http://www.agsem.com/pfreiling.html

Above: in this undated The Ignitor archive photo Frances and Paul Freiling in our Club House. Below (left) Frances with Red Hot Henrietta Brown; (right) Rich Eckert with Red Hot Henrietta Brown.

Tom Garrison Pictures

Swiped from Mechanical Music Digest™ Archives

Liquidating a Collection -- The Collector's Disease

Following the discussions about getting rid of your prized possessions when you cash in, and having been involved for the past 30 years with collecting and restoring old farm tractors, gas and steam engines, and related "junk", and old iron, I have seen many times the breakup of extensive collections after the owner has gone to the Big Scrap Yard in the Sky. The following is a poem I wrote several years ago that pretty well covers the situation.

"THAT'S LIFE"
by PEF

A fellow stopped by my house the other day,
And said, Is it true what the neighbors all say?
That your garage is all filled, from the back to the door,
And you've got so much junk that you can't see the floor?

And the shed out in back has a similar fate,
And your yard's full of cast iron, clear up to the gate,
And you've got engines and tractors that really are rusted:
Some of them run, but others are busted?

I invited him in so he could look around,
But when he saw it, he just stood there and frowned.
'Cause he didn't understand -- this disease that we've got
That we can't leave them out there to ruin and rot.

We've got to pick up all the old iron we see,
And some that we find, we take home with glee.
We clean it and paint it and get it to run,
And, all of the time, we think it's such fun.

But -- sometimes we acquire much more than our needs
And it lands in the back yard, out there in the weeds.
So, if you've got more than you'll ever restore,
Get rid of it now, before the neighbors get sore!

Our heirs will just sell it; they couldn't care less
About all our treasures -- they think it's a mess.
They'll settle the estate that we carefully built,
and get rid of it all, with no trace of guilt.

Paul E. Freiling
Fullerton CA

Paul E. Freiling of Fullerton Ca. formerly of Hannibal Mo. Passed away Saturday, May 12th 2007 at 11:14 PM. Mr. Freiling was born April 11, 1921 to Paul J and Mary (Rannenberg) Freiling on a farm in Ralls County Mo. Near Hannibal Mo.
He was married to Frances Louise Campbell on Nov. 8, 1942 at Hannibal. She preceded him in death Dec. 26, 2005.
Mr. Freiling was a retired machinist/moldmaker in the plastics trade. He was a 55 year member of Post 55 American Legion Hannibal, Mo. A 35 year (life) member of the Antique Gas & Steam Engine Museum at Vista, CA. He was a veteran of WW2, having served in the Combat Engineers, & the 1485th Engineer Maintenance Co in the Philippines & Japan. He also was 14 years as Warrant Officer in the Missouri National Guard at Hannibal Mo.
Preceded in death by sister Dorothy (Freiling) Beaver, brother-in-law Elmer Beaver, & Brother-in-law Kirt Lewellen.
Survivors include one sister, Mrs. Kirt (Helen Freiling) Lewellen of Hannibal. Two daughters, Jeanne Ann Murphy & husband John of Richland Washington, Raynette Greaver & husband Earl of Barstow Ca. & one son Paul M.(Mike) Freiling & wife April of Riverside Ca.
Nine grandchildren: Andrea Carroll, Liane Greaver, James Greaver, Matthew Greaver, Leah Robbins, Julie Taylor, Phillip Freiling, Paul Freiling & Chad Freiling. Also 13 Great-Grandchildren & many nieces and nephews.