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Fifty thousand color brochures itemize
events of the Aug. 21-24 Lincoln Art & Balloon Festival as well as
the overlapping 150th birthday party. Brochures are available at
several locations, including the office of Mayor Beth Davis, who
chairs the sesquicentennial committee, and the Abraham Lincoln
Tourism Bureau of Logan County.
Souvenir chair Sharon Awe happily
reported a turnaround: Receipts now outpace bills.
The check for $2,000 she handed to
treasurer Paul Short more than balanced the $200 in new bills.
Some souvenirs are selling so well that
Awe is reordering. Especially hot are T-shirts and throws. New items
include a locally crafted wooden watermelon slice with a bite out of
it and notecards depicting Lincoln christening the city with
watermelon juice. The notecards reproduce the same Lloyd Ostendorf
painting as the throws.
A ticket in hand is a pretty good
indicator that an event is organized and just around the corner.
Three sets of tickets came up for discussion at Wednesday's meeting
and are or will soon be available to the public.
Publicity chair Thressia Usherwood has
begun distributing free tickets to "An Evening with Abraham Lincoln
in Logan County," set for Monday, Aug. 25, at Johnston Center on the
Lincoln College campus. The tickets are available at the tourism
bureau, phone 732-8687.
The program begins with a speech by
Paul Beaver, LC history professor emeritus, on Abraham Lincoln's
life in Lincoln and Logan County. Afterward, audience members will
have an opportunity to ask questions of a panel of Lincoln
historians, including Dr. Mark Plummer, Dr. Wayne Temple, Paul
Gleason and Beaver. The moderator is Ron Keller, curator of the LC
museum. A reception will follow.
Tickets to a chicken dinner on Sunday,
Aug. 31, are available from all members of the sesquicentennial
committee. The dinner features a choice of fried or barbecued
chicken at a cost of $6 for adults and $3 for children. The Knights
of Columbus Auxiliary is serving the midday meal at the KC Hall.
Members of various churches are making desserts and helping with
cleanup.
Following the chicken dinner a circuit
rider preacher will lead an interdenominational church service at
Latham Park. Wallace Reifsteck, co-chair for the service, announced
that the Rev. David Hultberg will ride Timex, already a local star
as Lincoln's horse in the video "From Surveyor to President: A.
Lincoln in Logan County." The sorrel gelding is owned by Roger and
Lynn Bock of rural Elkhart.
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A third set of tickets go on sale
Monday. These are $1 tickets for an ice cream social scheduled for
Postville Day -- "Where It All Began" -- Sunday, Aug. 24. Queen contest
chair Pat Geskey said girls ages 14-18 have until this Friday to sign up
for the contest and will receive their tickets Monday. The girl who
sells the most tickets will be queen. Sales begin
immediately and continue until Aug. 22.
The ice cream social will follow the
dedication of the Abraham Lincoln well in front of VFW Post 1756 and
the coronation of the queen in Postville Park. Earlier in the day an
1860s craft fair will take over the Postville Courthouse grounds.
Postville chair Shirley Bartelmay said 23 booths and four musical
groups are scheduled.
Music chair Greg Pelc added the Prairie
Aires to the list of musicians performing during the weeklong
celebration. The trio will play their period instruments both at the
craft fair and at Latham Park on Wednesday, Aug. 27, during a free
watermelon feed.
Pelc said he would still like to find
groups to perform during the ice cream social and chicken dinner,
but for the most part he has moved on to meeting power needs of
scheduled bands. In this he is working with newly appointed
infrastructure chairs Bob and Penny Thomas.
Re-enactment chair Ron Keller said
those participating in the period dance lessons taught by Bonnie
Knieriem of Mason City are having great fun. The lessons cover 10
dance steps plus tips on 19th-century etiquette and attire in
preparation for the Civil War ball at the Elks Lodge on Saturday,
Aug. 30. The 33rd Infantry Band will provide the tunes.
Keller said another set of five dance
lessons would be offered if there is sufficient interest. Those
wanting to participate can contact him at 732-3155, Ext. 295. The
cost is $25 per couple or $15 for singles. The ball itself is free.
Since Monday
night, when Lincoln City Council approved blocking off streets for
the parade, stages and alcohol consumption, most big decisions for
the 150th birthday party are set. However, planners on Wednesday
were still discussing the exact location in Scully Park for an
ethnic food festival on Friday, Aug. 29. The problem is to locate
tents close enough to a power source but far enough from the
Hometown Stage at the corner of Clinton and McLean. Pelc and Bob
Thomas said they can work out a plan to accommodate about 10
vendors.
[Lynn
Spellman]
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