Cape man improves on author Steinbeck's road trip

A man, his dog and 10,000 miles of open road -- it's a combination that changed the lives of countless children this summer across the country.

American literary great John Steinbeck penned his road trip memoir, "Travels with Charley," in 1962. It detailed his discovery of the American landscape and its people. He took the trek with his poodle, Charley.

More than 40 years later, the book inspired Cape Girardeau businessman John Tlapek to take a similar trip.

But he had something bigger in mind.

"I wanted it to be more than a trip around the country with a dog," he said. "I wanted a journey. I wanted it to have meaning."

And so with a wallet full of blank checks and a 7-month-old golden retriever, Charley, Tlapek hit the road June 29 in an RV on a quest to improve the lives of young people.

He's given to charities before. But this time was different, he said. This time meant putting himself in front of cameras, something of which he is extremely wary.

"I almost didn't do it," he said. "I'm a very private person. I really considered doing it all without making myself known. But then, I thought about it and realized I could do more for these agencies by bringing attention to them and helping to educate people about the good they do."

He wants to inspire others to make similar gifts, whether of money, time or talents, he said.

Over 10 weeks, he and Charley visited 17 agencies with small budgets that weren't dependent on government funds to operate. He researched on the road before stopping by to take a tour. If he liked what he saw, he wrote them a check. The donations ranged from $10,000 to $25,000 per city. He donated to more than agency in some cities.

He visited orphanages, group homes, a Native American reservation, and various other agencies. While he did so, Charley happily played goodwill ambassador to hundreds of children.

"I truly winged it," he said of the trip. "I changed my direction several times. I didn't know a week ahead of time where I'd be."

During a side trip to Salinas, Calif., home of the Steinbeck Center, Tlapek and Charley had their picture taken in front of the truck Steinbeck drove decades ago.`Steinbeck's journey began on Sept. 23, 1960, from Maine. He joined relatives in Amarillo, Texas, for Thanksgiving. Tlapek made his first stop in Amarillo on July 2.

Thanks to him, the High Plains Children's Home now has an extra $53,500, said Craig Howard, executive director. Tlapek donated $15,000, then challenged operators to raise $10,000, which he promised to match. Donations rolled in from the 26-county area in the Texas Panhandle.

"We hit it three days," Howard said of the $10,000 challenge. "I'm almost embarrassed to say it just kept coming in. Everybody's just pumped."

One of the contributors -- the Hagy family -- has a special tie to Tlapek's journey, Howard said.

"They were the family Steinbeck stayed with when he came to Amarillo," he said. "They still have the house and bed he slept in. They told me John has an open invitation to come stay there."

In August, Tlapek donated $7,500 to the Boys and Girls Club of Humboldt County, Eureka, Calif. The club raised an additional $5,000, which Tlapek also promised to match. Executive director Jeff Jacobs was impressed with Tlapek's low-key approach.

"He came in with no fanfare -- he just wanted to hang out with the kids and talk about them and their issues," Jacobs said. "I'm a deacon in the Catholic clergy, and I told him, 'You know, you're an angel.' He just pulled a wrinkled check out of his wallet."

Tlapek has controlling ownership of Auto Tire and Parts Co., Schaeffer Power Panels and Cape Electrical Supply Co. His firms have more than 50 locations in a five-state region. He is also president of Summit Equity Group in St. Louis, Mo., through which he buys other businesses. He said his partners and employees made it possible for him to take the lengthy trip.

"I've got the best partners and employees at those companies anybody could ask for," he said.

A graduate of Southeast Missouri State University, Tlapek has been a member of the board of regents since 1998.

There were many stops Tlapek said affected him emotionally -- the Gabriel House home for physically and mentally disabled children in Ensenada, Mexico, the Cabrini-Green housing projects in Chicago and Hope House in Memphis, Tenn., which cares for children affected by AIDS.

Though he's only been back home a few days, he's already received enough letters and artwork from the children he and Charley met to cover his couch. They are now treasured possessions.

"I set out to see the country and meet the people, but it became so much more than that," he said. "It was a once in a lifetime experience."

But the trip isn't quite over. Tlapek will make a donation today in Cape Girardeau to an as yet unnamed charity and to an organization in St. Louis Friday.

Charley is sure to be there.

mwells@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 160