Jay Ford Rosenberg - I saw him first at work. He was in charge of one of the Decorating Machines at Owens-Illinois Glass Company. He was tall - had a gorgeous tan and was SHY. I was told that most of the girls in the office had wanted to have a date with him
but he didn't talk to any of them. They thought he was a bit "stuck up", in reality he was just very shy. When he wouldn't make it easy, I decided to take a chance and go talk to him. When I went over to where he was working he was polite, but kept on working with the machine. I being the forward one asked him how he could go to the beach and get such a great tan and never concider my working so hard on his bonus sheets and payroll and not take me at least once so I could get a tan too. He was a bit taken back at my forwardness I belive, but replied he
would except he didn't have a car. He bumed his rides with friends when he wasn't working. I smiled and said - likely story and walked off. I stopped by once in awhile just to keep the idea in his mind. Wanted to prove to the other girls that it was possible. One Saturday when I was working to catch up on things, I went out to post the bonus sheets and saw him taking a break on the shipping dock. He motioned for me to come over. I walked to where he was and he asked if I would like to go to a party with him, he finally got a car. I accepted the invitation. He picked me up at 8 that night and that was the beginning of the rest of my life.
Jay was such a clean cut young man. Neat in his dress and manners and he impressed my mother enough to have her wait up for me to come home when she asked me: "when is my son-in-law coming back." She loved him from the first and they had a wonderful relationship.
From that first date until he passed away, we were together. I don't believe either of us thought it would be that way, but things were just right from the start. He told me on more than one occasion that he knew from that first date he would never have to worry about talking to people of fitting in as long as he had me by his side. I don't know why he felt so insecure because he was smart and fun to be with. Lack of confidence held him back from doing a great many things he
would have enjoyed if he would just have let go. Jay was loyal and honest. I don't believe I ever met another person who was a loyal to friends or as honest to do business with than he
was. If he borrowed something, which was not often, he would see that it was in better condition when he returned it than when he borrowed it. I have seen him spend hours cleaning a skill saw he had borrowed for a small job until it looked like new. He even replaced the blade. He could make just about anything, and could fix most anything if it was worth repairing. If I had some idea for a project I was working on, if I would discuss it with him, he would come up with just the right thing to make it work. He said we made a great team. I could think it up and he could make it happen. We sure made a lot of neat things together. Made any project less of a challenge and more of a creative partnership. When he developed leg problems from standing on cement floors in the Machine Shops he decided to change jobs. He wanted to go into business for himself. He thought it through and when he had it worked out in his mind he asked me if I would go along with it. I explained to him if he went into business for himself, he would never have any time for himself, or for us. He was so set on dong the change, I agreed to go along, but told him he would have to do the books as well. He agreed, and was off on the adventure
of a lifetime. If he had not have been so completely envolved, he might have had better health, but I believe he kept the truck up and made every job he worked on as good as he could by the
part that he did with it that he wore himself out. I don't believe anyone ever worked with Jay that did not like him. He was the first to give a helping hand and the last one to give up on anything. In the trades, he was always asked for first. When he was on a job they knew he would be willing to do what ever was asked, and if he was needed to help finish, he would be right there as long as he was needed.
Every home we owned had a mark of his total devotion to doing the best job possible. I remember when we built the addition on the Cord Avenue House in Pico Rivera the plumbing inspector told him he had a great job in the bathroom he added on. He told him it was obvious no plumber had done the work, it was too perfect. When they inspected the fireplace he was told the same thing. That fireplace was so great, it would run you out of the room if you built a big fire in it. That fire box was really great. Too bad we couldn't have taken it with us. The house on Irene Street in Taft, he had the yard so laid out that the water drained down the cement walks he made so it went right out the front of the lot. We never had puddles or problems with standing water at that house. He put the pool in by himself. It was only a Doughboy Pool, but he had the hole dug and then shaped the floor so it was lower in the middle. When he put the liner in he poured cement around it. I was in the pool and would support the side until it was firm with cement around. There was no problems with the pool. He poured a deck around it which help secure the pool. We enjoyed that more than we could have an expesive constructed pool. The brick work and cement block work he did was perfect and laid out with such artistic design one might have thought a brick layer or mason had been on the job. Not so, it was Jay who made it happen.I always knew it was in jest, but he would say: "I am so good sometimes I scare myself!"He surprised me a number of times, but he never scared me. I was most fortunate to have had such a wonderful friend and companion to share this lifes experience.
Written December 30, 2008
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