ADOLPH VEIGL

By Brianne Veigl

Birth February 4, 1922 Dash 90 years Death January 3, 2012

ADOLPH MARTIN VEIGL

Adolph John Veigl started the first bakery, City Bakery, in their hometown of Cullman, Alabama. Adolph was also known as a bootlegger. Townsfolk often said, ”He sold bread out the front door and booze out the back door. When he sold you a bottle of booze, he would give you a slap on the back with his floury hand. Everyone knew you had been to Mr. Veigl’s.” At the age of 12 his son, Adolph Martin, started to work along side his father at the bakery.

BREAD OUT THE FRONT DOOR & BOOZE OUT THE BACK

9-year-old, Marilyn Dopmier met, 13-year-old, Adolph Veigl, while he was swimming butt naked in Blue Hole pond. During the summer of 1941, Marilyn traveled from Louisville, Kentucky to Cullman, Alabama for a family reunion. While visiting in Cullman, Marilyn and her cousin, Helen, decided to go down to Blue Hole pond for a swim.

As they approached the pond they saw a bunch of boys who were skinny dipping in the pond, Adolph was one of them. Thinking it would be funny Marilyn and Helen stole the boys’ clothes and hid them in the woods. Years later, Adolph would often remark, “Once Marilyn saw me naked, she was hooked.”

ONCE MARILyN sAw ME NAKED sHE wAs HOOKED

Branch United States Army Rank Captain in the Army Air Corps Reserves

and a First Lieutenant in the Army Air Corps during War World II

Job Meteorologist service years 1943–1945

During the time of WWII, Marilyn began to write letters to Adolph while he was enlisted in the army. As he was relocated from New York to Mississippi, to Kentucky, Marilyn and Adolph continually wrote to each other for three years.

Once the war was over, Adolph traveled to Louisville, Kentucky to surprise his love, Marilyn. When Marilyn returned to her house from a trip to Mammoth Cave, with her girl friends, she saw a man in uniform waiting for her on her front porch. Unsure of whom the man

was on her front porch, she slowly approached him. To her surprise she realized it was Adolph. While standing on the front porch, Adolph explained to Marilyn that he was staying at the Brown Hotel for a week before he went back home to Cullman and would like to take her out on a date.

COMING HOME

Adolph took Marilyn out on their first date to Korphage’s Night Club. There they spent the their night dining and dancing. On the walk back home, Marilyn tried to impress Adolph by displaying her knowledge of the type of clouds that had formed in the sky. Being a meteorologist and adoring her failing efforts, Adolph smiled and politely corrected her. After their first date, Adolph decided to stay in Louisville to continue to court Marilyn until 1946 when he proposed to her.

LOVE Is IN THE AIR

Date November 11, 1948 Time 9:00 A.M. Place St. Elizabeth Church Louisville, Kentucky

Company Tube Turns Job Title Mechanical Engineer Description Designed bellows (expansion joints), which

relieved pressure that builds up in the pipes found in nuclear and chemical plants

Hired 1945 Retired 1983

Since Adolph was a mechanical engineer, he designed the house that Marilyn and his nine children would live in. He designed the house so it would be very space effi cient.

HOME swEET HOME

TwAs THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRIsTMAs

One tradition Adolph was well known for was making a Christmas stocking for each of his family members. The tradition began when his eldest daughter, Marty, had taught him how to sew using the stocking she had begun to make for her nephew, Matthew. By the end of his life Adolph had sewn 37 stockings.

One of Adolph’s greatest passions was growing roses. He would often attend rose shows to take slips from the roses that had received awards. Once he obtained the slips, he was able to transform a simple rose slip into a beautiful rose bush. At one time he had 150 rose bushes growing around the yard of his home.

A ROsE FOR HIs ROsE

Another hobby Adolph had, was making wine. He would mix grape concentrate, sugar, water, and yeast in a huge container to ferment. During the fermentation process, the entire house would reek of yeast. In order to display his collection of homemade wine, he built his own wine racks.

LOVE OF wINE

While walking through the Dayton Air Show with his son, Jeff, Adolph came upon the same airplane model he had once flown in when he was the Army. When he saw the airplane, he told Jeff the story of his first ride in an airplane, “Back when I was in the army, forecasting weather for the planes at the Air Force base, a couple of my pilot friends and I were sitting around drinking. While drinking, one of the pilots asked if I wanted to take a ride in the plane. Since I had never been up in a plane before, I of course said, yes. The next day the pilot took me up in the airplane. When we took off we went straight up in the air. Once we reached a certain height, the pilot turned off the plane, causing us to free-fall, tumbling down towards the ground. Right before we hit the ground, the pilot turned the plane back on. That was the closest I have ever came to crapping myself.”

FLyING HIGH

“ It is better to be silent and thought dumb then to speak and remove all doubt.”

- Adolph Veigl

Marilyn and Adolph’s nine children gathered their money to give Adolph the perfect birthday present. Since, Adolph used to be a meteorologist and sent weather balloons up in the air to retrieve weather data, their gift to him was a hot air balloon ride.

UP ABOVE THE wORLD

If someone asked any of Adolph’s kids whom their Dad was, they would answer them simply with, “He was a family man.” The problem with that was that no one would understand what that meant unless they had lived their life with him. Adolph did not watch a lot of TV, read books, play golf, or just sit around relaxing. Instead he spent his days being “a family man.” He worked during the day and went to school at night, so he could better provide for his family. Even after he got his degree, he took a second job teaching school at nights, all for his family. He sent all his kids to school at St. Stephen’s, to Catholic high school, and to college. He spent countless hours helping them with math, science, and any homework, including building models. Actually, he did most of the building while they just watched. When their house got too small for all of them, Adolph designed the most space efficient house ever built. When they played sports he was not able to watch the practices or games,

because he was busy driving another kid to one of their practices or games. In short, he sacrificed all his time and energy for his family. By the end of the day, there was no time left for him. In his last years, Adolph’s health declined. He was no longer able to make the sacrifices that had become a part of his life. It was now Marilyn and his children’s turn. This made Adolph happy, because he was able to see for himself that they all had learned what it meant to be “a family man or woman.” No sacrifice was too great for your family, while you may think you are too busy, you can always find time to help your family. Your family can never ask too much of you, because you are willing to do anything for them. Your needs and wants always come after you have taken care of your family’s needs and wants. These were Adolph’s values. These are the values he raised his kids to practice. This is what it means to be “a family man.” This is who Adolph was.

FAMILy MAN