Former Clarkston resident Rich Klein, who now lives in Florida, received a big surprise recently when he stumbled upon a very familiar face in The Clarkston News.
Klein saw the Feb. 22 edition while working at the post office in Zephyrhills, Florida. Curious about his old hometown, Klein flipped through the paper. On the cover of the Millstream section he saw his late father Ray Klein in a photograph.
‘I couldn’t believe it was him. I told my wife ‘That’s my dad here,?? said Klein, whose family subscribed throughout his childhood.
The article, ‘In Simpler Days,? featured Tink Ronk and his recollections of earlier times in Clarkston. A picture provided by the Independence Township Fire Department showed Ronk and several men from the community around a township fire truck outside of Ronk’s Barbershop.
Ray Klein, who took over as Clarkston’s postmaster for Tink’s mother Elizabeth around 1970, was one of the men pictured.
‘I was talking with a carrier who had his loading case as he was sorting mail and I just happened to see (the paper),? said Klein. ‘I don’t care how long you’re gone. You see something like, that you take a look.?
Klein only recalled a couple other occasions during his nearly 20 years with the post office where he saw The Clarkston News come through.
‘I saw (a copy of The News) about six or seven years ago when a carrier pointed it out to me,? said Klein, ‘but it was the first time I had looked at it in any detail in years.?
Following the initial excitement, Klein again found the article posted on-line and called his mother and sister in Arizona. His mother Doris recognized Ray immediately in the picture.
‘She said ‘Oh my gosh, that’s your dad,?? said Klein whose father passed away in 1985. ‘It’s one of those things that made everyone’s day. I still have the hat he was wearing in that picture.?
Klein called The Clarkston News inquiring about the picture and a subscription towards the end of the February, reconnecting with the paper he knew as a child.
‘Of course there are fond memories. Any time you pick up the paper you read about people you know. That’s what’s nice about growing up in a small town,? said Klein, who explained he still has a few articles and pictures of himself from papers that came out during his youth.
After graduating in 1971 from Clarkston High School, Rich joined the Air Force before becoming employed for the Post Office in Florida in 1988. He and his wife Carolyn (Swick) have two children and four grandkids.