Many “About Addison” readers have kindly mentioned to me that they enjoyed the Addison community television program that I was once involved with, called “Something To Wine About.”  The show was co-produced by my brother, Mike Tynus, mutual buddy Jeff Boddeker and myself. 

We featured a different reasonably priced wine every week, providing reference information, tasting impressions, pairing ideas and accessories. The central theme of the show was that wine is not a beverage reserved only for the affluent and privileged.

We wanted to spotlight Sal’s Beverage World, 434 West Lake St., Addison as our wine shop of choice by taping a regular segment of the show there. When we approached Sal’s with the idea, they identified manager John Childress without hesitation as the right person to represent the store.

Childress’ first bond with our community actually came through his primary day job as a collections officer at Oxford Bank. He added on a part-time stint as a cashier at Sal’s in 1999 and became a standard evening fixture at the Addison store. 

“I spend so much time in Addison that people think I live right around the corner,” Childress once said. In fact, he lived in south suburban Calumet City. 

And so began our regular association with Childress. We’d let him know what the featured wine of the show was each week and he would develop a segment based on that, providing very savory insights, historic background and advice on serving and enjoying wine. His pleasant, down-to-earth nature coupled with his rock solid wine knowledge really resonated on camera. 

Through our two-year stint of producing the show, we interacted with Childress nearly every week and developed a friendship with him. It was a true privilege to progress from the typical conversation between store customers and staff to a more personal level. We discussed our day jobs, our personal histories, our families. Childress spoke frequently about his four children, his adoration for them always obvious. 

Even after we wrapped up production of the wine show, we stayed in touch through shopping at Sal’s. Our original bond, a mutual love of wine, remained intact as we continued to share wine tidbits with each other. And so, when I recently discovered the 2004 Cabernet-Shiraz of Lynfred Winery in Roselle which had just taken two Double Gold medals plus Best of Show at the Amenti del Vino International Wine Competition, I eagerly obtained a bottle for Childress. 

You could count on Childress to be at the store according to his work schedule as solidly as counting on Wednesday to follow Tuesday, April to follow March. So it was extremely odd when I arrived at Sal’s on one particular Thursday evening, bottle of Lynfred wine in tow, and was told that he wasn’t there due to jury duty.  How ironic, I thought, that the one night when his Sal’s work schedule is skewed is the night I go there to present him with a gift. Sigh. 

Eighteen days later, on Monday, Nov. 12, Childress died suddenly and unexpectedly while at work at Oxford Bank. At 59 years of age, it was much too early. 

All of us who had the pleasure of knowing him remain stunned. You might imagine how his colleagues at Sal’s are still reeling.

“It’s like getting punched in the gut,” said one of them. “He was such a wonderful guy. All the people loved him.”

“Everyday I walk in the store and it’s so different,” said another. “John was the heart and soul of our store. The customer following he had was unbelievable.”

That bottle of Lynfred wine meant for John Childress, now sitting in my living room still arrayed in a lovely wine gift bag, has been haunting me. Also forever haunting me is the question, “Why did I let two weeks go by before re-attempting to deliver his gift, one he most certainly would have savored?”

However, this is the night for me to unscrew that cork in honor of this true gentleman and savor what is sure to be a velvety blend.  I invite you all to raise a glass and join me in a toast to our wonderful friend, John, declaring heartily just as he would have, “Happy Thursday, folks!”

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