September 6, 2022 Zipping to the Mitten

The Liberty Gazette

September 6, 2022

Ely Air Lines

By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely

Linda: A quick trip to the Great Lakes State gave us an opportunity to see the cemetery where Mike’s paternal grandparents are buried. He hadn’t been there in over 30 years, and fortunately, it’s a relatively small place. Although the section and lot numbers aren’t marked, we had no trouble locating the general area. Once in the vicinity, we saw the “Ely” monument standing proud, an American flag at the grave of Grandfather, Lewis Ely. Those interested in family history will appreciate the convenience of landing at a nearby airport and using the courtesy car to see these special patches of land. Within them are remains, but from them are memories, stories, life. 

Mike: My grandfather was a US Marine and fought in France during the Great War, a period he rarely spoke of until near the end of his life. He told us of the time he and another Marine were crossing a field while scouting when a German machine-gun opened fire. Their only cover was a pile of manure, into which they dove. The Germans kept them pinned, clipping the top of the pile until after dark, when they were able to sneak away. The story was ripe for jokes later.

Linda: We value the ability to zip around the continent in our Cheetah, land at small town airports, and visit more people and places in a day than we could do by car in a week. Thanks to a decent tailwind, we landed in Charlotte, Michigan just six hours after departing Baytown. After visiting the cemetery, we took to the skies again to visit my Scottish side of the family on their 10-acre slice of heaven they’ve dubbed “Rosebriar,” in Howell. We shared a night out on the town, and in the morning, fed the chickens and took a walk in the woods, where we spotted interesting plant life, including herbs, flowers, and mushrooms. Cousin Kevin explained that the state is the shape of a mitten and showed us how one’s palm can serve as a map. He and his wife live around that muscly part below the base of the thumb. We hopped all around the hand.

Mike: One of my old co-pilots retired to an airpark in Lake City, a short jaunt further north, so we met for lunch after a restful night at Rosebriar. Catching up is more fun to do in person than by email or phone. It also allows us to recreate old photos, like the one where we stood side-by-side, tilting our heads toward each other, representative of Learjet pilots (who fly in a small cockpit).

We looked forward to a couple of days in Holland, on the western shore of the Mitten State, at about the base of my pinkie finger. Linda woke me early for a sunrise beach stroll barefoot along Lake Michigan, shared only with birds, waves splashing, and the occasional blip from the beacon of a lighthouse or a boat disappearing over the distant horizon. 

ElyAirLines.blogspot.com