Kane Wolves Origin Story
**Thank you for taking a risk by parachuting to the library for today’s presentation. I’m impressed- not a twisted ankle, tweaked back, nor hair out of place. Now that’s going to be a hard act to follow.
Hello, my name’s Dave McElwee and I’m honored with this opportunity to present…My Afterlife: Origin Story, the background in writing my first novel. Much appreciation to the Friends’ Memorial Public Library and Anne Cleer/Patty Kunicki for facilitating this fund raiser featuring a My Afterlife gift basket for raffle.
The Friends’ Memorial Public Library has been serving the public since 1883 when founded by Thomas Struthers. How many public entities can claim they’ve been serving their community for that long. That a lot of years, books, and events which is indicative to the value a library adds to its community by bringing everyone together. Hey, are you ready to go on a journey? My earliest memory of Kane is when visiting Dr. Hockenberry for our childhood checkups. As far I can tell I have no lingering trauma from tongue depressors, tetanus shots, nor thermometers so I got off to a good start in part to Kane. A few years later when playing little league baseball for the Smethport Nationals the farthest, we travelled for games was Mount Jewitt. In seventh grade when the Mount Jewitt kids we played against in little league were transitioned to Smethport High School, I wondered why some of the kids played against weren’t there. At first, I thought I’d stumbled upon a truancy problem. But when conducting my investigation, I learned attending Smethport High wasn’t determined by one’s little league team but by an invisible boundary drawn around Mt. Jewitt, in which those within the circle attended Kane High. Thus, I closed the case. After a few years, when in the 11th grade I finally won a wrestle off to earn the starting position for the Hubbers in our next meet in Kane. The match lasted about a minute with me on the losing end of a character-building experience. I had two thoughts later that night. The first was to remind myself never to let the moment get too big so you don’t hear the whistle and the second was wishing my opponent had lived outside of the invisible boundary around Mt. Jewitt. Did you know Kane was in founded in1864 by Brigadier General Thomas L. Kane and his wife Elizabeth. A little-known fact about the couple is their love for baseball, having followed the game since its inception in 1845. So, the Kane’s of Kane to honor America’s past time sought to establish a baseball team and encouraged the surrounding communities in McKean County to do the same. So, in the fall of 1864 the first county wide baseball league was scheduled to begin play on April 1st, 1865. Folk of the day noted the Kane’s seemed more thrilled in starting the baseball league than founding the town. To honor the territory known as the black cherry trees capital of the world the Kanes thought the tree was a perfect team nickname. Hence the birth of the Kane Black Cherry Trees. That winter they enlisted the services of a local seamstress named Delila Costner to stich numbers and the teams nickname on the uniforms to be worn when league play commenced in the spring. I don’t know if any of you remember the winter of 1864/65 but as I recall that was the year of a record snowfall that still stands today. This is important to know as the arctic conditions resulted in delaying merchandise deliveries for nearly seven weeks to the community including materials used by seamstresses. Caught short on supplies Delila knew that her thread on hand would never be enough to stitch numbers and the long nickname Black Cherry Trees on the uniforms. So, she threw another piece of wood into the fireplace to ponder her predicament. While staring out of her frosty windows at the blustery conditions, she saw a pack of nine wolves howling playfully amongst the now baren black cherry trees. And at that moment Delila, inspired by the wolves’ strength, grabbed a needle and thread. Long before the famous phrase, ‘if you build it, they will come’ said in the movie ‘Field of Dreams’, an equally powerful phrase gained prominence when Delila Costner in responding to the Kane’s confused look in seeing Wolves written on the uniforms informed them “a stitch in time saves nine, playball’. And that my friends are how you became known as the Kane Wolves. Wow, baseball has a lot of history!**
For those interested in purchasing one of nine throwback jersey’s see me in the parking and for 27.47 cents you can be the proud owner of these collectibles. I only accept cash in the exact amount so be sure to put your two cents in! All I know is this, we start at one point and end in another and do stuff in between. It’s good to be alive…. Thanks for being here!
