I received an email from Ray Riek. His parents were longtime Gardenville residents and business owners. He shared tis great story with me and some great family photos. Ray has documented much of his family history but is still looking for more. If can add to this story, send me an email at [email protected]!
From Ray:
Here is a story of a Gardenville graduate – Charlotte Roth. Her folks at one time owned Island Park (and according to family lore a hotel, bowling alley and other enterprises – but I have no records), but lost them all in the depression. She went from a “little rich kid” to being farmed around the neighborhood for dinner when things were bad. Her mom and dad (Kate and Al Roth) finally landed and ran Roth’s Tavern at the corner of Clinton/Transit – which is now a gas station. Her dad died after she married my dad so her mom ran the tavern for another few decades – with the family finally getting her to retire to our home in Cheektowaga when she was about 80. During that period the family spent most weekends working the Friday night fish fry (lake trout) at the tavern and the Sunday chicken dinner. As a pre-teen I helped with empty beer bottles, etc., but mostly just got into trouble. The fish fry dinner (slaw and fries) was $0.25 so this wasn’t a money-making enterprise. It was work-making however – open 7 days a week from early morning to 1:15 am (last call). Only closed on Sunday morning – and that was used to cook the chicken and soups for the Sunday dinner menu.
Mom went to beauty school after HS and started a salon with her best friend Norma Drescher. After I arrived, dad built her a small salon in the basement so that became her side job for the neighbors. We had a normal childhood with both parents working. This included trying a liquor store in Buffalo which failed when urban renewal removed all the people around it. Dad passed away when I was a teen and mom copied her mom in taking over the family. She went to work full time as a bookkeeper locally and ended up with her HS friend (Thelma Heiss -nee Galley) working as a bookkeeper at Galley’s Florist on Clinton Ave. I went to college supporting myself on scholarships, graduated and married Sue Thurston of Elma.
Seeing that I was up and running, she took my sister to Las Vegas and started over – no job, just wanted to get a fresh start. Her first job was as a bank teller, moved up to working at a warehouse for one of the casinos and saved up enough to buy a house. Next I heard she became chef’s assistant at the Desert Inn and arranged banquets. Biggest deal there was when she called me all agog because she shook hands with Arthur Godfrey who was arranging a banquet for pilots and the currently famous astronauts. From there she moved to reservations and worked at several of the Vegas hotels. She crowned off the whole Las Vegas career becoming the first woman manager of a Racebook gambling setup at the Showboat. They forced her to retire from the casino business at 70 and the next I knew she driving a delivery truck for a local florist. From there she went back to bookkeeping and worked with a firm sewing draperies for the casino hotels. She worked there into her 80’s.
This to me is an inspiration about just doing things and not worrying about “glass ceilings” and prejudices – she along with her mother just did it, worked hard, and didn’t take “no” for an answer.
