If you’re interested in birds and want to know which is what, come to the Wyomissing Public Library on Saturday, May 4th at 9 AM. Bill Uhrich, Reading Eagle Photo Editor and birdwatcher extraordinaire, will lead a walk around the area and you will learn the differences in bird songs, habitats and colors. Wear comfortable shoes and bring your binoculars!
Registration is requested for this program.
At 1 pm, Fred Sheeler, Berks County Recorder of Deeds, will step into the character of Wyomissing’s most famous past resident: Ferdinand Thun. Ferdinand and his wife, Anna, contributed the funding to build the library, which is located at 9 Reading Boulevard in Wyomissing.
Sheeler, 56, will portray Mr. Thun in the year 1922 when he was 56 years old. When asked what prompted him to take on the persona of Ferdinand Thun, Mr. Sheeler responded, “I grew up hearing about Ferdinand Thun and the Berkshire Knitting Mills, my grandfather William E. Sheeler Sr. worked there from 1922 till his retirement in the early 1970’s. I remember hearing about the heyday of the Berkshire and the business travels of my grandfather in the closing days of the business. From the late 1940’s through the end of the 1960’s my grandfather was head of Plant Installation, in that position he would re-locate the great Berkshire Full Fashion Knitting machines to Berkshire subsidiaries in Germany, Ireland, Greece, South Africa and Japan. Prior to his death Mr. Thun was a frequent dinner guest of my grandparents at their house along the Tulpehocken Creek.”
After some research and conversations with David Thun and Peter Thun, grandsons of Ferdinand, Sheeler put together a short program where he steps into the role of Ferdinand Thun. Attendees will hear of Mr. Thun’s early life in Germany, his travel to America, his chance meeting with Henry Janssen while in New York City and how they created the Wyomissing Industries and specifically the Berkshire Knitting Mill.
Both programs are free and open to the public. Registration is requested and may be done online at www.wyopublib.org, by phone at 610-374-2385, or in-person at the circulation desk.
Copies of the book, Good Morning Thun, Good Morning Janssen by Barry Kauffman are available for sale at the library. The cost is $30 and all proceeds benefit the library directly.
