Raymond and Helen were seeing each other, and her mother, Hattie did not approve, so they sent Helen out to stay with Hattie’s sister, Nora Howell Rayle, in Los Angeles, CA in 1932. Helen traveled by train, and told me ” when you looked out the back of the train you could see rabbits running away from the tracks on both sides.”

A couple of weeks later, Raymond followed her out to California and they eloped, marrying at Precious Blood Church, in Los Angeles, CA. I’m sure much to the displeasure of Helen’s parents, even though they eloped themselves.

Raymond and Helen stayed with Raymond’s uncle Sylvester Peak’s family instead of her aunts until they found a place on Sunset Blvd. to live. The street was unpaved at the time. Helen took in laundry to make money and Raymond worked at a speakeasy. Helen told me they saw the grand opening of the movie “King Kong” at the Grauman’s Chinese Theatre.

Some of Stan Peak’s grandchildren remember Raymond and Helen giving them a set of poker chips, perhaps from the speakeasy. They still use them today when they play cards at family get togethers.

Eventually, Raymond and Helen wanted to return home. They purchased an old “T Model Ford” as Helen called it, and headed for home. Not long into the trip the car broke down in a California orange grove. Raymond set off on foot to get help, while Helen went into the grove and climbed a tree for safety. She told me she had to stay an entire day alone there before he came back. I asked her what she was thinking while waiting there a whole day. She said “I was thinking he wasn’t coming back.”

From there they made their way back to Kentucky, stopping along the way to do odd jobs for food and fuel. The car broke down in Colorado, and the repair guy asked how far they were going. They said Kentucky, and he said he would fix it enough to get them there. And it made it.

Information from Ray Peake