Growing up with a twin sister, and the youngest of seven children in the Marburger family, Dennis has fond memories of his home and his neighborhood at Pear and Buttonwood Streets in Reading. “We were never altogether in the house at once,” he recalls. “In fact, the first time the nine of us were together as a family with Mom and Dad, was at the rehearsal dinner for my wedding. That was really special for our family.” Some siblings stayed local and others moved out of state as Dennis was growing up. Having his twin sister Debbie to share his childhood is a happy memory. “We got along well. It was not a negative thing, but she got a lot more than I did,” he laughs.
Dennis spent most of his childhood hanging out and sharing adventures with his best friend Ricky Balthaser who lived on Buttonwood Street until he moved in junior high. As he began to venture further from home, he found new friends and discovered new things to become involved with. Dennis enjoyed singing at Trinity United Methodist Church and in school choirs. He also found a steady summer job as a caddy at the Berkshire Country Club, riding back and forth on his bike.
“My best friends at Northwest Junior High were Mike Gantz and Dave Case. We hung out all of the time and there are lots of stories to tell. Football and track split us up in seventh and eighth grades. At Reading High I met my life -long friend, Chris Graul on the football field; we clicked and hit it off immediately.”…