To the editor,
I was just sent the article by Dave Clark on the history of Bracken’s Shopping Center. What wonderful memories! I’m the grandson of Harold and Mary Bracken and have visited the shopping center — and Bracken’s Restaurant — a number of times when my dad Bernie took us to Kewanee as a child. I was born a year after the shopping center opened.
Keep up the good work!
Rob Bracken
Chicago
Hello Kewanee Voice!
A family member forwarded Dave Clarke’s July 2024 article titled “Around town: A look back at a piece of Kewanee history, Bracken’s Shopping Center.
Harold and Mary Bracken were my grandparents, and I am the youngest of Bob and Lois Bracken’s five children. I was compelled to write to send my warmest ‘thank you’ to Dave Clark for writing this article. Reading it brought back many memories of my Grandma Bracken and myself playing in Bracken’s Shoe and Dry cleaning stores. Unfortunately, as I was too young, I do not remember Bracken’s restaurant, but I have been told by my brothers and sisters that it was the best pork tenderloin sandwich they have ever had. It was huge, they said!
Kewanee holds a special place in our hearts. In 1999, my mother and father went back to what is now a Bed and Breakfast to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary. When they got married in May of 1949, it was a rectory I believe. When in town, we always drive by Smith Street to gaze at the home where my Mom grew up and visit the gravesites of both sets of my grandparents.
Sadly, my dad passed away in May 2018 – one month shy of his 90th birthday and just after celebrating their 69th wedding anniversary. All three of his brothers predeceased him. We are blessed that our mom, Lois, is still with us and will celebrate her 95th birthday in November. We still enjoy listening to her stories of growing up in Kewanee – the ‘good times’ when a favorite treat would be a chip of ice the man on the ice truck would chip off for her, the drugstore penny candy, and the home garden where her parents Herman and Ruth Schultz grew flowers to sell.
Again, THANK YOU Dave Clark for a beautiful article! Thank you for gifting our family with a happy smile and warm hearts as we relive the memories made in Kewanee.
Warm regards,
Amy (Bracken) Justice
