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Elkhart garage sales, Railsplitting Festival, Together for Lincoln, Darlene Wick, writing club, blood drives, LCHS exhibit at Lincoln Art Institute, DaVita gift to Community Action, Hartem Alumni Banquet, Woman's Club convention, Relay For Life luminaria, Route 66 weekend June 7-9, square dance lessons, Atlanta Rt. 66 Cruise-In, Pleasant Valley meeting postponed, landfill hours, HSLC garage sale donations

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[May 06, 2013]  Elkhart townwide yard sales

ELKHART -- In an annual event, there will be garage sales townwide this weekend in the village of Elkhart. Hours are 2-7 p.m. Friday and 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday. Many houses in the village will host sales, and most are multiple-family sales.

Items being sold include children's and adult clothes, toys, sports equipment, home décor, furniture, appliances, pull-behind trailer, and more.

Hudson's Talk of the Town restaurant will be open for lunch and dinner to accommodate shoppers.

Maps will be available at 330 Kennedy Road and at the Talk of the Town.

For more information, see https://www.facebook.com/
events/446885158732455/?fref=ts
.

 


This year's Railsplitting Festival canceled

The Abraham Lincoln National Railsplitting Festival will not be held this year. The Logan Railsplitting Association met Monday evening and voted to take a year off. The decision by the association not to have the festival this year was a difficult one. The group will, however, put the festival on again in September 2014. Watch for more information after the first of the year.

The Civil War Ball will go on this year, and the public is encouraged to attend on Sept. 20. The organizers plan to make some additions to the evening, and more information on the event will be coming soon. 

The Logan Railsplitting Association thanks everyone for their past support of the festival and looks forward to having the festival again in 2014.

"We just needed to take a year off to refocus," said Darlene Begolka, association president, in making the announcement.


Together for Lincoln pork chop dinner

Together for Lincoln will have its annual butterfly pork chop dinner fundraiser on Thursday, May 16, from 4 to 7 p.m. in the IGA parking lot. In addition to a butterfly pork chop, the meal includes au gratin potatoes, green beans and a dinner roll.

Tickets are $8. Tickets may be purchased in advance at the Jefferson Street Christian Church office during regular office hours Mondays-Thursdays or on-site the day of the dinner.

All proceeds will go to support projects at the annual Together for Lincoln service project day on Sunday, Sept. 22.


The Darlene Wick story
Lincoln Odd Fellows' much-loved last matron retires

On Saturday there was a retirement party at Friendship Manor for Darlene Wick. For two hours, friends came to express their fondest regards to her for a lifetime of dedicated service to Lincoln through her work for the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. She is retiring from the IOOF Management Corp., the part of the Odd Fellows that manages Friendship Manor as well as other Odd Fellows living centers in Illinois. But two hours is hardly enough time to acknowledge all of Darlene Wick's accomplishments and the lives she has touched.

She came to Lincoln in July of 1967 with her husband, Robert, and 4-year-old daughter Constance. Darlene and Robert had met in Rockford, where they both worked for the same company. They married in 1953. Robert was already deeply involved in the IOOF, and Darlene soon joined him in what turned out to be a lifetime commitment to the organization.

The Independent Order of Odd Fellows is a service organization that was founded in England. It was the first charitable organization founded by the middle class to help others in the same station in life. That seems to be the origin of the Odd in Odd Fellows, because until it was founded, charitable organizations were the domain of the wealthy classes.

The IOOF came to the United States in the second decade of the 19th century. The Lincoln branch was started in the second half of the 19th century. Its original building, now home to the Lincoln Art Institute, still stands next to the post office. The three interlocking rings that are the IOOF symbol are still visible at the top of the façade of the building.

Perhaps the Lincoln chapter is best known for the children's home that was located on Wyatt Avenue. The semicircular drive contained buildings for a gym, dormitories for the children, a school and a home for the administrator.

Robert Wick was on the board of the children's home while he and Darlene lived in Rockford. When the position of administrator and matron opened, Darlene and Robert decided to accept the position and moved with their daughter to Lincoln on July 15, 1967.

The IOOF Children's Home was a place of refuge for kids who had no parents and for children whose parents were not able to care for them. The matron was the surrogate mother.

"A matron was responsible for working directly with the children," Darlene said.

She made sure they were properly attired, looked after their hygiene and made sure they had the necessary doctor visits. She also made sure that they all attended school, and she monitored their progress. At one time, the children were educated on-site, but during Darlene's tenure as matron, they attended Lincoln public schools.

She also arranged for her charges to become members of the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts and to attend the church of their choice. The IOOF also helped those who wanted to go to college after graduating from Lincoln High School.

One thing that Wick did while matron was to take a photograph of each child. This proved to be a marvelous idea. When her charges became adults, they often returned to Lincoln with their own children to show their kids where they grew up. Darlene would then give them a photo she had taken of them when they lived at the home. Her former kids were always thrilled with the memento of their childhood on Wyatt Avenue. And their children were able to see where their parents had grown up and the woman who had such a profound impact on their lives. The daughter of one of the returning children was thrilled to receive a photo of her dad as a child.

When asked about memories of the children she cared for, Darlene Wick smiled and said, "I have a few."

One child graduated from Lincoln High, attended college and became the band director in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, for 26 years.

Darlene recalled that one Thanksgiving, when she and Robert planned to travel back to Rockford for the holiday, they noted that some of the children did not have a family to spend the day with. She and Robert got busy and loaded all of the kids on the Odd Fellows bus and made sure that each one had a family to spend the holiday with. They contacted friends and friends of friends along the way to Rockford and dropped the children off with a family who volunteered to take them. At the end of the day, they reversed course and picked up the kids on the way back to Lincoln. Each child had a Thanksgiving family and a warm memory to take with them forever.

On one occasion, one of the former children at the home stopped by with his 7-year-old son. While he was telling his son what a wonderful time he had with Darlene and with the other children at the Odd Fellows home, Darlene nudged him and quietly said: "But you ran away three times." He grinned at her sheepishly and said, "Yes, but don't tell my son!"

One young man at the home told Darlene that he was going to run away. She quickly replied that if he did, "I'm going to call the authorities and they will bring you back." He decided not to go. The next day he asked her if she really would have called the authorities. She said, "No, you are 18 and can make your own decisions now. I was just bluffing." He said "I'm glad you did." He was thankful he had someone who cared about him.

Times change and the rise of foster care reduced the need for the residential children's home. But the elimination of the residential program certainly did not slow down Darlene Wick's commitment to the IOOF. She had joined the Rebekahs while still living in Rockford, and in fact is still a member of that chapter. Rebekahs are the women's auxiliary to the Odd Fellows. Back in the day, women could not join the Odd Fellows, like many service organizations of long ago. That changed, and women and men can now belong to both organizations.

The Rebekahs have always been a charitable organization in their own right. They donate food to the local food pantry and help raise money for Lincoln Youth Football. They also plant trees. Darlene said their motto is "Plant a tree for he who comes after me."

Wick has been involved with the Odd Fellows Rebekah Scholarship, an Odd Fellows program that gives scholarships to Illinois residents for postsecondary education. She became secretary of the scholarship program in 1985 and still sits on the committee that selects the recipients. Thirty-four scholarships were distributed last year.

She is also the editor of the award-winning newsletter of Illinois Odd Fellows.

She is responsible for rescuing all of the records of the Odd Fellows residential children's program dating from the 19th century. Those records have been an invaluable source of information to families doing genealogical research.

The Independent Order of Odd Fellows has an insignia of three interlocking rings with the letters F, L and T emblazoned within the rings. The letters stand for friendship, love and truth. Darlene Wick has lived this Odd Fellows motto for over 60 years and has touched the lives of countless people. She still has a passionate commitment to the IOOF, and when she speaks of the IOOF, her dedication becomes apparent.

She resides at Friendship Manor, whose construction might arguably be Robert Wick's crowning achievement in Lincoln. The thought of her late husband providing for her brought a smile, and a moment of quiet reflection.

[By CURT FOX]


Lincoln Writer's Club will meet May 14

Lincoln Writer's Club will meet Tuesday, May 14, at 6:30 p.m. in the Alumni Room of the student center at Lincoln College.

Suggested topics:

  • Write a poem on a page of newspaper. Incorporate what you see into your poem.

  • How could a coconut, a mask and a dictionary help you off a desert island?

  • More home remedies.

For more information, call 732-2723.

All are welcome.


Upcoming blood drives in Logan County

To help ensure an adequate blood supply for the region, the Central Illinois Community Blood Center is providing opportunities to donate blood in Lincoln in early May.

Blood drives:

  • Monday, May 6, noon-6 p.m.
    Lincoln Masonic Center
    2022 N. Kickapoo

  • Tuesday, May 7, 10 a.m.-3 p.m.
    Lincoln Christian University
    Laughlin Center lobby
    100 Campus View Drive

For your convenience, call Alexis toll-free at 1-866-GIVE-BLD (1-866-448-3253), ext. 5158, to sign up, or schedule an appointment online at www.bloodcenterimpact.org. Walk-ins are also welcome and truly appreciated.

Central Illinois Community Blood Center, a not-for-profit organization, is the provider of lifesaving blood for 14 hospitals throughout central Illinois, including Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital in Lincoln and Memorial Medical Center and St. John’s Hospital in Springfield. CICBC is a division of the Mississippi Valley Regional Blood Center, which collects over 180,000 units of blood annually and serves 87 hospitals in Illinois, Iowa, Missouri and Wisconsin.


Logan County Arts presents 'Functional and Fine Art: Lincoln Community High School Textiles, Woods, Metals and Fine Art'

An exhibit of works by Lincoln Community High School students in textiles, woods, metals and fine art will be on view at the Lincoln Art Institute in downtown Lincoln from May 9 through May 26. The show opens Thursday, May 9, at 5 p.m. and is free and open to the public.

This event will feature various works by current students attending Lincoln Community High School and includes works that are both functional and creative in a variety of media.

Refreshments will be served at the opening, in addition to a bake sale with the proceeds going to support Logan County Arts, which serves artists and the community throughout Logan County.

The Lincoln Art Institute hosts Logan County Arts with the goal of expanding awareness of arts with a focus on Logan County.

___

Lincoln Art Institute
Address: 112 S. McLean, Lincoln, IL 62656
Contact: Toby Prange, curator,
contact@logancountyarts.org
Phone: 217-651-8355
Website: www.logancountyarts.org
Hours: Saturdays 11 a.m.-1 p.m.
or by appointment


Lincoln Dialysis gives $1,000 to Community Action Partnership of Central Illinois

DaVita, the kidney care division of DaVita HealthCare Partners Inc. (NYSE: DVA) and a leading provider of kidney care services, announced a $1,000 contribution to Community Action Partnership of Central Illinois.

Earlier this year, DaVita Lincoln Dialysis presented the Community Action Partnership of Central Illinois with a $1,000 check as part of the "DaVita Way of Giving," the company's local charitable giving initiative, which is distributing more than $1 million to help nonprofit organizations throughout the United States grow and thrive.

Community Action Partnership of Central Illinois is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that strives to address issues of poverty in the community and provide resources for those in need -- like creating Logan Mason Public Transportation after recognizing a need for public transportation within the counties.

DaVita Lincoln Dialysis chose to donate to Community Action Partnership of Central Illinois because of the organization's dedication to transporting residents who might not be able to travel otherwise.

DaVita, a leading provider of kidney care services, is committed to improving the quality of life for those diagnosed with chronic kidney disease and is dedicated to spreading ripples of citizen leadership through its "Trilogy of Care" -- caring for its patients, caring for each other and caring for the world. For more information on DaVita, visit http://www.davita.com/.


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Hartsburg-Emden High School Alumni Banquet will be June 8

HARTSBURG-EMDEN -- The 86th annual Hartsburg-Emden High School Alumni Banquet will begin at 6:30 p.m. Saturday, June 8, at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Lincoln.

Invitations to the banquet will be sent out the first week of May. Anyone who did not receive an invitation but would like to attend the banquet may send a request via email to Ron Spencer at coach_spencer@hotmail.com, or you may reach him on his cellphone at 309-838-0360.

Anniversary classes being honored this year are 1933, 1938, 1943, 1948, 1953, 1958, 1963, 1968, 1973, 1978, 1983, 1988, 1993, 1998, 2003, 2008 and the senior Class of 2013.

The winner of the "Wall of Fame" award will be selected and announced at the banquet. This year's award will be represented in the category of "Athletics/Sports."

Please mail nomination letters to Ron Spencer, 8923 Blooming Grove Road, Bloomington, IL 61705.

Due to the rising costs of the banquet, the alumni association will accept donations to help out with the cost of the event and to continue funding the Alumni Scholarship. Donations are payable to the Hartem Alumni Association and may be sent to Greg Phillips, 208 Market St., Emden, IL 62635.

Officers of the alumni association for 2013 are Chris Boerma, president; Ron Spencer, vice president; Loretta Hellman, secretary; Greg Phillips, treasurer; and Kay Mullins and Verna Lessen, corresponding secretaries.


Lincoln Woman's Club members attend annual convention in Fairbury

Four members of the Lincoln Woman's Club recently attended the GFWC Illinois 17th District convention in Fairbury. Representing the Lincoln club were Ruth Sloot, Sue Beaver, Sandy Johnson and Mary Cooper.

The Lincoln club was honored to receive seven first-place awards at the convention. The awards were in the areas of public issues, conservation, legislation, fundraising, international outreach, education, and domestic violence.

Recognition as best overall was given to the areas of fundraising and international outreach.

District officers were installed by Patricia Heitman, GFWC Illinois president, with Donna Cross, district president, officiating. Fourteen clubs participated in the annual district convention.


Logan County Relay to celebrate American Cancer Society's 100th year

The Logan County Relay For Life is joining all of America in celebrating 100 years of saving lives and creating more birthdays through the efforts and research of the American Cancer Society, begun in 1913. Formerly the word cancer was not spoken, so almost all patients with this dreadful disease were lost.

On Saturday, May 18, the Logan County Relay For Life teams will sell $10 luminaria bags at Lincoln IGA from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. The luminaria will also be available at the annual Relay For Life Breakfast at Lincoln College on Sunday, May 19, from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. On Wednesday, May 22, these luminaria will draw attention to the 100th anniversary, as all of those purchased will be placed on the front porch of each participating home and lit at sundown to show support in helping to stamp out this disease in this century.

The luminaria purchased for this celebration will not be relit at the Relay For Life event June 14-15 at Lincoln College.

For more information, contact Bill Post, 732-7564; Tonita Reifsteck, 855-1645; or Nicole Lee, 828-1100.


Route 66 will anchor weekend of activities in Logan County

Route 66 will be the centerpiece for a diverse series of activities taking place in Logan County on the weekend of June 7-9, Friday-Sunday.

Events will range from garage sales, auto racing and an electric car show to art exhibits and the Illinois Route 66 Hall of Fame Banquet.

Festivities will begin with the annual Route 66 Garage Sale, which will take place from 7 a.m. until dusk Friday, Saturday and Sunday in Lincoln.

This year, vendors can rent indoor or outdoor space at the VFW, 915 Fifth St., or flea market space at The Mill, 738 S. Washington St. For reservations at the VFW, or general information about the garage sales, call Andrea Dykman at 217-735-0294. The Logan County Tourism Bureau at 217-732-8687 is taking reservations for spaces at The Mill.

For the first time, Logan County Outreach, a community betterment organization, and Lincoln Printers will host the Route 66 Garage Sale.

Private garage sales will also take place throughout the community. Those planners are urged to use traditional news and social media outlets to advertise their sales.

On Friday night, race fans can watch the POWRi competition at Lincoln Speedway on the Logan County Fairgrounds. Gates open at 3 p.m., with hot laps at 6:30 p.m. and racing at 7 p.m.

The Mill 2nd Saturday Flea Market on June 8 is the premiere event for a series of flea markets there on the second Saturday of each month through October. The flea market will run from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m.

The Lincoln Art Institute gallery at 112 S. McLean St. in downtown Lincoln will be open on Saturday from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m.

Main Street Lincoln will sponsor a PLUS 5K run and health fair in downtown Lincoln on Saturday.

Also on Saturday, an Electric Vehicle Cruise-In will take place from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. along the original Mother Road in historic downtown Atlanta. The free public cruise-in is sponsored by the Atlanta Betterment Fund.

After it was commissioned in 1926, Route 66 was responsible for a huge increase in automobile traffic that led to the need for businesses to serve the traveling public. Among these new businesses were service stations.

Now, Route 66 is poised to help create the next big transportation infrastructure -- charging stations for electric vehicles. Atlanta is interested in helping other Route 66 communities discover how to better serve the traveling public that will be searching for an electric plug-in instead of a gas pump.

The June 8 Electric Vehicle Cruise-in, Illinois' first, will display some cool EV cars and offer a chance to learn more about how the Mother Road is working to give birth to a new travel infrastructure.

All electric and hybrid cars are invited to participate in the cruise-in. The event will also feature vintage music, great food, a 50-50 drawing and hourly drawings.

Atlanta offers two Level 2 Eaton charging stations, available by advance reservation at no fee. There are also 16 Level 1 charging stations available at no cost on a first-come, first-served basis.

For more information about the cruise-in, or to make reservations to use the Level 2 charger, contact Bill Thomas of the Atlanta Betterment Fund at 217-648-5077 or wthomas@teleologic.net.

Atlanta will also exhibit the results of its first Rt. 66 Reinterpreted Art Project from May 1 through Aug. 13.

Modeled on Chicago's "Cows on Parade" exhibit, the Rt. 66 Reinterpreted Art Project presented artists the opportunity to create their own take on one of the 20th century's most iconic and recognizable symbols, the U.S. Route 66 highway shield.

Artists were provided a blank 2-by-2-foot wooden cutout of the Route 66 highway shield, painted white, which then became their personal canvas. Each shield was required to incorporate the text "U.S. 66," but otherwise the design was left to each artist's imagination.

The Atlanta Betterment Fund, sponsor of the project, selected 10 shields as finalists. Visitors can vote on their favorites, and those with the most votes will be named winners of the contest. At the conclusion of the project, the five winning shields, along with the names of the artists who created them, will be displayed on a permanent basis in the Atlanta Rt. 66 Park. For more information, contact Bill Thomas at the telephone number or email address above.

The annual Route 66 Association of Illinois Motor Tour will pass through Logan County on Saturday, June 8. Many of the participants will stay overnight Saturday before continuing the tour on Sunday.

The Route 66 Association Hall of Fame Banquet will take place Saturday evening at Lincoln College. Advance reservations are required for the banquet. For more information about either the banquet or the motor tour, visit the Route 66 Association of Illinois at il66assoc.org.


Park district to offer square dance lessons in May

Lincoln Park District will provide a unique opportunity to learn to square dance this spring. Classes will be on Tuesday evenings, 6:30-8:30, for four weeks, beginning May 7. This activity is for all ages, teenagers through senior citizens.

Instructors will be Ron and Jan Betzelberger of Lincoln. They have been square dancing since 1976. Ron started calling and teaching in 1980. When not teaching in Lincoln, they share their talents with the residents of Rio Grande Valley, where they winter.

If you enjoy meeting new people, moving to good music and having fun, you're invited to come and give this a try.

The class cost is $30 per couple in district.

Square dancing is generally offered on the first and third Saturday evenings in the ballroom at the park district.


Atlanta Rt. 66 Cruise-In May 11

ATLANTA -- Mark your calendar now and plan to attend the Atlanta Rt. 66 Cruise-In on Saturday, May 11, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Enjoy classic cars, vintage music, great food, a 50-50 drawing, hourly drawings and more -- all along an original alignment of the Mother Road itself in downtown Atlanta.

All area car club members and anyone with a great old car they want to display are invited to attend. Stop by the registration table to be included in the hourly drawings. The first 50 registrants will receive a free Atlanta Rt. 66 Cruise-In dash plaque.

While in town, visitors can step into the Palms Grill Café for a piece of blue-ribbon homemade pie, tour the J.H. Hawes Grain Elevator Museum, get their pictures taken with the Bunyon Giant, pick up souvenirs at the Gunnar Mast Trading Post or handcrafted items at the Arch Street Artisans shop, have a cheeseburger at Chubby's, visit the Atlanta Museum, enjoy a cold one at Phanny's or the Korner, then stroll around and enjoy the assembled cruise-in cars.

The Atlanta Rt. 66 Cruise-In is sponsored by the Atlanta Betterment Fund.

For more information, phone 217-648-5077 or email wthomas@teleologic.net.

The next cruise-in will take place on Saturday, June 8, and will be Illinois' first Electric Vehicle Cruise-In. Visitors will definitely want to come to downtown Atlanta that day to see the variety of electric and electric hybrid cars that will be on hand.


Meeting postponed

Pleasant Valley Cemetery Association annual meeting

MIDDLETOWN -- The annual meeting of the Pleasant Valley Cemetery Association will be on Monday, May 6, at 7 p.m. at the Knapp-Chesnut-Becker Library in Middletown. All lot owners are welcome to attend.

April 23 special note: This meeting has been postponed to a later date. A new notice of date and time will be posted when it is announced by the cemetery association board.



New springtime hours at Lincoln city landfill

Now through May 5 the city landscape waste facility in Lincoln will be open every day except Monday from 8 a.m. to 3:50 p.m.

Beginning May 8 the facility will go back to normal hours of operation, which are Wednesday and Saturday only from 8 a.m. to 3.50 p.m.

The public is reminded that the city landfill accepts only landscape waste.


HSLC now seeking donations for 2nd annual garage sale

The Humane Society of Logan County is seeking donations of goods for the second annual "Big Spring Garage Sale." Clean, gently used items for donation can be dropped off every Wednesday and Saturday, beginning April 3, from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. at the Logan County Fairgrounds. Use the south entrance.

For more information or to arrange pickup, call 732-1979 or 732-7853. Electronics cannot be accepted.

This year's sale will be May 10 and 11, a Friday and Saturday, at the Logan County Fairgrounds.

Items for sale will include home decor, toys, sporting goods, furniture, clothes, shoes, accessories, holiday items, outdoor goods, books, CDs, DVDs and much more. There will also be food, music and fun stuff just for kids.

With the support of the community, the HSLC was able to open a shelter in 2011. Since then, they have placed more than 200 cats and dogs in forever homes, and facilitated in more than 400 low-cost spay and neuters per year.


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