The Ave Maria Religious Gift Shop

I was attending Mont Pleasant High School in 1957.  One of my best friends was Raymond Jankowski.  He loved not far from the school and we'd often go to his house after school to "Hang out."   I learned that Ray's mother had an affinity for horse racing.  She also enjoyed an occasional wager on the horses.  She would say she was going over to Crane Street to place a bet.  It never occurred to me at the time that this was both illegal and remarkably convenient (as Crane Street was very close to the Jankowski's home on Willett Street.  Legal off-track betting was something unheard of at the time.  This was strictly a local activity (service?) of organized crime.

Fast forward to the summer of 1959.  Now I'm attending the University of Rochester and I'm home for Summer vacation.  My friend Hal Johnson is working for the city Department of Parks and Recreation as a Park Recreation Director.  And his park is not for from Ray Jankowski's house.  So sometimes the three of us are seen hanging out.  By now, Hal and I have developed an interest in betting on the horse races taking place not far away at Saratoga Race Track.  I'm sure this interest was enhanced by our frequent evening visits to BL's Tavern which I've written about in an earlier blog entry.  The proprietor of BL's, Benny Lenciewicz was an avid horse racing fan and engaged daily in wagering on the horses.

So one day, Hal and I decide to bet on the Daily Double at Saratoga.  We ask Raymond J. where his mother used to place her bets.  He informs us that it was the Ave Maria Religious Gift Shop on Crane Street.  That's all Hal and I needed as we headed over to Crane Street during Hal's lunch hour to place what I recall to be a $5.00 bet.

The Ave Maria Religious Gift Shop was not much to look at.  As we walked in, we saw a couple of sparsely populated racks of religious greeting cards and a shelving unit with a few statues, crucifixes, rosaries and votive candles.  In the back of the store was a counter behind which sat a balding gentleman who reminds me today of Danny DeVito.  "How may I help you gentleman?"  We explained that we wanted to put $5.00 on the Daily Double at Saratoga for that afternoon's races.  He was shocked at our request!

"That sounds like somethin' to do wit' gamblin'," he pronounced.  "I don't know nuttin' about no gamblin'.  It ain't even legal.  Now get the hell outta here!"  Needless to say, we left.  We proceeded back to Ray's house, sure that he'd given us some bad information.  When we got there, Mrs. Jankowski, Ray's mother, was home and invited us in.

We shared our story.  She laughed hysterically.  She explained, "You were in the right place, but you should have had me take you in to introduce you.  Nobody is going to accept bets from a complete stranger.  You have to be "connected."  We gave Mrs. J. our $5.00.  She placed our bet, which yielded exactly nothing.  That ended Hal's and my joint gambling careers.