by Margie Miller of Grand Terrace on 2016-07-06

GRAND TERRACE >> Grand Terrace has always been rich with history, and many have shared in the joy of living there. Vic Sumner and his wife Lynn are two such people that have extensively experienced and added to it. Born in Highland Park, Los Angeles, Vic is an 86-year-old telecommunications worker that has happily lived most of his life in this area with Lynn. They fatefully met each other through their mutual involvement in an organization known as the Telephone Pioneers of America. Vic started his work in telecommunications in 1947 as a lineman and did work on telephone poles in Los Angeles, as well as in the National Guard and the United States Army during the Korean War. The couple met after they went bowling with some friends as a part of a league within the Telephone Pioneers of America. When asked about his feeling during their first encounter, Vic said, “I fell in love when I first met her, and I’m serious.” After a missing phone number and a lot of help from friends, Vic and Lynn started their courtship in short manner. After they got married, they settled down in Grand Terrace and started growing more than 500 orchids, which eventually pushed them to start the Riverside and San Bernardino Orchid Society. The World Orchid Conference invited them to showcase their flowers in their contest where they placed second and received a plaque commemorating their victory and efforts. Later, maintaining the sheer number of orchids took its toll on the couple and they ended up giving them away to a contractor in Redlands. Vic then switched his attention from orchids to bonsai trees, which were much easier to take proper care of and provided a new way for the couple to enjoy horticulture in Grand Terrace. In recent years after having retired, the couple started the “Spit and Liars Club,” in a local doughnut shop designed to support and stay in touch with the local community. However, all good things must come to an end and so it is with a bittersweet taste in their mouths that the family has decided to move away from Grand Terrace. Their daughter is moving them to a house in Medford, Oregon and is setting aside an apartment with two large rooms just for Vic’s telecommunications collection which contains devices that date all the way back to the beginning of the first telephones. In regards to the family’s sentiments about leaving Grand Terrace, Vic and Lynn’s daughter captured it when she says, “It’s been a great and wonderful home for [us].” [END] Highlight--- capture the important parts, and THESE FOR SURE (they have pictures attached) -primary focus is on Vic because of his presence in all of the highlights listed below -relationship with wife -fig trees, orchids, and bonsai trees -garage and telephone company -tin can -museum of phones in garage -we got a conductor that was spoken through from alexandar graham bell -daughter is moving parents in with her and she has built an entire apartment for his telecommunications museum -member of the ‘spit and liars club’ the local donut shop (unofficial organization to keep people informed in grand terrace) Do you want me to pick quotes out from the transcribing machine? Yes, ghostwrite it. What to do when I have everything written out? Press release or save in file and leave?- Write out the story in word and save it as a file for her later. Step 1: write down the facts and quotes Step 2: Collage and write it into a story. Leave any blank spaces for Margie to fill out. • Families on the line sharing recipes • 21 position board • Not legitimate telephone companies • Just farmers getting together and buying telephones, getting just enough knowledge from a salesman so that they could operate it • They were all crank telephones 2:00 • Vic has a lot of files detailing peoples’ first interactions with telephones/stories o Eavesdropping, interrupting each other, known as “rubbering” (anyone that listened without permission) • Vic used to climb the telephone poles with hooks in LA • Started in 1947 as a “lineman” • Served as a lineman in the national guard as well at fort Irwin when the war started • Sand storms and vehicles running into their poles • Was called up when the Korean war broke out • A place called bandonburgh which used to be called camp cook 3:54 • Was a weekend thing when he got called up, not concentrated training, esp for combat • Eventually got moved into the regular army • Army didn’t like national guard because they got higher rank and an easier going of it • Vic, despite being in the regular army, never left the states • Wound up training recruits 5:20 • Vic’s captain was a telephone man from LA that had been called back into the service • The captain said that he was happy to have Vic because he knew how to shoot trouble (trouble shoot?) and/in open wires (no insulation) • In many cases in new York they had (telephone) poles that were 110 ft high with 21 “arms” which each had 10 wires o They used this “measurement” as a canonical “yardstick”, there was never anything bigger than this measurement • Winter came and the snow knocked a lot of the poles down so they (the industry) stopped using poles that big Margie asks how Vic met Lynn • They went bowling • They both belonged to the telephone pioneers of America • “Anyone with 21 years of service in the phone industry could become a pioneer if they wanted to” Vic o It was a social community action” o There was almost a million of us at one time” o She [Lynn] was in it and a bowling league” • Vic went with 3 people to the bowling • Vic “I fell in love when I met her, and I’m serious” 8:20 • Cant hooks and PB’s 8:30 • Return to the story at 13:20 • Vic and his friend beat Lynn and hers at bowling (jokingly mentioned) • Vic asked Lynn for a date at the end of bowling but she thought he was married to zelda • Lynn hesitantly accepted because of that but never gave him her phone number • Vic sat opposite to her at a banquet and they had a great time 14:30 • Vic found out her phone number through connections and finally they went on a new years eve date party with a bunch of friends • Vic had a 5 year old son and together they would go visit Lynn at Huntington Beach o Dates for 3 everytime • When vic and lynn finally got married and got in a car to go off on their honeymoon david, vics son, tried to hop in the car with them because he was so used to going with them on everything • Lynn voices her concerns about merging with vic’s family when she was just getting to know him 27:30 • About the house • Daughter is building the house so that her parents (Vic and Lynn) will have an apartment where they can display their telecommunications collection • 2 large rooms • Porch on outside for bonsais • Vic “There’s no way we’d have left grand terrace because we love this city and this is our home” • Vic was born in LA • Vic is 86 Donut shop “spin n liars club” • Good way to stay in touch with the community and make friends • Grand terrace • They worked at the colton business office 38:00, lynn transferred to riverside, she played the role of administrative assistant Pioneer telephone org • Vic and lynn were off and on presidents for the org • Vic was president of the orchid society for 2 years o Orchid society is a club formed by people who grew orchids, once a month meetings with exhibitions of grower’s orchids, expert lectures on horticulture • Vic has about 500 orchids plants • He ended up selling them to a contractor in Redlands 42:00 • Orchids have aromas • World Orchid conference 45:30 millions of dollars o The riverside/san b orchid society was invited to display and won 2nd place Bonsai trees • 1942 when david was born, vic and his ex wife went to sac state fair • He bought one there • He was into anything that would grow in grand terrace • Bonsais were easier to take care of In regards to grand terrace and their moving away from it “It’s been a wonderful home for me” to Medford Oregon *30,000+ hours of volunteer hours for the telephone pioneer org 20:00 What are the overall themes in from these different aspects of the interview Life in Grand Terrace, growth (plants and relationship), beginnings and endings,