[Muncle]

Got this from one of my nephews about a neighborhood in which my family lived in the first 1/2 of the century. Brought back a kinder time.
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THE GREAT SATURDAY MORNING CAKE SCAM

“Confessions of a Retired Police Chief”

By

Tom Moore



In summer of 1941, my family was living at 3419 Jefferson on the "West side" of Kansas City among all the other Irish of Redemptorist Parish. Like most of the “Westside kids”, I had the run of the neighborhood during the summer months. Although the ensuing years have fogged my memory, often I recall the crime as though it was committed just months ago. It was a Saturday morning and the 33rd Street Gang had gathered in the big, stone garage behind Tommy Koehler’s home on Pennsylvania Avenue which served as our club house. Back in those days, the term “gang” meant a group of neighborhood kids who went to school together and, in our case were altar boys or were aspiring to be. Although many, many years have passed since that day, I do recall, among the eight or ten boys assembled for the meeting, Tommy Koehler, one of the Sweeneys, at least one of the Donnleys and probably Johnny Mike Curry were in attendance. Being more of a follower than a leader at that time, I assume the Westside Cake Caper must have been originated by one of them rather than me. It was unanimously decided that we should hold a raffle to raise money for the club’s treasury. Each of the boys obtained a quarter or so from their mothers and the total was used to purchase a beautiful, decorated cake from Browne's Grocery Store at the corner of 33rd. & Pennsylvania. Back to the club house where we printed the raffle tickets with pencil and crayon. The cake was placed in a red wagon and transported all over the parish as we sold the chances door to door (even to our own families) at ten cents each. We assembled back in Koehler’s garage via the alley and counted up the funds which were considerable. Then, the criminal act was perpetrated as we totally devoured that lovely cake right there in that garage on Pennsylvania . Using our ill-gotten gains, we then proceeded to the Uptown Theater on Broadway for the afternoon matinee and, full of cake and in my case, quite a bit of guilt; we watched Hopalong Cassidy or some other cowboy hero punish the bad guys. The following morning as I emerged with my mother from mass at Our Lady of Perpetual Help, one of the ladies of the parish asked "Well, Tommy, who won that lovely cake?” I lied, a barefaced lie. I lied to her, right there in front of my mother and said something like "It was Mrs. Sweeney's cousin from out of town!" Being cursed with a conscious, that afternoon, I had to tell mom & dad about the scam and to tell the entire story all over again to Father Flavin in confession the following Friday which was even more terrifying. Now, as a retired Chief of Police, when I tell this story of my life of crime I wonder if any of the rest of the 33rd. Street gang had to do as much penance as I did. Sometimes, even today, when I am offered a piece of cake, my conscious…. Oh well, you probably know!



Tom Moore
Retired Chief of Police,
Fairway, Kansas USA



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[Barefoot]

Sweetly nostalgic.

[jblum8156]

What a sweet story! If only our kids could be free to roam the neighborhood and have experiences like that.

[Whalen]

"Now, as a retired Chief of Police, when I tell this story of my life of crime I wonder if any of the rest of the 33rd. Street gang had to do as much penance as I did. Sometimes, even today, when I am offered a piece of cake, my conscious…. Oh well, you probably know!"

Makes us all long for kinder, gentler times.
And as some of you might know, there is nothing like "Catholic Guilt",
it has staying power.