John Havel

“My dad, Alvin Havel of St. John in southern Fayette County, is 93 years old. Last Christmas, he received a totally unexpected gift from an extremely thoughtful person.

“To put this story in perspective, let me share a little family history. My grandfather, Cyril Havel, was born in Archlebov, Moravia, in 1885, and emigrated from Czechoslovakia with his family when he was 18 years old in 1903. The oldest son, he helped his family settle in Smetana near Bryan, and then set off to start a new life. After making friends with other Czechs in the Schulenburg area, he decided to stay.

“My grandfather opened a saloon on Schulenburg’s Main Street in the building that now houses Tillies Cafe. When Prohibition started, he was forced to close his saloon. My dad, Alvin, who was born in 1930, had only heard stories about his father’s saloon. Dad vaguely remembers seeing round advertising tokens for it that likely were lost over time.

“Last December, when Dad was reading his email, he came across an advertisement for rare coins, including one from Fayette County, Texas. He was so surprised to see that it was for the Havel Saloon. Although Dad was skeptical, he enlisted my help and, if it looked authentic, to buy the $38 coin. When I attempted to do so, it had already sold. Dad was disappointed because his chance to own something from his father’s saloon had slipped away from him. Who, we wondered, would have wanted it?

“Flash forward to Christmas Day 2022. My parents had opened all but two gifts under their tree. These were from their caregiver, Tanya Edwards. When Dad opened Tanya’s gift, he was speechless.

It was the coin from his father’s saloon that we’d tried to purchase on the Internet earlier in the month.

“Tanya had been busy cooking in the kitchen when she heard Dad call me and describe the coin. She quickly got on her iPhone and secretly bought the token to surprise Dad. It was definitely the most thoughtful and special gift he received last Christmas.”