Born August 7, 1949, Great Bend, Kansas
On August 7, 1949, I became the number five child of Leonard and Frances Erb. I was born in Great Bend, Kansas. However, we soon moved to Springfield, Mo where Mom and Dad continued making more of their family. Coming from a large family had its trying times, but also left many happy memories. Springfield was full of cousins and we would travel there throughout the years when Mom would get homesick.
Back in Timken, Ks, I started school and lived there through my childhood years. For fun, we would race bicycles around the liquor store. We would then go to Eddie’s for a pop and once in a while we would watch the “old guys” play Pitch. We played baseball in the driveway. Hitting the ball over the powerlines was a homerun (Erb rules). In the winter, I couldn’t wait for the first snow so we could use our sled going down Bieber’s hill. While attending grade school, for money I would set pins at the Fiala Bowling Alley, which was a two-lane bowling alley. This involved setting pins on spots by hand and returning the balls. I was paid .10 cents a line. Some of today’s most expensive baseball cards could be found taped to the wall in the setter’s area.
During the summer months, from grade school through high school, I would drive my Grandpa’s Farmall tractor pulling a three-bottom plow. That made for long days. I couldn’t wait to pull the disc that was 8 feet wide. Then you could really cover the ground. Working with Grandpa was great. He was the best.
In high school, I played all sports and began dating my wife-to-be, Lorene Fiala. After graduating from high school, I joined the Air Force and spent a year in Texas and was later assigned to Germany. Lorene and I were married one month before I departed to Germany. Lorene stayed behind to finish college and then joined me overseas. Being station in Germany allowed us to have a great time traveling throughout Europe. While still in the Air Force, we were later stationed in Orlando, Florida for another year.
When we returned back home to Kansas, I was employed with a large company. I then retired to the farm (can’t call that retired). We still live on our farm we bought and thoroughly enjoy the country life.