Beach Sisters Memories

While growing up, my family always took a week’s vacation to Carolina Beach. In 1950, there were four girls at home ranging in ages 17 to 7. The two older girls always brought a friend so Dad put the seats back in our Packard car and placed a mattress for all of us to ride on. You can imagine six girls traveling with no seat belts in the back of that car! There was a lot of giggling and wiggling!

We stayed at the same apartment house every year owned by “Ma Ritchie.” I never knew her full name, but she always welcomed us like family. We fell asleep at night listening to music coming in our open windows from the dance hall behind us.

My sister and I are in this picture with our pinwheels. We were youngest of the girls and we stuck together. Dad was busy trying to keep up with the four teenager girls, so you can imagine his headache. My mom cooked all our meals so it never seemed like much of a vacation for her, but she never complained.

Mom was never worried about us getting lost and said just stay together. We were free to explore our favorite places, like the skating rink, Britt’s Donuts and the movie theater. I can remember going to see the movie “White Christmas” in the summer. It was a strange feeling after watching snow scenes then coming out into the hot sunshine.

My younger sister and I live in the same town and still travel together with our families. Family trips are so special and we are so thankful for our families and our memories.

Barbara Booth, Mebane, a member of Piedmont Electric