Alicia's House 2006

This past weekend, I once again had the pleasure of traveling to Chicago to be a part of the Alicia's House golf outing.

Dave Burzynski and I left my home about 9 a.m. and traveled the 230 miles to the south of the Windy City. The trip was nice in that we encountered no weather problems at all.

Arriving in Matteson, Illinois, we checked into our suites and began to find out directions to go and see an old friend. We were told to take I-57 north to the Dan Ryan and get off at the 35th Street exit. We then went left to California Boulevard and then right to the nursing home directly across the street from the Cook County jail.

As we turned into the driveway, I began to get butterflies in my stomach and had an uneasy feeling about this venture. We had not seen Luis Martinez for over 25 years and were told that he was having some real issues with health problems.

We checked in at the front desk and were given passes to go into the nursing facility. We went to the second floor and checked at the nurses’ station and were told that Luis was in room number 214. As we rounded the corner, I looked at the far side of the room, and there he was, in a wheelchair, enjoying a local newspaper.

As Dave and I introduced ourselves, Luis got very big eyed and sat right up and began to smile a lot as we renewed our long friendship that, for me, went back to my younger years of being a fan at the old Flint Arena.

We spoke of guys like Moose Cholak, The Sheik, Hans Schmidt, Hans Schnabel and Don Eagle. We talked about guys like Pampero Firpo, the Stomper (Guy Mitchell) and Ben Justice. We spoke about Tim Brooks and Jack Cain, along with a terrible wrestling bear that Luis once faced in Texas.

Luis put up his index finger that had the end off because of the bear, and he motioned that the bear was a vicious opponent. What we used to do to make a living back then.

We didn't stay too long, as they had a constant stream of doctors and nurses coming into the room to check on this icon from the golden age of wrestling. Luis didn't like all the intervention by the medical staff, as he was enjoying all the attention that we were giving him.

As all good things come to an end, we had to exit and drive the 30 miles back to our hotel to avoid the rush hour traffic out of the city. With all the construction, we made it back to the hotel in just over an hour.

With just an hour before we were scheduled to go to Peotone to meet at Nick's Licks for a dinner, Dave and I decided to play a little cribbage. Dave is an excellent learner, and I think he even set me up to believe that he was a newcomer to the game. He ended up beating me a few games before I got serious and stopped being a nice guy.

At 7 p.m., we left the hotel and headed south on Cicero Avenue towards Peotone. I have many fond memories of Peotone, as we had a few wrestling events there, and I had the chance to meet with some great people that changed my life.

My mind rushed back to one of the events as I stared out the window of Dave's car. It was in Peotone, and it was a fundraiser for a policeman that had been pretty badly broken up during a high speed pursuit. Moose Cholak, who lived in Chicago, came to that event, and it was his final guest appearance for anyone.

Those are some of the beautiful memories that I still have in the back of my mind that will go to my grave with me. I was able to catch many good photos with Moose and do an interview with him that now is in my archives.

Arriving on Second Street, we parked almost at the front door of Jeff & Laura Renzetti's quaint ice cream and music emporium. Jeff is a huge radio personality in the greater Chicago area and is know as "TURD" in his broadcast medium. He has many fans that come by and frequent his business. They have some of the best Italian foods south of the loop. If you’re ever in Chicago, take the short ride south on I-57 and visit with them. You will only be a stranger there once.

Jeff & Laura are also involved very much with Alicia's House in a supportive role. They contribute many items for the silent auctions, and, during the holiday season, they help out as much as time will allow.

Around 8 p.m., the front door opened wide, and in walked Kevin "The Butcher" Hughes from Massachusetts, along with Scott Schwartz and his daughter from Los Angeles. I looked, and a huge figure was getting out of Juan Hernandez' van. I rose from my chair and went to greet one of the biggest icons of the last quarter century, Steve "Dr. Death" Williams.

They had been in an autograph session in Calumet City at a huge card shop. Suddenly, the room filled up with many members of Juan's family and friends that had followed the event. Jeff and Laura began to take food orders for the nearly 100 people in the packed cafe.

Following a super meal of pasta and meatball sandwich, I began to mingle with the many new friends that I was making that night. We took a lot of group photos and also had pictures with the fans that came by.

To be continued ....

Percival A. Friend, Retired
The Epitome of Wrestling Managers

2003 BWC Hall of Fame Inductee
2004 CAC Hall of Fame Inductee
2006 LWA Hall of Fame Inductee