Dear Editor:

I was saddened to read in the last edition of the Forum of the passing of former student, Steve Lingvall.

But Steve’s demise will serve as the catalyst for a letter I’ve contemplated writing for a long time.

I grew up on a small farm during the Great Depression so manual labor and I were well acquainted.

I also worked in the woods around Forks for several summers.

One summer in the 1960s I had the good fortune to work with Steve’s father Paul building road in the vicinity of Allen’s mill. I set chokers behind a cat that Paul was operating. There was an element of danger in the job but Paul was a skilled operator and I never felt threatened.

Paul was an affable fellow and well; informed and we had many an interesting conversation; while we ate our lunches. Paul was a gentleman in every sense of; the word.

About a week after I had left the job to return to the classroom, Paul was involved in a serious accident. Paul always drove the crummy on the way back to the mill. On; this occasion he failed to negotiate the log bridge we always crossed and the vehicle fell into the creek bed. I don’t know any additional details but Paul was so badly injured that he was permanently consigned to a wheelchair.

I regret that I lost contact with Paul in later years, but I heard that he had passed on. Many of your readers are better informed on that subject.

Sometimes I may be in the mood to share another story with your readers: a job stint of about ten minutes at Hulings’ shingle mill when I nearly lost my left arm!

Sincerely,

Bob Hall

Bellingham