In the 1990's my husband, Paul Haight and I, Joan (JoAnne's longtime friend from
high school days) were looking for some respite and relief from Kansas winters
and began to follow JoAnne and Dale where ever they might be "wintering" for a
couple of weeks each winter. This travelling took us to Why, AZ with travels
into Mexico...my husband was NEVER going to drive there but Dale must have been
persuasive and they came home with the Mexican Insurance enough to cover our day
trip. Of course, we got stuck in the sand on a beach but Dale put out the
alarm and several young boys showed up to pick our Buick up and get it back
onto the road. .JoAnne had fixed us a lunch but as I remember, it was pretty
cool eating that meal...One of Paul's favorite pictures that trip was of the Why
Wash building near that campsite.
Eventually, they settled at Rio Bend Resort outside of El Centro CA and for 2-3 years,
they would find us a camper or trailer to rent for our visit and we could play golf
reasonably on that golf course. It became apparent, that Dale was running that place.
In case of emergency, the words - "Just call Dale" would ring out and here he would come
in his golf cart to fix the water system, close down and/or service the pool.
It was never warm enough for some of the women swimmers, so Dale would change
the thermostat to try to assuage their desires. One day, when Paul and Dale
had been out running the place, they came back with the news that a Park Model
was for sale down the street from Dale's place. It didn't suit me, personally, but Dale
made it all work - even to building me 4 drawers for my kitchen cabinets. They didn't
understand that EVERY kitchen needed drawers. I can't remember the exact year that
we purchased that place, but it was "home" for 2-3 winters after that. We would go
out right around Halloween and then come home for Christmas. But back for those
3 cold months...we had a palm tree that shaded our deck and to lay there on a lounger
was his favorite place. Almost no wind - Well, the Santa Ana winds did come
occasionally, but they could be endured. Most of the time, the wind only blew
about 3 mph and I loved that part. Dale helped me with my plans for our
"front yard" there.
When they would travel through our town in Kansas. He helped me figure out
how to establish an irrigation system for my yard as he was so well versed on
all that. Every park model at Rio Bend had emitters that would come on several
days a week and he understood just how they operated and kept them going.
The night my husband, Paul, died at Rio Bend, December 10, 2001. I did the only
thing I knew to do. I called JoAnne and Dale. Though it was way past their
bedtime, they threw on their clothes and were there immediately. I was having
trouble understanding just what was happening. Dale said later that he thought
Paul was already gone when they got there. Anyway, they called for emergency
help and stayed with me through all of that and until the coroner came to take
the body away. Though most of that night is a blur to me, I can still see
them standing there praying for me and for Paul. Dale had been so much help in
getting us settled and continued to assist me in the care and maintenance of my
park model, staining my deck several times to protect from sun damage and
painting it. Such a giving soul he was - forever in my memory. He could fix
about anything and people knew who to call for their problems. I didn't always
agree with his suggestions, but we would eventually work things out. He knew
that JoAnne and I had a special friendship and saw to it that our needs were met.
As I said above, all permission is granted if you want to use any of my
writings. We always liked Dale. I actually sang at their wedding in Erie,
KS and we kept in touch where ever they moved to. We visited them several
times - we each had 3 kids and they still talk about visiting them. During
those times, we were aware Dale had tremendous back problems and he underwent
several surgeries until Mayo Clinic told him to not have anymore. Though his
body began to wear out with his hip and knee replacements, he remained in good
positive spirits. I always said that he was the best thing ever to happen to
JoAnne and supported her all those years - even 50 of them.
Thanks for your efforts to perpetuate Dale and his memory.
Joan Haight - davehate@sbcglobal.net
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