Marge Kickert, 85, is the oldest of four generations of White Sox fans. She lives at Village Woods Christian Retirement Community in Crete, Illinois.
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CRETE, Ill. (July 13, 2006) – Eighty-five-year-old Marge Kickert has been a Sox fan all her life. Well, most of her life. Out of respect for her husband Nick, a Cubs fan, she politely rooted for the Cubs during her 65-year marriage. “But after he died,” smiles Marge a little mischievously, “I went back to cheering for the Sox.”
Marge inherited her loyalty to the Sox from her mother. “When I was about 10 years old,” she recalls, “the Sox used to have ‘Ladies Days.’ All the ladies could get into the game free! So most Ladies Days my mom was at the Sox game.”
Marge’s daughter-in-law Lynn Kickert shares her passion for the Southsiders. And the combination of Marge’s and Lynn’s faithful enthusiasm infected the next two generations of Sox fans in the Kickert family: Marge’s grandson John and great-grandson Ryan. “Oh, Ryan especially,” Marge shakes her head and laughs. “He knows all the stats and has all the baseball cards and everything. He’s really into the Sox.”
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A former teacher, Marge credits White Sox Manager Ozzie Guillen’s “no-nonsense” style of leadership with last year’s World Championship performance. “I think he’s pretty strict. He’s very good.” She and Lynn list Buehrle, Crede, Konerko, Garcia, and Dye among their favorite players.
Marge can’t get to as many Sox games as she would like, but she watches most of the season on television with other Sox fans at Village Woods, the retirement community in Crete, Illinois, where she has lived for the past 10 years. “I just love it here,” she sighs. “I’m having the time of my life, doing things I never got to do before retirement.” When she’s not rooting for her team, she may be walking laps around the tree-lined campus or playing a round of golf. She also recently finished a season as a member of the Chicago Bulls Swingin’ Seniors dance team.
Village Woods Christian Retirement Community is located at 2681 South Route 394 in Crete, Illinois, just south of Balmoral Race Track. Call 708-672-6111 for more information.
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ABOUT VILLAGE WOODS
Village Woods Christian Retirement Community is an independent and assisted living community committed to providing Christ-like care and service to seniors. Founded and supported by local churches, Village Woods is part of the Rest Haven Christian Services family of ministries. For more information, please visit www.resthaven.com.
ABOUT REST HAVEN CHRISTIAN SERVICES
Founded and supported by local Reformed and Christian Reformed churches, Rest Haven Christian Services has served thousands of retirees in the past 90 years. Rest Haven Christian Services offers the complete spectrum of senior services, including Independent Town Homes, Independent Living, Assisted Living, Sheltered Care, Alzheimer’s Programs, Intermediate Care, Home Health Services, Hospice Care, Respite Stays, Rehabilitation Services, and Skilled Nursing Care. Rest Haven is committed to providing excellent service that enriches life and preserves independence. For more information, please visit www.resthaven.com.
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