What's secret to 70 years of friendship? Showing up, listening, saying 'I love you.'
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How long have you been friends with your bestie? Five years? Fifteen? Forty?
“I Love Lucy” was America’s top TV show and the Milwaukee Braves were playing their first season at County Stadium when Mac Weddle and LaMarr Franklin became best friends. Franklin was eight and just moved to a new neighborhood where his parents opened a bar. Weddle was five and lived three houses down from the bar.
The two recently shared their story and secrets to a long bond as they prepare to celebrate 70 years of friendship at an event that will benefit a community organization, which fits with one of the qualities that has kept them close over seven decades: giving back.
They will host a “Friendship Party” Saturday at the Bavarian Beerhaus. Proceeds from the party will support Northcott Neighborhood House, a nonprofit organization that helps stabilizes families, provides food boxes to more than 1,000 senior citizens monthly and offers food pantry access to residents in the 53212 and 53206 ZIP codes.
Friendship started hanging around, doing odd jobs
Franklin’s parents opened Mamie’s Ebony Lounge on 12th and Locust in 1953. It was a popular gathering spot for African Americans who made the great migration from southern states for jobs and to escape the racist Jim Crow laws that had them relegated to second-class citizens.
When Franklin moved into the neighborhood, the other kids didn’t take long to introduce themselves. The two became close when Weddle helped Franklin at the bar cleaning and stocking the shelves. They also earned extra money shoveling the block for neighbors during the winter.
Seventy years later, the two are such a fixture that people ask where the other is when one is not around.
"We got so close that I would go over to his house even when he wasn’t there. His parents would let me in, and I would play with his Army men in the middle of the floor," Weddle said.
He enjoyed the solitude his friend's home provided.
“I tell people that we are not joined at the hip, but he is my brother,” Weddle said.
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Neighborhood was center of family life, lasting friendship
Times were different in 1953. There was no internet. Parents forced their kids to play outside after their chores were done, and residents were more connected to their neighborhood and the young people living on the block.
Franklin, 77, said if you got caught doing something wrong, the adult on the block would discipline you, and they would call your parents and let them know what you did.
They spent most of their free time on the Columbia playground on N. 14th and Chambers when they were not playing marbles or jumping off the neighborhood's garages. During the week, there were 200 children on the playground learning everything from chess and checkers to playing basketball and tug of war. In the winter, rec leaders taught kids ice skating.
“The recreation leaders on the playground were our mentors. They made sure we did what we needed to do to stay out of trouble and to be the best men and women we could be,” Franklin said.
The boys were so close when Franklin was attending Catholic schools, Weddle started practicing Catholicism so they could have even more things to connect them.
Over the years, they would celebrate birthdays, graduations, first jobs, anniversaries, and marriages. They would also hold one another up through divorces and the deaths of family members and friends.
When Franklin lost his only sister in March, Weddle was there for him.
“We have been through it all together, and if you are true friends, you will go through some things,” Weddle said.
Vietnam service was the only thing that kept them from talking
Weddle said their friendship has lasted 70 years because they talk about everything and are constantly learning.
“We challenge each other, and nothing is off limits,” Weddle said.
They also tell each other that they love one another.
“I know younger people may not do that as it’s not macho, but we have always said that, and we don’t end a goodbye without saying it,” Weddle said.
When COVID-19 hit, it hurt businesses, relationships, and many friendships.
The virus did not stop Franklin and Weddle from remaining close. They talked on the phone, chatted on FaceTime and started revisiting each other when the infection numbers came down.
The longest the men went without speaking was from March 1967 to March 1969 when Franklin was serving in Vietnam.
“I missed my friend, but we picked right back up where we left off when I came back,” Franklin said.
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Both men spend time volunteering, giving back
While Weddle and Franklin are well into their 70s, both men say staying active in the community keeps their friendship as fresh as the day they met.
Weddle, 75, served at Northcott Neighborhood House for 42 years in several positions before he retired four years ago as the executive director. Franklin is a former board president of Northcott and started the Milwaukee Chapter of the Black Achievers Program at the YMCA in 1973.
Both men volunteer to give out food during Thanksgiving and Christmas at Northcott. They also volunteer at Juneteenth and have worked with young people through Junior Achievement and the Lavarnway Boys & Girls Club.
They decided to turn their event into a fundraiser for Northcott because they saw how the high prices at the grocery store have made things even harder for families.
“Northcott does so much in the community, and with inflation on the rise and families struggling to put food on the table, we just want to do our part through our party to raise money to buy more food for those in need,” Weddle said.
Besides volunteering, the men can also be seen at various clubs in the city.
Every second Thursday of the month, the two can be found at the Fireside BBQ and Grill on 77th and W. Burleigh for the “Old School Reunion,” a met-up featuring Milwaukee Public Schools graduates from the 60s-80s. The group plays cards, listens to music, plays dominos, and reminisces about old times.
Every second Friday of the month, they meet up at the Family Table Restaurant on 65th and Brown Deer for the MKE Breakfast Club. The event is like Community Brainstorming. People running for political positions come in and discuss their platforms. They also have speakers talk about voting, health, and crime.
So far this year, Mayor Cavalier Johnson, Sherriff Denita Ball, Police Chief Jeffery Norman, and Rev. Greg Lewis of Souls to the Polls spoke to the group.
The men also take their friendship on the road. They have been to Orlando, Los Angeles, and Houston. They have also attended several NBA All-Star Games, and during the football season, they gather several friends to host football parties every week, where a different person hosts and provides food every week.
“We have some good cooks in our group, and the mancaves are nice too with the big screen TVs,” Weddle said.
The secret to a long friendship? Show up and listen.
Being someone’s best friend requires work, grace, and forgiveness. Like most friends, Weddle and Franklin have butted heads from time to time.
“There’s been a few times where he’s called me a (expletive), and I called him one, but at the end of the day, we both know it was just a disagreement. We don’t end the day without saying we love each other,” Weddle said.
Franklin said being friends takes a level of honesty most people are not used to hearing. He said the key to having a successful friendship is showing up. Do what you say you are going to do. Be there when I need you to be there, and most of all, listen.
“That is why we are celebrating. I know I can count on him, and he knows he can count on me, and that’s special because everyone doesn’t have that,” he said.
Reach James E. Causey at jcausey@jrn.com; follow him on Twitter @jecausey.
Event information
What: “70th Year Friendship Party”
When: Saturday, Sept. 9, 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Where: Bavarian Beerhaus, 700 W. Lexington Blvd., Glendale.
How to get tickets: Tickets are $70 and can be purchased by contacting Beth at Northcott at (414) 372-3770. Dinner and live entertainment will be provided. Proceeds will benefit Northcott.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Do people stay friends forever? How these Milwaukee men have done it
