I worked in Jake Sheetz’s custom furniture shop in Edinburg, Virginia from the time I was 10 years old until I was 15. I worked each day after school, Saturdays, and all summer with a pay of 25 cents per hour. However, I enjoyed it so much that I would have worked with no salary. The five fellows who worked there were the expert fisherman and hunters. They would often take me along on fishing and hunting trips. Therefore they all became close friends.
During the summer if it became very hot in the shop, Jake would close the shop and then announce we were going fishing. After a few minutes and we were on the North Fork of the Shenandoah River in our boats.
Jake and I became very close friends. After I graduated from college and came back to Edinburg to open my fly shop/pharmacy, Jake built a camper to fit on the back of his truck. Jake, William Downey, and I took many camping trips to fish for trout all over the northeastern part of the country and in Canada.
Making Memories
A long trip into the Laurentide Mountains in Canada put Jake in his brook trout heaven. The 20ft wide streams which drained from one lake to another were loaded with beautiful brook trout. These trout took the same dry flies as our wild brook trout in the Blue Ridge Mountains. The Mr. Rapidan Dry size 14 & 16 and the Murray’s Flying Beetle size 16 were very dependable. We fished all over the Laurentide Mountains and had great fishing. We only saw two other fishermen in the mountains and I’m pretty sure they were lost.
Growing up in a small town was great and I still appreciate the advantages it gave me. Jake’s shop was one block from my home. William Downey introduced my mother and father. William was my next door neighbor and CEO of the local bank. He helped me get my loan for my pharmacy when I first started. My homeplace was near Big Stoney Creek. The North Fork of the Shenandoah River was one mile from my home. Quail populated many of the farms around Edinburg when I graduated from college. I decided my Brittany Spaniel and I could not find a better place to live than Edinburg and I’m still pleased with this choice and thankful for the close friends I have acquired.