Mr. Rogers Died Today
Mr. Rogers died today at the age of 74. I didn’t watch Mr. Rogers much as a child, but he would impact my life in a big way during two summers during college.
During the summers of ‘95 and ‘96 I worked at an amusement park in Ligonier, PA called Idlewild Park. (Ligonier is relatively close to Pittsburgh, PA, where Mr. Rogers was produced.) Those two summers I was one of a handful of people who worked at one of the big attractions at Idlewild, Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood of Make Believe. In the TV show, the neighborhood was where Mr. Rogers would go to visit his make believe friends. At the park, the neighborhood was a life-size neighborhood in the forest. I drove a life-size trolley full of park visitors through the neighborhood, stopping at each location so the children could say hello to the neighbors, who were actually animatronic puppets. Yes, I talked to animatronic puppets all day, for two entire summers.
So here’s to Mr. Rogers, for giving me the opportunity to make a lot of children smile, teach the value of Hug-n-Song parties and meet some interesting people along the way.
- 27 Feb 03
- inspiration, personal
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Comments
Oh, that’s so sad. I used to watch Mr. Rogers all the time when I was younger. He will be missed.
Baasch on 27 Feb 03
Mr. Rogers made an impact on a lot of peoples lives and blessed millions. His message and his love will not soon fade away. God Bless
Soldier4Christ on 9 Mar 03
We loved Mr.Rogers and feel deeply destressed to hear that he has passed on . May his wonderful soul make the angels smile as he did us when we were kids .
Anonymous on 22 Mar 03