From: Kent Shelton, class of '71  Posted 04/03/99

Ikey Lewis had a great impact on my life. I couldn't believe it when I saw the section on his pharmacy. Johnny Brooks mentioned in his letter the toasted rolls (God, I'm sitting here with my mouth watering). When we were too young to drive we used to walk to Ikeys and get toasted rolls and cherry-vanilla-cokes, from the counter. I loved it because my Mom and Dad had a charge account there and I'm sure if I were to see the bill today, I wouldn't want to pay it. (all of us mom's and dad's now know what its like to get a present, then get the Visa bill the next month)

I can still remember one day walking in the store and Ikey came up to me and said "Did you hear about the constipated Jitter Bug," and I said no----" Well, he couldn't Jitt". So, I go home and ask my Mom what constipated meant. Well, she didn't think the joke was near as funny as my Dad did. Years later, and 2 years into Chemical Engineering at New Mexico State--I thought, "you know,
it would be 'neat' to have a job like Ikey had". So off to The University of New Mexico I went.

Now after practicing pharmacy for 20 years, I really do thank Ikey and growing up in Jal for my choice. I read once, "find a job you really love, and you'll never have to work a day of your life."

  I did.  Thanks, Ikey.

3/24/99 Kent Shelton, class of '71

From: Shirley Bowington  Posted 02/13/99

"I had a bbq sandwich and a chocolate rootbeer almost every day for lunch."

A fond "Ikey" memory:

Momma's hair was blue/black when she was young. As it turned salt and pepper, my oldest sister, Ann, thought it would look nice to have it bleached white. Instead, it turned brassy. When it was half grown out, Momma and I were having lunch one day when Hammonds (remember him?) meandered by. He stopped, did a double take and stood looking at her. Momma looked up and said, "How are you today Hammond?"

"I'm fine, Mrs. Bowington, may I ask you a personal question?" she nodded yes so he asked, "What happened to your hair?"

"Don't you like it Hammond?" she asked teasingly.

"I like it if you do Mrs. Bowington," he said as he slowly turned and left.

Also, my sisters, Ann, Joelene and Bucky all worked there as waitresses.

I sampled every kind of new makeup that came on the market there. Daddy would almost have a heart attack when the monthly bill came in. "God damned Kids!" he'd yell.

MOMMA: "Ralph! Don't you cuss in my house."

DADDY: "What the hell did I say! God damned can't do anything around here!" (slam) as he left through the back door.

Argument won.

From John W. Brooks: Date: Sat., 30 Jan, 1999

My fondest memories of Ikey's happened to include being on the honor roll. I always thought it was the greatest thing that if you were on the honor roll you could check out of study hall. The thing that made checking out such a big deal was that you could go over to Ikey's. I think that was the real incentive to me for making the honor roll. Otherwise, that and 10 cents would buy you a coke.

My favorites included the toasted rolls, and the lime on the rocks that others have mentioned. The toasted roll was like going to heaven and probably helped to maintain that chubby physique I always had during those years. That doesn't tarnish any of the fond memories of Ikey's and the friendly folks who worked there.       ------Johnny Brooks

From Joelene Bowington: Date: Thu, 21 Jan 1999

I remember going to Ikey's every day after school and taking my friends to have ice cream, 400, or a grilled roll with ice cream on it before the drug store was moved to the corner. How we all looked forward to that. Mom and Dad ( Ralph and Thelma Bowington) paid the bill each payday. We didn't realize how fast you could run up a charge account doing that. Ikey would ask me every once in a while if I was sure they knew I was charging so much.

After the drug store was moved to the corner I worked there for a while. I never could remember to turn off the malt machine after I made a malt. Ikey would say Bowington, if you burn that thing up I'll take it out of your salary and you will have to work for me the rest of your life to pay for it. I Ioved working for Ikey, he was always there to help you or lift a person up when they were down. He was strict but fair, always helping someone in need.

Thanks Ikey for the wonderful memories, Joelene Bowington/Mosley/Swanner

From Alice N. Sappington: Date: Thu, 05 Nov 1998

I remember when we would be cleaning for mom and dad's janitor service, we used to get the treat of eating at Ikey's some Saturdays. We usually got a ham sandwich or a chicken salad sandwich. Well, Bert (who had not started school yet) wasn't too thrilled with those choices, so Eloise Dobbs asked him if he would like a H-A-M bologna sandwich. Of course, he loved it and the rest of us just sort of laughed, but not so much that Bert wouldn't eat his special H-A-M bologna sandwich. It's a good thing he learned to like ham sandwiches before he learned to spell. However, in the Sappington family, a good ole H-A-M bologna sandwich is still a pretty good treat. I just wish I could still find ice like that at Ikey's.

From Jerry Lindsey Betty: Date: Tue, 21 Jul 1998

Ikey's store played such a key role in all our lives. My very first REAL job was working for Ikey. We owned the Lindsey Hotel across the street from Ikey's [earlier store]. [The Lindsey Hotel was on the west side of main street, next door to Roy and Rena's bar. It was later torn down and replaced by the chiropractor's office.]

I think I was about 13 when my folks let me go to work for Ikey. I was in hog heaven. I had always loved to "play" drugstore as a child and now I was acutally making those malts and milkshakes. I was really making a hit with my creations with the boys and one day Ikey said, "Jerry, I know the boys really love those thick shakes, but you're not making me any money!" After that I was careful to put just three dips in the shakes and malts.

Remember the "dip and a squirt" - that was one of my favorites and I loved the 400's too. AFter I grew up, came back to Jal and went to work as Mr. Burke's secry., our regular coffee breaks were at Ikey's [new store]. Jan Reed, Freddie Kohlman and I met for coffee every morning. I'm going to use the "recipes" real soon and hope they measure up to all our fond memories.

Jerry Betty

From Nelda Wood McConnell: Date: Tue, 21 Jul 1998

susan mentioned the bow machine, and it reminded me of the gift selections at ikey's. i always was delighted when i recognized ikey's wrapping because it was sure to be a treasure...remember the neat gifts? i remember registering there for my wedding shower. i still treasure the pieces of aqua pottery that i recieved at that shower.

my kids have heard so much about ikey's chili and barbeque that my daughter called me long distance when she saw the recipes on the jal page. we are planning a trip tp the lake this week...guess what two items will be on the menu!

one food item that i remember is the toasted roll with a dip of ice cream on top. Chocolate was the best! i have tried many times to duplicate that delicacy, but like the others, it cannot be duplicated exactly. man! those gals really had some secrets didn't they?

one more thing worthy of mention are the prices. remember that one could eat a chili deal, a rootbeer, and a butterscotch dip and squirt for $.51! only a penny more than the cafeteria price...those were wonderful days, and how i long for my kids and students to know the carefree time that we all enjoyed, but sadly they are gone with new pressures and stresses...oh well someday those will write of the "carefree '90's".

thanks for the great new page! nelda wood mcconnell

From Jerry Phillips: 07/18/98

The ice: Remember the ice at Ikey's? There's never been anything like it, before or since. How can I describe it to someone who's never experienced it? It was formed in the shape of little hollow cylinders about half-an-inch in diameter, with a quarter-inch hole through the middle. The pieces were anywhere from one to two inches long, breaking into different lengths as they were pushed out of the ice machine.
But the BEST thing about this ice? It was SOFT! There was never any danger of breaking a tooth or losing a filling on this stuff. It was made to be "chomped." The only thing comparable to it today is the soft crushed ice at Sonic Drive-Ins, but even that doesn't really compare to the Ice at Ikey's.

And this special ice was always served in a special way. Remember? Most all the fountain drinks were served in a cone-shaped paper cup (with a pointy end). This cup fit into a special stainless steel holder shaped somewhat like an hour-glass. If you decided you needed to leave, you just picked up the paper cup out of it's holder....giving you an instant "to go" drink. And the drinks....

....Ikey's had them all. My favorite as a child was the "400." It was a sort of watered-down chocolate milk, over ice. Does anyone know how it got the strange name? The large version was appropriately called an "800." In my older adolescence, I discovered the "Lime-on-the-Rocks." This was simply fresh-squeezed lime juice over the soft ice, salted and chomped as it melted. Needless to say, this was an acquired taste. You were liable to spit out your first one, but if you ever got hooked on them....you were hooked, indeed. The only negative side-effect was the deterioration of tooth enamel from the citric acid of the lime juice, something most of us Jal kids could have done without. Most of us didn't have the best teeth in the world, and most of the time our dentists blamed the Jal water for our less-than-white and less-than-hard teeth. But "lime-on-the-rocks" are addictive.
I still get out my electric ice-crusher and fix one, occasionally.

I doubt that there is anyone who was a kid in 1950s Jal who doesn't remember Ikey coming up behind him, poking a finger into his ribs, and making that high-pitched, squeaky noise that he did with his lips. Sometimes, when he caught you off guard, it could really startle you; but it was always all in good fun. I wonder how many of us have continued the tradition by occasionally "poking and squeaking" a younger generation? I know I have.

Susan mentions several of the ladies above who worked in the Lewis Drug; but the one I most remember is Irene Webster. I don't know how many years Irene actually worked there, but it seems to me that she was always there, always at the register. I can't think of the store without thinking of her. When you walked in she immediately made you feel 'special', 'cause she was always glad to see you, always friendly, and always helpful. I wonder how many people know that Irene Webster designed our City of JAL flag? Does it still fly under the national and state flags?

That's all for now. I'm sure I'll think of more later. I'm eager to hear what some of you other Jalapenos remember most about Ikey's Drug Store and the good times that were had there.

From Susan Artherholt Lish: Date: Mon, 1 Jun 1998

Mom loves the page. More info.....Ikey made homemade donuts every morning before the store opened at 8AM......The syrup flavoring for the cherry cokes and cherry limes, for example, was made by hand. The ladies made the syrup from scratch with a base of sugar syrup and flavoring! Ikey always "closed" the store during the parades, the "snake dances" before important athletic events.....Mother, Sylvia Hodges worked the cash register, Nita Mathis, Lana Chitham, Eloise Dobbs, Lois Harris are some of the ladies mom remembers working with. Also, of course, Billy Jean (Ferguson ) Beckham worked there during her high school years. One of the biggest events I remember happening was when Ikey bought the bow-making machine; how happy the ladies were! They didn't have to make the bows by hand any more!

Ikey always saw to it that those that needed medicine had it, whether they could pay or not.

One day, a man had a heart attack in the store and fell off one of the stools. Ikey called Dr. Gerald O'Laughlin, the town physician at the time, to come immediately to the store. Ikey provided first aid, keeping him alive until the doctor could get there, with the assistance of the ladies.

The drug store was also the bus station, bringing travelers, small oilfield equipment, packages there. The bus came daily at 2pm on it's way to Odessa, then returned about 5pm on it's way back to Hobbs

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