It’s July on St. Simons Island and that means two things: One, it’s HOT! Two, kids are out of school for the summer. I grew up here on the island in the 70s and summer on St. Simons as a kid was like having your own summer camp. It was before iPhones, computers, video games and hundreds of TV channels. Summers were the best because our parents worked, and we got to spend hours exploring the far reaches of the island. Most days began with me yelling, “Mom, I’m goin’ to the Casino,” as I hopped on my bike and headed out of Epworth to meet up with my buddies in the Village.
SSI Village Ferris wheel
For anyone who grew up on the island in the 50s, 60s and 70s, summers on St. Simons meant summers at The Casino. Now, before you think we were a bunch of degenerate gamblers, The Casino was a recreational building with a trifecta (See what I did there!) of summer activities for kids. There was a huge swimming pool with a regular diving board and a high dive board, a roller-skating rink AND a bowling alley!
I was a member of the Golden Isles Swim Team, and we practiced in the Casino pool every morning. After swim practice, you could go up to the skating rink and try to hone your skills on wheels to impress the 5th and 6th grade girls. After many failed attempts at that, you’d regain your manly pride by hitting a few strikes at the bowling alley with your buddies. If you were hungry, you’d grab a bite at the Casino’s concession stand or stop at Tasty Freeze on your bike ride to the baseball field for a pick-up game. Back then, you could ride your bike anywhere, lay it down on the ground and not worry about someone stealing it. You knew what everyone else’s bike looked like so you knew who was at the ball fields by just looking at the various bikes strewn on the ground.
David at Neptune Park Pool
Regrettably, the old Casino was torn down in the 80s. In its place is a very nice public pool and putt-putt course. I still like to ride my bike down to the village, walk on the pier, ride past the old Casino, and get an ice cream at Frosty’s (the old Tasty Freeze). As a kid, I rode my bike all day and never got tired. These days it’s a long haul back home to Sea Palms. “Mom, can you pick me up at the Casino?”
