Page 6 - Senior Link Magazine Summer 2021- Online Magazine
P. 6
Local
History
MAY 11 TH
REMEMBERED
SKILLET RANCH
by George Ellisy Barbara Mandry
b
owling winds, horizontal windows!” Back
hail, heavy rain, and a then, it was a
Hhusband with genuine commonly held
fear in his eyes startled me at the belief that opening
front door of our tiny upstairs windows during
apartment. We were both already a tornado would
irritated because the power had help reduce the
just literally left us in the dark right inside pressure. In
before the dramatic conclusion hyper-adrenaline
of our television program. It was over-drive, Tom
about 9:45 p.m. on Monday, May raced directly to
11, 1970, and we were definitely our bedroom and Cumberland Presbyterian Church - 9th and Avenue O
aware of a strong thunderstorm began pulling our big
raging outside. Tom had just king-size mattress we scrambled to take cover under
rushed to move our only significant off the bed, twisting, pulling, and our mattress shelter. Our kitchen
material possession, a 1969 Chevelle wrangling it through the narrow was so small that the mattress
Malibu, to cover under Robbie’s bedroom door, around the corners would not lie flat over us. But my
Dorm parking garage across the and into our tiny kitchen. While brave husband of 87 days held tight
street. It was when he returned opening the bedroom window, I to me and the corners of our foam
and burst through our front door suddenly screamed in disbelief at covering, refusing to allow me
at Modernaire Apartments on 10th the sight of a huge heating/ac unit to grab the avocado-colored wall
and University, that the terrifying teetering on the second story roof phone hanging just over our heads.
look on his face told me that this of the neighboring College Avenue “I want to call my Daddy and tell
was no ordinary storm. “Tornado, Baptist Church building. It was him good-bye,” I pleaded. Tom
maybe?” The thought momentarily the size of a small Volkswagen pretended not to hear my request
flickered into my mind. Of course, and looked like it was about to and just kept me close and covered.
the only thing I knew about crash right into our bedroom wall. We both thought we might die
tornados was what I had seen in Any doubt about what we were there. Crying, praying, uttering
movies like The Wizard of Oz. I experiencing was gone. This was silly end-of-life statements, we
knew no one who had ever been in a real tornado. And we weren’t in waited for the worst to pass. And
a tornado, seen a tornado, or knew Kansas, Dorothy! it did.
anything about tornado safety. I
was a 19-year-old newlywed and a The deafening roar of the Fast forward 50 years. Celebrating
new resident of Lubbock. destructive winds pierced our our Golden Wedding Anniversary
ears as they slammed our interior and learning to cope with a Global
Immediately, Tom shouted, apartment doors open and closed Pandemic quarantine somewhat
“It’s a tornado! Quick, open the continually. In fear for our lives, dimmed the remembrance
6 6 Lubbock Senior Link
Lubbock Senior Link
