Perhaps the last hand
JEFFERSON TWP — For 73 years almost every Saturday night, you knew where to find Lillian “Lil” Bachman, 91, of Saxonburg. She would be at the Jefferson Grange, 211 Bullcreek Road, for card night.
Through wars, weather and social upheaval, Bachman would take her place at a table at 7 p.m. Saturday and for the next three hours play 500.
“I started playing with my husband Herbert on Jan. 17, 1947,” she said. “We got married Oct. 18, 1946. Then, we had an apartment on Saxonburg Road.
“The people we rented off brought us here for a card party,” she said.
She remembers the date because she used to keep a diary, and she recently cleaned out a drawer and found hers.
“That's how I knew the exact date. Once in a while we would miss one, but generally on Saturday night we were always at the grange,” Bachman said.
But now Bachman's streak is in danger of being interrupted.
This is an excerpt, pick up Friday's Butler Eagle or subscribe online to read the full story.