Mary L. Platko - A Little Bit of Perry History: Perry, Ohio, Lake County, from 1810-2000

A LITTLE BIT OF
PERRY
HISTORY

Perry, Ohio, Lake County, from 1810-2000

MARY L. PLATKO

Edited by Jack R. Kless

A LITTLE BIT OF PERRY HISTORY

PERRY, OHIO, LAKE COUNTY, FROM 1810-2000

Copyright 2021 Mary L. Platko.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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ISBN: 978-1-6632-1524-6 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6632-1523-9 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2021903567

iUniverse rev. date: 04/21/2021

CONTENTS

For my children: Gregory, Teresa, and John Platko, Jeanette
Platko Kinnee and Rose Mary Platko Williams

THROUGH MOTHERS EYES

(Dedicated to daughter Rose Platko and her Perry High School Graduation
Class of 1988. As Class President, she read it as part of her address at
the Graduation Day Ceremony on June 12, 1988-Mary L. Platko)

Today marks a milestone in your lives, Graduation Day is here,

You are gathered together with friends you love and classmates you hold dear.

And though you see this chapter now ending in your lives,

There is a chapter locked in time thats seen through mothers eyes.

She sees a babe held in her arms, the miracle of birth,

Gods given gift to Mom and Dad to care for here on earth.

She sees too soon, the babe in arms becomes a child grown,

Releasing grasp of her guiding hand and learns to stand alone.

She shares with the child as school days come adventures that it brings,

And with the world, she shares the love and gives her child wings.

Teenage years sees friendships made, fun parties, proms and dates,

And many nights with watchful eye her anxious heart awaits.

As school days end today, the chapters left behind

With memories of the yesteryears now etched upon the mind,

But life holds countless chapters as many yet untold,

And as you journey on through life each chapter will unfold.

But you must set your course in life however wrong or right,

And spread those wings that mother gave, directing them in flight.

And as you soar onward toward your goals, theres a prayer as you depart,

A prayer that your hopes and dreams come true is whispered from her heart.

As the tears swell inside there is joy, there is pride

And wherever your future lies, there are all bright tomorrows

Just waiting for you as seen through mothers eyes.

M ary Louise Platko was born in Alverda, Indiana County, Pennsylvania on September 16, 1930, the daughter of a coal miner. She attended the local public schools. Shortly, after getting married, she and her husband moved to Perry, Ohio, where with her husband, John (Jack) Platko, they raised five children. Over the course of the next 65 years, she integrated herself into her adopted community in a way that revealed its people and their collective history.

Mary served as a Perry Township Clerk, Perry Township Zoning Board Secretary, Special Projects Secretary, and assistant editor for The Perry Township Bulletin Board . During her time with the Perry Township Trustees, she was asked to research the names and dates of service of all who served as township trustees from the founding of the township (1815) to the present day. It was during this process that she met John Hise who was researching the historical origin of his Perry Village home. Together in the summer of 1991, they discussed the need to document and preserve the history of the community and to that end they convened a meeting at the Perry Public library to form the Perry Historical Society on November 11, 1991. The Perry Historical Society was incorporated in the state of Ohio on March 14, 1992. Mary has served as president, vice-president and secretary for the Society, as well as historian and curator (2004-2014) for the museum which opened on September 13, 1997.

The mission of this fledgling society was:

The purpose for which the Perry Historical Society was formed is to collect and preserve for future generations historic items that originated in Perry Township, North Perry, and Perry Village, including photographs, books, manuals, memoirs, permanent records, documents, letters, clothing, furniture, collectables, and other items of historical interest, to provide for their preservation and display, and to disseminate knowledge and information to the general public regarding the history and culture of the Perry community.

In 1979, Mary began as a part-time secretary in the Perry Township Fire Department. She advanced to an administrative secretary role and while working at the fire department compiled a comprehensive history of the development of the Perry Fire Service and all who served in the department, including the location of past fires stations. She also documented the disasters that help shape the fire service and its evolution from bucket brigade to a fully functioning township fire service.

Mary researched sources and interviewed citizens of Perry and began to publish in local publications what she called, A Little Bit of Perry History . These one-page snippets of Perry History covered a wide range of topics and had not been documented or made available prior to this time.

Consistent with the mission of the Perry Historical Society, Mary worked with other members of the historical society to share the history of Perry, Ohio with school children and to share with them a love of history and the process of seeking it. Mary, also served the Perry High School as a member of the Distinguished Hall of Fame Committee where she provided a unique perspective into the history of graduates of the high school who made outstanding contributions to society and the world. This led to the selection of several historical graduates entering the Distinguished Hall of Fame.

Mary was deeply involved with her church, St. Cyprian. She was a part of its founding in 1968, and served on the parish council (1994-2018), she was a Eucharistic Minister of Communion, and from 1992 to the present served as its historian. She contributed to, along with Father Alexander, a history of the church in 1992, A Nursery of Faith in the Perry Community. She documented the history of all the priests who served and the details of the procurement of the land and the construction of the new church.