At 95 years old, Dick Allen has been tickling the ivories since he was 16, a musical hobby that he still enjoys as he practices at home or plays for other residents of Heritage Pointe of Fort Wayne senior living community.
Allen grew up in Gary, Indiana, where his parents recognized that he had a good singing voice and decided that he should have piano lessons.
“They cost $9 for a half hour in 1945. Can you believe it?” Allen recalls. “I’d take the street car from the south side of Gary to downtown Gary for my lessons.”
The first song his teacher taught him to play was “Stardust,” followed by “Deep Purple” and “Sunnyside of the Street.” By the end of six months of weekly lessons, Allen could play 110 songs.
“I can probably still do about 50 of those,” he says.
Taking those early piano lessons enabled him to read one note and be able to put a chord with it, he adds.
Although he always loved music, he pursued a career as an accountant working for an oil company. When the oil industry foundered, he decided to go into the food business, eventually owning a Noble Roman Pizzeria and eight Arby’s Roast Beef franchise restaurants.
“I had to find something to do, and everybody has to eat,” he says. “I had a background in accounting. It was easy for me to get into any business.”
Throughout his career, he has continued to play music as a hobby. This included performing at a golf club in Florida where he and his wife, Sandy, lived.
“Sandy and I’d get there at 5 p.m., and I would start playing at 6:30 p.m. It was a lot of fun,” he says.
They moved to a villa at Heritage Pointe of Ft. Wayne eight years ago. “We’ve got a very nice villa,” he says.
The large floorplan enabled him to install the Steinway piano, which he continues to play daily.
“I played this morning,” he says. “It keeps my mind and my fingers nimble.”
Allen plays every other month at a dinner that attracts about 65 to 70 other residents and enjoys the joy it brings to other residents of the community.
“It’s nice to see people smile when they hear the music,” he says.
Read more about Dick Allen’s passion for piano on 21 Alive News!
