Islander Reflects on Over Nine Decades That Mingled Nationalities, Built Resort

NORTH WILDWOOD – At the corner stands a modest home – its simple construction a quiet reminder of all that is solid. Storms and hurricanes have raged in the sea just a block beyond and over the dunes, yet the house still stands firm. Summer dreamers and fishermen have all passed by over the years, their minds set on work or a long day on the beach. However, two generations grew up, laughed, cried and lived within those walls. One of North Wildwood’s oldest families called this strip of sand, thrust between sea and sky, their home since the late 1800s.
Marion Mouklas, a member of the family happens to live not far from me. Her memories of life in North Wildwood give us perspective on what is truly meaningful and timeless as we reflect and look forward to another new year.
Mouklas, an intrepid soul, witnessed the island’s transformation into a boom town and popular family resort along the Jersey Shore. Many events that shook America run as colorful threads in the tapestry of her life. She stands an individual, grateful for her blessings and thankful for the storms she has weathered. Age is relative, but 93 years in North Wildwood certainly ranks as an accomplishment.
Pause a moment and learn from this “old native,” as she refers to herself, and catch a glimpse of New Years past.
Every culture holds its traditions dear, especially during the holidays while sometimes not even knowing where they came from. People have always made North Wildwood what it is today: people from all over the globe. The great steam and sailing ships crossing the wide Atlantic brought many from Norway, Sweden, Finland, Italy, Ireland, Scotland, England and Wales. Some settled inland before making their way to the shore.
Mouklas recalls how her church’s Sunday school was made up of children whose fathers docked their fishing boats where houses stand today. Swedes, Norwegians, and Finns mingled with other immigrant families who took on a new name: American. “Everyone got along,” she said with a smile. In a country torn by strife, it is refreshing to know that a community can always come together.
Wildwood certainly looked different in those days! Three five-and-ten stores along with department stores lined Atlantic Avenue, boasting of tinsel in their windows and sending swaths of light over the streets.
Mouklas remembers her mother going shopping at places called Murphy’s and Newberry’s – names perhaps unfamiliar to many, but familiar to those who have been here a long while. When asked if there was any particular gift she recalled wanting, Mouklas cocked her head and replied, “We were too poor. I knew better.”
What they may have lacked in money did not matter. “No one had any money,” she confided. “Sometimes my mother made clothes for my dolls.” Yet every Christmas, her siblings and she would make their way to the fire station at Third and Central avenues and receive an apple, orange, and a box of candy. Memories of treats never fail to bring a smile, even if one is 93.
Her family gathered at the Christmas Eve service and several offered their talents as gifts in singing and playing the organ at the First Baptist Church of Anglesea. With another soft smile and a chuckle, she quoted a line she said in a Christmas pageant: “I am a little snow bird, I just came by to say Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas. Now I’ll fly away.”
Mouklas remembers her father going offshore to cut their family’s Christmas tree. “A cedar tree – never pine,” she said emphatically. When she had a family of her own and her son was safely tucked in bed, she would take a bar of Ivory soap and shave off tiny pieces onto the branches to resemble snow. Then presents were wrapped and other preparations made for the next morning.
“I must have been nuts to do all that!” she declared. Love, it seems, makes even the most humble, time-consuming task worthwhile. This fisherman’s daughter learned early that Christmas came and went just fine without money or a lot of fuss.
Music filled her Christmases. Caroling on Christmas Eve and singing carols in school still bring special memories to mind. “I just said pieces and sang,” she said in a mater-of–fact tone.
In many homes, the smell of Christmas and New Year treats bring a sense of abundance. Traditional Christmas goose and plum pudding aside, this native gave an account of her mother baking apple and pumpkin pies – how the cinnamon must have tingled everyone’s senses. “Sometimes we had a roast or a leg of lamb,” Mouklas recalled. “Or sometimes we had codfish.” Her father, who made his living on the sea, always helped at Christmas and even with the cooking throughout the year. Life may not always be easy or obviously plentiful, but family loyalty crowns any gift.
New Year’s celebrations span the globe and joyful amalgamation of personal and cultural hopes for a prosperous and happy new year transcend the words printed in a greeting card. “We had a watch night at church and communion at midnight,” Mouklas said. When asked if she looked forward to New Year’s Eve as a child, she chuckled, “I went to bed or fell asleep.”
However, when she was older she attended the service and even held the office of church clerk. An ordinary life, some may say, but no life is ever truly ordinary. Words and actions affect everyone in a community and the passing of one generation to the next.
As the sun began setting that December day, I asked if she had any hopes for 2015. After a moment’s pause, she replied quietly, “Yes, I hope everything can get straightened out. All the fighting needs to stop in politics.”
She went on to express hope for a better world and less conflict and confusion in the world. Time, culture, background, and other social divides we create all fade away in light of such a statement. May the coming New Year prove to be just as this dear friend wishes.
To contact Rachel Rogish, email rrogish@cmcherald.com.