Since yesterday was my last day working the midnight shift at the Walgreen's, I feel impelled to relate once again my father Nelson's story about the founder of the company, Charles Rudolph Walgreen. Walgreen started his chain on the South Side of Chicago, and he belonged to the Beverly Country Club, located at 87th and Western on the South Side. My father (seen in the photograph above) was a caddy at Beverly, and often caddied for who he used to call "old man Walgreen." Walgreen never tipped his caddies, signing their caddy tickets instead. I guess he believed his autograph was worth far more than a mere monetary reward. The caddies must have loved him for that. However, my father did say that Walgreen told interesting stories while golfing. One time he related to his golfing partners that the biggest mistake he ever made in business was loaning money to his brother-in-law. "Did he lose it all?" one of the foursome wanted to know. No, Walgreen replied - he went into competition against him via the Rexall Drug chain. Life lessons for us all.
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