After 40+ years, the Okey family is moving on

JoAnn Okey with the famed Snoopy Mailbox.

by Marsha Chartrand

Shortly after talking with JoAnn Okey for this article last week, I ran across a quote: “We don’t meet people by accident. They are meant to cross our path for a reason.” And it seemed particularly appropriate to share at this time, as so many in Manchester likely have the same feelings about Dr. Monty and JoAnn Okey and their family.

Preparing to leave the San Diego area after Monty’s military service was completed in the early 1980s and ready to spend time with extended family, the young couple, then with three children, knew they wanted to be within a half hour’s drive of each of their parents. So, they did what many others did in a similar situation at that time — they took out a map, drew concentric circles with a compass, and hit a spot in the middle. Voilà! Manchester, Michigan.

Here, they found what was the perfect place for their growing family. A large brick home on the main route through town that had served purposes as varied as farmhouse and boarding house over the years. A huge lot that encompassed a little over two acres, close to the elementary school, with plenty of room for the gardens that JoAnn would cultivate and care for over the next 35 years. A welcoming small-town community where Monty could establish his medical practice. And a school system that JoAnn still believes is second to none, especially in accommodating students with special needs.

Gradually, they made the sprawling house and grounds, home. They quickly became involved as volunteers in the community in myriad ways — from food co-ops to manning the fair gates. Monty served at Emanuel Church, on the School Board, in the Optimist/Civic Club, and worked the pits at the Chicken Broil each year. He would also purchase a steer from the Steer Club auction each year. JoAnn served on the Library Board and also was on the School Board, served as Klager Elementary School Principal, and recently completed a term on the Worth Repeating Board. She volunteered in various capacities over the years as her time allowed, while juggling her profession and her family’s needs.

One of their most “famous” — and definitely memorable — volunteer efforts, however, was the Okey family’s 25 years of handing out hundreds of caramel apples at Halloween. Those who only know the Caramel Apple tradition at Wurster Park missed a lot of the fun over those years, but rest assured that not only have the Okeys remained involved in supporting it all along, but a recent estate sale raised more than $1,000 toward keeping it going in the future.

JoAnn laughed as she recalled how the first couple of years she spent days ahead of time unwrapping little Kraft caramels to melt. “What a relief when I learned I could buy it in 10-pound bulk packages!” she says now.

As their family grew to include a total of six children, so did their involvement in the community and the educational system. This led to both Monty and JoAnn serving school board terms at different times over the years. “Having children with special needs ourselves, it was important to us that all families with special needs kids would receive the services and the acceptance that they needed and deserved,” JoAnn explained. And so, as the Optimist and Civic clubs, often with Monty at the helm, recognized the high-achieving young people in the community through the Student of the Month program, they also worked diligently for the other students who required a different kind of support system through the schools.

Another local tradition for which the Okeys are famous is their Snoopy Mailbox. Visiting JoAnn’s parents west of town, they and their little ones had always enjoyed watching the adventures of Snoopy at a house on Main Street across from the market. They built their own Snoopy mailbox at their home in Fallbrook, California, and when they moved back to Manchester they learned that the home on Main Street no longer had Snoopy as its resident Mailbox Keeper. “So, we stuck our own Snoopy in that hole in the town,” JoAnn said. “We hope it brings joy to people passing by. A lot of people have let us know how much they appreciate it!

“Mont is the the faithful one,” she explained. “He makes sure Snoopy is changed each day, that each one is in good repair, and he has made most of them himself.” Over the years, some Snoopys have died of old age, some have taken a walk, and others have come to visit … some of them staying on. People have shared new ideas for the Okeys’ Snoopy and there are those who have taken tracings of the characters to create their own decorations.

And now, the story is about to change. Moving trucks have been in and out of the driveway at the Okey residence over the past few weeks. It’s a time of mixed emotions for the family.

As they came to Manchester to be closer to their parents 45 years ago, now Monty and JoAnn are moving to the Chicago area to be closer to their children (and six of their nine grandchildren). Much of the move has been happening over the past year and a half, but this summer, reality is hitting.

“We have such mixed emotions,” JoAnn said. “We’re excited to be close to our youngest grandchildren. But leaving behind friends and family here, and a place I know … it’s heart rending … scary, to be honest. But we have the security of knowing that there is a role for us at our new home in Illinois.

“This house is too big for the two of us; the yard is mammoth. I have loved it, but there’s so much I can’t do now. A historic home like this, on the main street of the community, needs to be maintained appropriately — and it’s time for someone else to serve in that role. We have been part of a link in a chain, and I’ll be happy for the new owners to make this home their own.

“And I’ll be happy for us.”

An open house event to wish the Okeys well in their new home will be held on Sunday, July 30, at the large pavilion in Carr Park from 12 to 3pm. The community is welcome. Refreshments will be served. If you cannot attend and have a special memory you’d like to share with Monty and/or JoAnn, it can be emailed to themanchestermirror@gmail.com or mailed to PO Box 696, Manchester, MI, prior to July 20.

For as little as $1 a month, you can keep Manchester-focused news coverage alive.

by Marsha Chartrand

Marsha Johnson Chartrand, a founder, writer, and copy editor with the Manchester Mirror, is a 50-year resident of Manchester. She has a long history of volunteer and community involvement.