20-year age gap doesn't stop brothers from making memories
Nov. 23—DANVILLE — Families, friends and those who are missing loved ones will sit down for a meal on Thanksgiving and think of all the things they are thankful for in their lives.
For brothers Jacob and Jonas "JC" Lane of Danville, they are thankful for the time they spent together making memories with trips together this past summer.
The brothers have a 20-year age difference, but that doesn't stop them from making time for each other and enjoying each other's company.
Jacob is 34 years old and JC is 14. Their parents are Steve and Pam Lane.
This past summer, Jacob took JC on a summer of a lifetime.
They visited Illinois and other local sites, and also Texas with their family.
They both love history and sports, so they visited several sites related to two of their interests.
Jacob is a political and non-profit consultant and works throughout the country with a home base in Danville. He's a Schlarman High School and DePauw University graduate.
JC is a freshman at Schlarman. He's involved with scholastic bowl and football.
They were both born on the 14th of the month, Jacob in May and JC in July.
"My parents, they always wanted more kids," Jacob said, adding that they even looked into adopting. "God had other plans. It just took a little longer than expected."
Jacob was a sophomore in college when JC was born.
"I was pretty shocked," Jacob said.
As the years have passed by, they've been pretty close as brothers.
Jacob said he'd always come back on weekends when he was away at school and attending graduate school at Ball State University. Then when he worked in Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia for many years, he'd always try to get back as much as he could.
"Not everybody is lucky enough to be close to their siblings," JC said.
Jacob said their father is the youngest of eight and there was an 18-year age difference with his oldest sister.
Having similar interests has enhanced the brothers' relationship.
Jacob and JC like sports, but they don't like the same baseball teams. JC likes the Houston Astros and Jacob likes the St. Louis Cardinals. JC also collects sports cards and was involved with organizing sports card shows in Danville this year.
"We both love history. We're both big history buffs; and we both love politics," Jacob said. "So, working in the political field maybe that's sort of rubbed off a little bit."
Jacob's love of politics also has led him to decide to toss his hat in the ring for Danville mayor. The election will be next year.
"It took some goading from friends and family, but I care a lot about the community and think I could really make a difference," he stated.
This summer was more unique for the brothers' adventures. Jacob has never been more remote with his job right now where he can build his own schedule.
"It worked out good for him. He had football conditioning Monday through Thursday every week. So, then we said that every Friday we were going to do something," Jacob said.
Some trips were shorter or longer.
They went to Springfield to see some different sites they'd not visited before including the Supreme Court building and New Salem, and they also visited Vandalia. They went to Indiana Beach another weekend.
They went to Ulysses S. Grant's Home in Galena, and Ronald Reagan's boyhood home in Dixon, which was really cool, Jacob said.
"We're both Reaganites," Jacob said.
They went to the Field of Dreams in Iowa.
They went to Indianapolis a few times.
Then their big trip was to Texas.
"That was a family one," JC said.
They started from the middle of the summer and traveled seven to eight weekends.
JC had a busy summer, so they tried to fit trips in when he wasn't busy.
JC said he enjoyed the Texas trip the most. He got to go to Minute Maid Park where the Astros play baseball, and AT&T Stadium where the Dallas Cowboys football team plays.
They also went to the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza where John F. Kennedy was assassinated. They also went to the Alamo and the George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum.
"So that was a lot of fun," Jacob said.
They also went to the beach one day in Galveston, Texas.
"We did a little bit of everything," Jacob said.
The family even had time to go to a sports card show in Texas.
The brothers said the summer highlights were definitely the Texas and Field of Dreams trips.
Some of the places were new too, for Jacob to visit.
"A lot of people don't even realize that stuff's local or around here," he said about some of the sites.
JC is trying to see every baseball stadium. He's been to six so far.
Going through COVID and when a lot of places were closed, the brothers wanted to make the most of the summer and time they have to spend together.
"It's fun," Jacob said about traveling together.
"It's definitely an adventure," JC said.
JC said some friends are a little jealous about the brothers' trips.
A lot of his friends take annual family vacations, and it's kind of a back-to-school competition talking about who took the best trip over the summer.
For the future, Jacob wants to take JC to Washington, D.C.
They also want to see Independence Hall and other sites in Philadelphia.
They also plan to visit more baseball stadiums and attend more sports card shows.
