Dreams.”
In one of the best scenes from an outstanding film, Ray Kinsella and Terence Mann question the editor of the local newspaper in Chisolm, Minnesota, about a beloved but departed physician in the small town. She reads this excerpt of a story she wrote decades before.
“At times children could not afford eyeglasses or milk or clothing. Yet no child was ever denied these essentials, because, in the background there was always Dr. Graham. Without any fanfare or publicity, the glasses or the milk, or the ticket to the ball game found their way into the child’s pocket.”
They arrived two decades too late to meet the philanthropic physician.
At the end of the trail after a long pursuit of “Moonlight” Graham, the duo feels defeated.
“Half the towns in North America have a Doc Graham,” Mann says.
Shoshoni had and still has a few of those. Sometimes it’s a couple with children in the school system who reach out and care for kids who are not remotely related to them.
Gene and Jan Wintermote cared for children in need without fanfare, compensation, or any quest for recognition. They did it from their hearts, and they made a huge difference in the lives of dozens of children and young adults in the little desert town of Shoshoni.
They had enough with their five children, John, Gene, Judson, Diane, and Jennifer. The kids were talented and active, and brought home dozens of friends. Sometimes the only meal other than school lunch that their friends had that day came at the Wintermote dinner table.
We often hear the phrase “pay it forward.” Usually, it’s picking up the difference when someone in a checkout line ahead of you is a little short on money. Maybe it’s randomly paying the tab for a family at a restaurant or anonymously buying the meal for the people ahead of you in the drive-through. Those are nice, but they can’t compare to what Gene and Jan did for teenagers in dire straits in Shoshoni.
Jan passed in 2008, leaving a huge hole in the Wrangler community. Gene joined her just last week.
They were unpretentious people who worked quietly and anonymously behind the scenes with no expectation of reimbursement or thanks. The kind of thanks they received came in watching these bewildered teenagers and young adults find their path in the world after a shaky start. Many of these youngsters never would have made it without meals, a place to rest, and an open, welcoming home, all provided at no cost by Gene and Jan Wintermote.
In retrospect, I thanked them a few times for the changes they were making in many of the kids I had in class and whom I coached. On every occasion, they played it off as no big deal. It was a big deal. Without their efforts, well, who knows, but things would not have turned out the same for those teenagers.
Being a teenager is challenging enough. Trying to make it without a place to live, meals to eat, and a compassionate, caring adult who isn’t afraid to lay down the law when necessary is almost impossible.
I sometimes heard other teachers joke that the change in a student was the direct result of the “Wintermote Halfway House.” Only it wasn’t a joke, and it wasn’t a halfway house. It was hard work, an unrequired financial burden and something that took time away. But to Gene and Jan, it was the right thing to do, and an entire community should be thankful for the work they did.
I dropped kids off after away games at their home on a few late nights that were really early mornings. The kids bounded out of my car, into the night, then quickly emerged into the light as they entered their home. That’s how many of my misfortunate students and athletes viewed the Wintermote house. It was home for them.
Gene and Jan have gone home to another place.
There must be a special place in heaven for such caring people.
Thanks for everything you did. I’m sure those 30, 40 and 50-something adults that you helped so long ago thank you as well.