Thomas Ennenga

Around The Table: Thomas Ennenga: A man of indomitable spirit

Freeport was very lucky to have as one of its citizens Thomas Ennenga, a multi-faceted man of all seasons.

He was an avid family man, businessman, environmentalist, historian, sportsman, falconer, a community leader instrumental in fundraising and moving the city forward.

He also was a scholar graduating with Phi Beta Kappa honors from Princeton University.

He served his country in World War II with the marines in Japan, Okinawa and China.

Thomas believed in living life to its fullest - as did his wife, Ida Lou.
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Here many lovely Ennenga parties were held over the years, Tom and Ida Lou were most congenial hosts.
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Thomas returned from World War II to run the family business, the E&W Clothing House.It was his career until it closed in 1990.He served the business community well as a member of the board of directors of Premier Financial Service, the Freeport Area Chamber of Commerce, the Greater Downtown group.

Tom was a member of he Freeport School Board and helped in fundraisings for Highland Community College.When he heard that the Best farm was for sale, with one telephone call he got the land for the college, which is now the present 210-acre campus.A fund drive was set up with Thomas as chairman and "Acres for Education" was born.

He and his wife were great workers for helping with funding of the Freeport Arts Center. (She taught art history at Highland Community College.)

He was on the committee that started the Heart of Memorial Trust for the hospital.There were so many positive ways he left his print on this community - always more than willing to do his part for his community.Volunteers who served with him found him fun to work with.

He was continually inspired and inspiring.His latest sproject - still a work in progress - was a "feet-a-board" to help those riding in wheel chairs.

He loved the great out-of-doors - the beauty of trees, streams, oceans.His trips to Canada, Alaska and South America - for fishing and hunting are legendary.And when he returned there were wonderful salmon dinners for family and friends.

He believed in local heritage.When a terrible storm severely damaged the 1848 John H. Addams barn on his property, he did not take the insurance money and level the old barn.He wanted to leave it for the future, he said.Tom rebuilt the barn according to original specifications.

The damaged basic timbers of the skeletal structure were replaced in the same manner with local logs, mortised and pegged.He was proud of the flying American eagle copper weather vane he put on the barn.

He lost 53 trees in that storm and went about replanting them on his property.He put in walnuts, lindens, red maples and a hybrid ash and others.On one occasion, he said in celebration of the planting season, he planted a little buckeye tree on his property in Cedarville, "which, by the way lies in Buckeye Township."

Oh, it was with pride that he served as founder and director of the Jane Addamsland Park Foundation.He walked the paths with many pointing out the beauty at hand.

A falconer, he probably is one of the longest living falconers in the United States.His interest with falconry goes back to the age of 12.

Tom was also a great storyteller.His quotes were always most quotable.There were stories about the 1928 model Monocoupe that for years hung in the rafters of the carriage house behind his family home, the Oscar Ennenga place on West Stephenson Street.

Before the days of cash registers in stores, money was put in a cup, then clipped to a wire and propelled to a cashier's desk usually on a balcony of a store.E&W had such a constant running track.The the money was put in a cup and sent upstairs to where the boys department was.Here the cashier would take care of the money and send the change back in the cup.Tom Ennenga described his cash carrier as "a sling shot-driven carrier with rollers on a wire."His was in use from before 1920 until the store closed the last day of July in 1990.

Tom Ennenga was a man of independent, indomitable spirit with a keen searching mind on the world.He always embraced nature and life itself.

A columnist could always count on Tom for a golden nugget to quote.Tom will be missed by many in many ways.