I almost fell over when I read Jerre May's note that Peter C. Merrill had passed. He was my age, I had known him since the fifth grade, and while I am well aware that my own end may not be very far off, I think that I subconsciously considered Pete to be immortal.
We were both in Miss Keithley's class at Bristol School. and in the next year, in Miss Baker's sixth grade class. We both attended Hixson Junior High School after that, but not in the same classes.
In early 1959, my family moved to Elm Avenue--right next door to the Merrills.
1960 took us to Webster Groves High School. Pete and I would leave our houses together, cross Elm, walk down Russell Avenue , pick up Tom Kerwin at the corner of Maple where Rob Calahan would join us, and then walk north on Maple to pick up Dan Cooper. We walked from there to school though back yards and on Buesse Lane.
Pete's father. Ernest ("Jack") Merrill, passed away unexpectedly in 1960. His mother, Louise DeLawder Merrill, ignored advice from friends and undertook to run Ernest's business, Merrill Marine Services. She made a go of it.
After high school, Pete went to work for his mother.
Fast forward to 1967. The Merrills liked to host hamburger parties on Sunday evenings. Pete's mom always prepared home made French Fries in a deep fat fryer, along with salads. Pete and I grilled the burgers. One of Pete's signature creations was a beef patty into which a dollop of Marie's Blue Cheese Dressing had been inserted. Try it. You''ll like it.
Friends always came by. I remember Steve Parsons and Tom Zarumski, both now deceased.
That ended in In 1969, when the Merrills moved to Glendale Avenue, and I met Anne, who became the focus of my Sunday evenings.
Later, Pete took over the business. Merrill Marine Services is a multi-faceted company. If a barge tow broke up and some of the barges sank with loads of corn, the company took over, arranging everything to be done on the river and in insurance offices and with customers. They also perform surveys, appraisals, economic evaluations, and so on. I accompanied Pete to Wood River one evening to look at an old yacht that had belonged to Huey Long, and that had sunk and been raised. Pete had been asked to evaluate the feasibility of putting it back into service, and to estimate the cost. He knew what he was doing.
I last saw Pete at Schiller's Camera, where he was looking for a video camera to take with him to Myanmar. He had been asked to check out the Irrawaddy River and to advise on the feasibility of making it a navigable waterway. He did not go--just before his planned departure, President William J. Clinton put he kibosh on all US travel to Myanmar.
I have skipped over the most important part of Pete's life--Joyce and their offspring. Our paths diverged after they were married. I will always regret regret my not having acted on his invitations to get together at outdoor tables at Gore and Lockwood in downtown Webster on Friday evenings.
One more thing: golf was Pete's passion. When he lived on Elm, he put a big heavy piece of canvas on a line, painted a bull's eye on it, and practiced power drives--even in the cold and snow of winter. Each impact sounded like an artillery shell.
We are blessed to have known him. Peter Merrill had many friends, and more than a few a few of them were truly great people.
Thanks, Dave for the info on Pete. He was one of my best friends. Groomsman in my '67 wedding. I left St Louis in '68 and never reconnected. Do not know Joyce or his family but have fond memories of his mom. Wish I had known him in later years! RIP. Bernie Machen
You know how you never forget some things. Well Pete was always a rival of mine starting at Hixson. We sometimes did the dumbest things and sometimes funny things like flattening cafeteria forks and staging food protests. But Pete really got into trouble when he carved his initials in the lower right corner of the portrait of the school honoree James T. Hixson. Boy did he get it for that one. But he was always up for fun! RIP
Having read the comments about Pete, I thought I would add some post 1969 memories, etc. as I spent a lot of time with Pete after that date. We started living together in a nice two bedroom apartment in South County. We had a couple of friends next door so it was "party central". Then I got married in Nov 1970 and Pete was supposed to move out. We left on our honeymoon and coming back, happened to be on the same plane with Pete to St Louis from New Orleans. While we were gone, we had put Steve Parsons in charge of the apartment to get it ready for Lynne and me. Well nothing happened and Pete on the cab ride from the airport indicated he would get moved out. Five days later, I had Pete to lunch and explained he had to move which he did to a new apartment about 20 yards down the sidewalk. Lynne sized up the situation immediately and introduced Pete in the next few weeks to a fellow teacher from her school in the Melville district. That was Joyce and the Merrills were married in Aug 1971. The couple were great friends until we moved to Overland Park in June 1973. There were parties, float trips, bridge games, etc. Since we lived so close together, it became a natural place to congregate.
After our move and children, we would occasionally get with the Merrills and Steve and Cheryl Parsons and all the young kids, down at the Lake of the Ozarks--great times. As the years past, a friend of mine and I start organizing golf trips to great courses such as Whistling Straits, Bandon Dunes, Kiawah, etc. Pete and his famous "bull's eye" putter were always a big hit as well as his great desire for fun. Golf also led Pete and Steve to visits to Florida where we hooked up with Rich Hayes for a great time.
Pete had to give up golf a few years ago due to trouble with his feet. I saw Pete at a traditonal Thanksgiving lunch we have with some of our class and the class of 1963 in November 2019 and he was doing ok though walking with a cane. I last saw Pete in November 2021 at the hospital where he was due to another fall (he had a lot of falls over his last couple of years). I choose to remember all the fun times and hope to see some of you at Pete's service in July. RIP Pete
it is almost inconceivable that I might not have known of the incident that Peter Brown described involving the James T. Hixson portrait. The story must have been all over the school, and Pete lived next door to me. Maybe I just forgot about it.
Pete was a prankster without peer. I would never describe some of his antics on a public board.
Here's a story that sounds like a prank but wasn't. In the mid to late sixties, Pete and several of our other classmates joined the National Guard. While he was away for training in the summer if 1968, I backed my car out of the driveway onto Elm Avenue (one could do that then) and started to drive north. I saw Pete's little sister Martha, so I stopped the car (one could do that then) to ask about Pete.
"He was arrested for indecent exposure".
WHAA...?
Peter told me about it when he returned.
Thousands and thousands of Guardsmen, Army troops, and recruits were being trained and processed at Fort Carson, which is near Colorado Springs. Rob Calahan departed from there for Vietnam that summer.
The Army had failed to bring in enough equipment for transporting and storing potable water. They had drinking water and enough for brushing teeth and washing hands, but they could not shower.
When they were out on maneuvers, it started to rain heavily. Pete's platoon leader ordered the men to disrobe, grab their soap-dishes, and shower. Imagine the visual!
Then they were bombarded by small hailstones blowing horizontally at high speed. The men ran for cover. Pete and some other guys ended up in an arroyo. There was a truck parked there, and thy got under it to avoid being pelted by large hail. The hail stopped, and a flash flood drove the men up onto the truck. The truck started and dove away. It was a civilian vehicle. The truck drove onto a two-lane highway and toward Colorado Springs. There was no tailgate, and people in cars drove up behind a truckload of naked men.
A police car pulled them over, The farmer and the little boy in the cab had had no idea that they had passengers. The legal issues were resolved without ado, and the Guard leadership were okay with things.
********
When Pete's National Guard weekends came up, I assumed the duties of grill-master on Sunday evenings. And here's a more unusual story. Louise, Marea, and Martha had headed south to visit Louise's brother, who was a great guy, and to go to New Orleans. They also stopped in to visit relatives of mine near Clarksdale, MS. That's in Blues country, and it is on the Tamale Trail.
When Pete's National Guard weekend came up, that left Gramm--Mrs. Merrill Senior--home alone. A tornado warning sounded, and I went over to get her into the basement. I moved a rocking chair and a lamp next to each other, gave her her book, and departed.
When the all clear sounded, some new neighbors on the other side invited me in for ice cream. I joined them, and then went home to bed.
Much later, the phone rang. "Dave, do you know where my grandmother is?" It was Pete. He sounded worried. Damn! I had forgotten all about her. She had one or two pages left in her book.
I was so sad to hear about Pete passing. Thanks to David & Peter for catchding us up on his post WGHS days. I have all good and (mostly) funny memories of Pete. I can still remember staring(in horror) at those initials on Mr. Hixson's portrait! I can't remember his punishment, but it goes to show that a juvenile delinquent can grow up to be very, very successful. RIP, Pete. I hope you're looking down & seeing how fondly we all remember you!
David Gibson
Bernard (Bernie) Machen
Thanks, Dave for the info on Pete. He was one of my best friends. Groomsman in my '67 wedding. I left St Louis in '68 and never reconnected. Do not know Joyce or his family but have fond memories of his mom. Wish I had known him in later years! RIP. Bernie Machen
Bryan Phegley (Phegs)
You know how you never forget some things. Well Pete was always a rival of mine starting at Hixson. We sometimes did the dumbest things and sometimes funny things like flattening cafeteria forks and staging food protests. But Pete really got into trouble when he carved his initials in the lower right corner of the portrait of the school honoree James T. Hixson. Boy did he get it for that one. But he was always up for fun! RIP
Peter Brown
Having read the comments about Pete, I thought I would add some post 1969 memories, etc. as I spent a lot of time with Pete after that date. We started living together in a nice two bedroom apartment in South County. We had a couple of friends next door so it was "party central". Then I got married in Nov 1970 and Pete was supposed to move out. We left on our honeymoon and coming back, happened to be on the same plane with Pete to St Louis from New Orleans. While we were gone, we had put Steve Parsons in charge of the apartment to get it ready for Lynne and me. Well nothing happened and Pete on the cab ride from the airport indicated he would get moved out. Five days later, I had Pete to lunch and explained he had to move which he did to a new apartment about 20 yards down the sidewalk. Lynne sized up the situation immediately and introduced Pete in the next few weeks to a fellow teacher from her school in the Melville district. That was Joyce and the Merrills were married in Aug 1971. The couple were great friends until we moved to Overland Park in June 1973. There were parties, float trips, bridge games, etc. Since we lived so close together, it became a natural place to congregate.
After our move and children, we would occasionally get with the Merrills and Steve and Cheryl Parsons and all the young kids, down at the Lake of the Ozarks--great times. As the years past, a friend of mine and I start organizing golf trips to great courses such as Whistling Straits, Bandon Dunes, Kiawah, etc. Pete and his famous "bull's eye" putter were always a big hit as well as his great desire for fun. Golf also led Pete and Steve to visits to Florida where we hooked up with Rich Hayes for a great time.
Pete had to give up golf a few years ago due to trouble with his feet. I saw Pete at a traditonal Thanksgiving lunch we have with some of our class and the class of 1963 in November 2019 and he was doing ok though walking with a cane. I last saw Pete in November 2021 at the hospital where he was due to another fall (he had a lot of falls over his last couple of years). I choose to remember all the fun times and hope to see some of you at Pete's service in July. RIP Pete
Charles White
I cannot help but wonder how Pete ended up in a nursing home.
David Gibson
Sue Ginn (Grigsby)
I was so sad to hear about Pete passing. Thanks to David & Peter for catchding us up on his post WGHS days. I have all good and (mostly) funny memories of Pete. I can still remember staring(in horror) at those initials on Mr. Hixson's portrait! I can't remember his punishment, but it goes to show that a juvenile delinquent can grow up to be very, very successful. RIP, Pete. I hope you're looking down & seeing how fondly we all remember you!
Sue(Ginn)Grigsby