There are very few big plans for Father's Day for Richard "Dick" Spieler. But this is nothing really new.
"We usually just have dinner on Father's Day," he said during a recent interview. He likes to have family around, but other than that, nothing big. He's not particularly interested in flowers, and chocolate isn't on his diet.
This year, Spieler is more of a homebody than usual. He recently had a knee replacement and has adjusted to a routine of home except for therapy sessions. The knee replacement went very well, but his recovery was slowed by a heart attack while he was in the hospital. The recovery from both the medical procedure and the heart attack have gone well. The therapy is also going well.
Spieler is now 85. He and his wife Jane were married 63 years before her death in July of 2014. He reminisced about family, children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, but also about his father and grandfather.
About family, he has joked about the many generations of the family being in the transportation business. The Chrysler dealership, bought July 1, 1968, is a family business, with son Kim and daughter Cinda in charge of the day-to-day operations. But it's not just the car dealership. The family owned a livery stable on Prospect Street. It was destroyed by fire in the early 1900s, then opened again in a new facility, built in 1905 on East Street. That facility is now the California Masonic Lodge. After that, Spieler's father and grandfather were in the farm implement business in Tipton, but encouraged him to seek another path. Which he did, going into the auto business instead.
He reported that the Spieler family name, even in Germany, is attached to transportation - albeit shoes in that case.
As he talked about his memories, Spieler spoke of being drafted into the U.S. Army during the Korean Conflict. Entering in January 1952, there were 240 young men in his training unit. All but two or three went to Korea. He reported that he was spared that experience because he could type. The sergeants came through and asked who could type. After several people were found wanting in their ability to type, Spieler gave it a try and was acceptable, even though he said he wasn't all that good. Apparently he was better than the others. At any rate, Spieler was sent to Nuremberg, Germany as a part of a headquarters company, housed in one of Hitler's SS buildings. He finished his tour of duty in December of 1953. He missed his first Father's Day in June of 1953, while he was in the Army.
He will have family around for the event. Kim and Cinda and their families, and daughter Dana from Ohio, will be around for the big day, no matter how laid back the celebration might be.
With children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren around for Father's Day, Spieler will have about as much excitement as he wants. He just keeps going, and seems to have as his motto "Everyone gets one day older one day at a time."