Episode 17: Partners

February 16, 2023

Narration
Irene was 28, and she was separated from her husband Torfinn. It was 1963. She was working as a waitress at a restaurant in Brooklyn called Wolfie’s.
It was there that Irene met Joe.

Bessa: He was the head waiter on the day shift. And I was hired on the night shift. He asked me to go out. 

He asked me to meet him in a bar across the street from where he worked and I worked. 

But anyway, I had the picture with me. Of the three kids. My kids. And he told me he liked me. And he would like to see me.

He said, I really like you, and I think we should be together. So I took up the picture, laid it on the table, and I said, Well, if you want to have anything to do with me, these are mine. And they come first. He said, No problem, I have three of my own. 

Narration

Irene and Joe dated for several years. During this time they each moved on to different jobs in the restaurant industry. Irene worked as a waitress at a few restaurants, finally landing at the Danish Athletic Club in Brooklyn. 

About 5 years after they met, Irene married Joe in 1968.

Bessa: We got married – the City Hall – my sister Reidun and my friend Kjell Nielsen, they were our two witnesses, and our wedding dinner we had on Staten Island in the Riviera Chateau, that was our favorite restaurant, which became my children’s favorite restaurant after we got married. They loved that place.

And when I had been married to him a few months, I said to him, I’d like to become a United States citizen. He said, Wow. I said, Yeah, I didn’t think about it before because I was married to a Norwegian and I didn’t know exactly what was going to be. I said, Now I’d like to give it a try. How I passed, I will never know because I couldn’t pass today. 

Kristen: Did you study?

Bessa: A little bit. Well anyway, I got it.

500 people became United States citizens the day I became a citizen, 1969. I still have the papers. That was the smartest thing I ever did. 

Narration

Irene, Joe, and the kids moved from Brooklyn to Staten Island. 

Irene continued working at the Danish Club.

There were many long days and nights for Irene and Joe.

But Irene made sure of one thing for her kids. Church on Sunday.

Bessa: I made sure that the kids went to church every Sunday. But I worked nights and nobody would wanted to have me in church because I would be sleeping. I got home three or 4:00 in the morning on Saturdays. I had all I could do to crawl out of bed and get. I would drive to church with the kids in my robe to get them there. 

Kristen: Wow. 

Bessa: And then my girlfriend, her kids were there, too. She would pick them up, so we would take turns. But they never missed Sunday school. That was important to me.

Narration

Moving ahead a few years, Irene and Joe found out about an opportunity to run the restaurant at a private swim club during the summertime.

Bessa: I worked in the Danish Club and Joe came to me and said, We can get this concession in a Jewish swim club. They want 10,000 finders fee, but I’m told that we can do good there. 

I said, I have to see it. So he took me out there. It was dirty, but I know that can be cleaned up. I said, Okay, 10,000 for 10 weeks. Uh, how many members? Well, there’s at least 500 members and nobody is allowed to bring in food. This is the only place they can eat. I said, Sign the papers. So we did.

And it was me, Joe Carol, Thor, and Inger –  the five of us opened up that place. Unbelievable. We worked like dogs and I quit at 4:30 in the afternoon. Cause four o’clock I left them beause I had to go to the Danish Club.

Carol was the cashier, Thor would be the ice cream man. Joe was on the grill. I had the salad bar and the sandwich section. And it ran like a clock and people were just coming in and coming in and coming in and coming in. 

Then we had two nights a week. It was late, late night that we served dinner. So I made Norwegian meatballs. I made pot roasts. I made fresh ham. I made all kinds of stuff. 

And the third year I said, Joe, enough is enough. The kids gave up three summers. That’s enough. They made good money.

Kristen: Were you breaking any labor laws?

Bessa: No, I don’t think so. No. I had the board of health come there in the middle of lunch time. We were going crazy. I had a  line out the door and he comes in to check my thermometer in the steam table. I got so mad. I said, You get out!  I’m here to check — Out! You don’t come in here in the middle of lunchtime and ruin our dinner, business! Boy, he ran.

<laugh> I chased the board of health right out. 

Kristen: You wouldn’t get away with that now.

Bessa: Are you kidding? They’d  lock me up.

<laughs>

Bessa: We opened up Memorial Day, weekend and closed on Labor Day.

It was a beautiful place. They had cabanas, their members had cabanas and they used the pool and they had cabana boys and they would give the order to the cabana boy. The cabana boy came down to us and ordered everything and we got the money and the people were happy. 

Well they were tired. When we drove home, the three kids in the back seat.

Yeah. I had a busy life. 

Narration

Irene and Joe were great partners.

In addition to the swim club, around this time they also bought a luncheonette and ran that together for a few years. 

Irene liked the daytime hours so that they had more nights together for their family.

They were very busy, as Irene commented.

The next episode isn’t about work.

You will hear a story about Irene’s hair. Her hair caught the attention of – a queen. A real queen. We’ll also share some fun other stories.