The purpose of this column is to give recognition to some of the
female gas engine enthusiasts around the country. These are the
ladies who have crossed over to the other side. They are no longer
just sending hubby Care packages of food to the workshop, or asking
him to please move his ‘junk’ so that she might drive the
car into the garage. These are the ladies who are now claiming
items as their own, or playing some part in cleaning or restoring
an engine-those who actually know a magneto when they see one.
Groups of these ladies can be found in the auxiliary of gas
engine and tractor associations. Some have originally banded
together out of boredom and later found that they play an important
role in the success of the association.
The ladies of Rough and Tumble, in Kinzers, Pennsylvania, have
helped almost since its beginning with collecting admissions and
handling memberships. Only in the past three years have they
organized into an auxiliary. Now they are in charge of the
committees on admissions, membership, the gift shop, and the farm
house. They provide meals for the men on the grounds for work days.
Their members sell hand crafts and snacks during activity days. The
group provides centerpieces and acts as hostesses during the annual
banquet-meeting. They are invited to attend meetings of the Board
of Directors. An auxiliary report is a regular feature in the
association’s newsletter, ‘The Whistle.’
President of the Ladies Auxiliary, Mrs. Guy (Hazel) Stauffer
crossed the line almost twenty years ago when she started traveling
with her husband in search of gas engines. Guy is currently serving
as Rough and Tumble’s First Vice-President, after finishing
three years as Treasurer.
Their engine expeditions have taken them to several provinces in
Canada, including Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebeck, and Ontario.
They have also gone on engine safaris in western Pennsylvania and
Ohio. It was on one of these trips nearly two decades ago, that
they purchased a Kowalsky hot-tube engine made in Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania. It had been used to run a small printing press in
Mars, Pennsylvania. This engine and a 6 HP Springfield were early
members of their 183-engine collection, and are Hazel’s
favorites.
Hazel’s attitude has always been, ‘if you can’t beat
them, join them.’ She knows where they found every engine, how
much they paid for it, and how much they want for! Several years
ago, Hazel received a rather unusual Mother’s Day gift. It was
a 6-foot tall flywheel from an English-made Ruston-Hornsby oil
engine. She hopes to run their 1959 Allis Chalmers ‘G’ in R
& T’s parade this year. Hazel learned to drive this tractor
to clear snow from the parking lot of her beauty shop in East
Petersburg, Pennsylvania. Every auxiliary has their ‘spark
plugs’ and Hazel Stauffer is certainly one in Kinzers.
You all probably know a female person who has been bitten by the
‘engine bug.’ Maybe you know an active auxiliary that could
share some ideas through this column.
Please address all comments and information to: GEM, P.O. Box
328, Lancaster, Pennsylvania 17603.
