RE: "Many boys helped their Dad's on the farms and would get hurt"

Yeah- I tell ya Cath, there are some real sad farm horror stories out there. My Dad retired from driving a truck for Caterpillar for 32 years. Afterwards he drove truck part-time during harvest season for local farmers. He knew a teenaged boy who was atop a high empty grain elevator doing some sort of maintanence and he fell from the top- hit bottom. Death came instantly. Another guy was at a grain elevator w/ a double-wagon of corn unloading it through a bottom-auger into a ground vault beneath the wagon. Corn got clogged and hung-up somehow so he climbed high atop the FULL wagon of corn w/ a long pole which he crammed down deep to try and unclog the auger and get the corn flowing out the bottom again. Suddenly he lost his balance and SUNK deep into the corn and literally drowned. Took 20 men to lean against, push and tip the wagon over to fish him out. Didn't make it in time. Very sad... Farm life has always been hard.

This is that cheesecake recipe I made tonight.
I had to make a few changes to go with what I could find.
I had to go with graham crackers for the crust. Couldnt find chocolate wafers. I got mini semi sweet chocolate chips and whip cream to garnish with tomorrow when it cools down.

Chocolate Truffle Cheesecake

Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups chocolate wafer crumbs (about 27 wafers)
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted
FILLING:
1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
3 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup baking cocoa
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
TOPPING:
1-1/2 cups (9 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Whipped cream and miniature chocolate kisses, optional

Directions:
In a small bowl, combine wafer crumbs and sugar; stir in butter. Press onto the bottom and 1-1/2 in up the sides of a greased 9-in. springform pan. Bake at 350° for 10 minutes. Cool on a wire rack. Reduce heat to 325°.
For filling, melt chocolate chips in a small heavy saucepan or microwave; stir until smooth. Remove from the heat; add cream and mix well. Set aside. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add cocoa and beat well. Add eggs; beat on low just until combined. Stir in vanilla and reserved chocolate mixture just until blended. Pour over crust. Return pan to baking sheet.
Bake for 45-50 minutes or until center is almost set. For topping, melt chocolate chips in a heavy saucepan or microwave, stir until smooth. Stir in cream and vanilla; mix well. Spread over filling. Cool pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Carefully run a knife around edge of pan to loosen; cool 1 hour longer. Refrigerate overnight.
Remove sides of pan. Just before serving, garnish with whipped cream and miniature chocolate kisses if desired. Refrigerate leftovers. Yield: 12 servings.

YUM, janie! This sounds even better than the cheesecakes the "Golden Girls" indulged in!

We are so fortunate they have never given up!

Well I made the cheesecake and it came out really good. It wasnt as pretty as I liked with the graham cracker crust instead of the chocolate wafers but the taste was fantastic. Jon even liked it. I took my neighbor two pieces of it topped with whipped cream and sprinkled with some mini chocolate chips. It was funny.. I knocked on her door and asked her if she liked cheesecake and she goes uhhh am I breathing lol. She likes chocolate cheesecake.