Bill Sackter's early years in Minneapolis

Bill's Coffeeshop in Iowa City is named for Bill Sackter. What was his life like? How did he get to Iowa? It's quite a story.

Once I started a talk to a young audience by telling a little about Bill
before giving his name. I said he was Jewish, grew up very poor and later
became quite famous. A hand went up in the audience. I stopped and called on the young listener. I just want you to know that I already know about Jesus, she said.

Bill, for whom Bill's Coffeeshop is named, started his life in a neighborhood of 19th century wood frame homes just north of downtown Minneapolis. These
homes were located along dirt streets and were already old when Bill was born in 1913. In fact, these were some of the oldest buildings in the city at that
time.

Bill grew up above his parents'' grocery store on Aldrich Avenue North. His parents had emigrated from Russia to the United States like many of the neighbors. And like most of the neighbors, the Sackters were Jewish.

Bill's neighborhood was one of the earliest centers of Jewish culture in Minneapolis. It was here that the first synagogues in the city got their start. It was here, too, that kosher markets and Yiddish theater flourished.

And it was here that the tradition of Jewish social service began in Minneapolis. Families in the neighborhood developed their own social welfare system which was financed by a "tithe" of ten cents per week. This provided not only aid for the poorest families, but also supported a community center
and programs for youth

All of this is gone now. In fact, Bill's neighborhood is gone now --
obliterated by successive waves of urban renewal which began in the 1930s in
Minneapolis.

But here and there, one can still find signs of the Jewish community where
Bill grew up. Pastor Paul's Disciples Ministry now occupies one of the former synagogues in the old neighborhood. It is probably the only Christian church in the city with two Stars of David on its front facade.

The Lincoln Del, which began as a bakery just a few blocks from Bill's house,
once displayed many old pictures of this neighborhood in its St. Louis Park
location. But it, too, is now gone. You can find some of those photos in a history book called "And prairie dogs weren't kosher."

The history of Bill's neighborhood is also recalled in two stage plays. One, titled "King of the kosher grocers," tells the story of a Jewish grocer much like Bill's dad. It was written by Joe Minjares, who contacted Bill's Coffeeshop awhile ago to report that he had just recently realized that he knew Bill back in the early 1960s. Joe's mom was a friend of Bill's landlady when Bill lived near Bloomington and 26th Avenue in south Minneapolis.

The other play, "Good Evening! It's a city celebration," includes scenes about Bill and his neighborhood. It was presented in 1998 at the Capri Theatre in Minneapolis in cooperation with the American Variety Theatre Company. Portions of that show were reprised in a 2003 show called "Good evening from Bill's coffeeshop." That show was presented in Bill's Coffeeshop itself.

There's a lot more to tell about Bill and the coffeeshop. We'll have more stories next week.<