From the Archives, Part I: Friday, November 22, 1963

I had to leave the office early.  Stop at JC Penneys at Capitol Court. They had ordered my new Leather Irish Setter Insulated Hunting Boots and called to announce their arrival.  None too soon since opening day of the deer hunting season was Saturday.  Next, I had an appointment to stop at Bayshore for a pre-season haircut.  Can't let the hair get in the way of your sight picture, so the time was now.

I arrived at Penneys and when the clerk brought out my treasured boots, my initial thought was they should be on my back rather than my feet.  The leather was a rather deep, dark red that I thought would better serve to alert the deer rather than keep my feet cozy.  It being rather late in my schedule, I put hesitation aside, tucked the treasured boots into their box and proceeded to my appointment with John, the barber.

I walked into the shop and John immediately motioned me into his chair.  I don't recall his next words but they were something like, "THEY KILLED OUR PRESIDENT".  It was coming over the wires that President Kennedy had been assassinated.

Thus began what was to be a series of events which cast a cloud of ambivalence over the entire 1963 Wisconsin deer hunting season.

As I recall, every activity following that event was interrupted by the painful thought of such a senseless action of person or persons unknown at the time.  All of our thoughts during the ride home, the gathering of necessary gear, the packing of the car and the departure for our hunting destination, Cecil, Wisconsin, were clouded and overwhelmed by the resounding cry "THEY KILLED OUR PRESIDENT".

But the hunt went on in Wisconsin, as it always had and probably always will.

Next, we arrive in Cecil......