SIDNEY — When it comes to Valentine’s Day, the more things change, the more they stay the same.
The Sidney daily news talked with some Sidney teens and some residents of Fair Haven to compare and contrast what the holiday means to young and old.
Teens’ favorite way to celebrate the holiday is to go to dinner together, according to Kim Clausmeier, 18. That’s how Viola, 89, and Robert, 92, Fogt, would celebrate, too.
“I would take her out for a meal,” Robert said. They went to a restaurant where the Inn Between stands now, at Ohio 274 and Ohio 25-A.
“Delbert Meyer owned it,” Viola said. The couple were neighbors, high school sweethearts who married after Robert returned from Coast Guard service during World War II. Living on a farm outside Anna, they raised two daughters.
“The way to my heart is McDonald’s,” said Logan Johnson, 17, and Elliot Wilson, 16, said going out to eat is what he’d like to do Sunday, too.
Emily Guinther, 15, will probably spend the day with her family.
“Valentine’s Day doesn’t have to be romantic,” said Sara Gibson, 14. Clausmeier agreed.
“Just spending time with friends (is a great way to celebrate),” she said.
The Fogts did not exchange gifts on Heart Day. Some of the teens will, although knowing what to give gives them pause.
“What do you give a guy?” asked Clausmeier. Caleb Johnson, 15, had a quick answer.
“I like getting necklaces. Dog tags and things,” he said. The best gift for Johnson is candy. He likes Feb. 15 even better than Valentine’s Day, “because that’s when the chocolate goes on sale,” he laughed.
Henrietta Stockton, 90, also likes candy.
“A box of candy and a special Valentine card” would be her ideal gift, she said. A lifelong resident of Sidney, she was married for awhile — “long enough to have three girls” — and she worked throughout her life, first as a babysitter, then as a housekeeper, then in a laundry and various local factories. She retired from Copeland. Following retirement, she delivered meals for the Area Agency on Aging.
“I always gave my mother a box of candy and special card,” she said. “I always read it to make sure she would enjoy it.” In school, all the children gave everyone in their classes Valentines and “we had little Valentine treats,” she remembered. “It’s been years since I gave Valentines.”
Cards are not important to teens.
“Why give a card when you can say something to their face, instead?” Gibson said. The generation gap also shows up when they’re discussing movie dates. Going to a movie is a great Valentine date, but for young people, that means getting together to watch Netflix at home, according to Colin Freistuhler, 15, of Sidney.
“It’s more romantic at home,” Johnson said.
“Not sitting with a bunch of peole you don’t really know,” added Johnson. The older generation found going to the theater to be what made a date special.
The Fogts gave candy to their daughters on the holiday. Now, their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren remember them with cards and gifts.
“I keep telling them not to do that, but they do it anyway,” Viola said.
“They sure had a nice party here for us all. You couldn’t beat that meal they did for us,” Robert said. Fair Haven served a holiday meal, Feb. 9. There will be another party, Sunday.
Johnson would appreciate the double festivities.
“(Celebrating) doesn’t have to be one day. Why spend it all on one day?” he said.
