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Barb and her husband, Rich, moved to Lincoln in 1986, when Rich
assumed pastoral duties at St. John United Church of Christ in
Lincoln. He has been serving in that role ever since. The church has
quite a history, going back to the ordination of theologian Reinhold
Niebuhr, who is best known for his "Serenity Prayer," published in
1951. Over the years, Barb has played an active role in the church,
including performing with the hand bells and choir, serving on the
mission committee, work with memorials, working on special events,
and joining several groups and clubs (women's group, card group,
book club and stitchers' club).
On Sept. 1, 2001, Barb opened The
Treasure Chest, a craft and gift store, in Lincoln. The store was
originally located at A. Lincoln Crafts on Sangamon Street and then
moved next to Hallie's on the square. In February of 2004, she moved
the store to the current location at 429 Pulaski St. The shop
features items from 30 companies and from over a dozen local
crafters. It is the only retail outlet in Lincoln for local
crafters. The most popular featured national product line is from
Manual Weavers & Woodworkers. Products from this line include mini
plates, purses and tapestries, among others (see photo).
Reinwald was elected to the post of president at
Main Street Lincoln
on Jan. 30. She had previously served on the board of directors for
the group for three years, and she worked on the promotions
committee. She admits that this will be a period of adjustment for
her, as she now will be dealing with all the various aspects of the
organization. Her early goals are to keep promoting the historic
downtown shopping district.
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Reinwald brings her hands-on experience as a downtown business owner
to the new position. She notes that, from this perspective, some of
the main issues that downtown businesses face are limited parking
and getting more local people to shop. Over 50 percent of her
business comes from out-of-town customers, the majority being from
Springfield and Decatur. "We have a fantastic downtown area, but we
need more Lincolnites to shop here," says Reinwald.
Another issue facing the downtown is the loss of businesses. Five
stores have closed their doors in downtown Lincoln in the last two
years. "We definitely need to get these businesses filled up," says
Reinwald, who also noted at the same time that Lincoln still has one
of the better downtown shopping districts around.
Barb and husband Rich moved to Lincoln from Missouri on April
Fools' Day in 1986. Barb was born in Indianapolis. The Reinwalds
recently celebrated their 38th wedding anniversary. A daughter,
Lori, age 23, lives in Colorado Springs. Barb's hobbies are reading,
counted cross-stitching and bowling. We wish Barb all the best in
her new role with Main Street Lincoln!
[By GEOFF LADD]
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