beacon7-19

July 2019 THE BEACON Page 7B
RISING SUN/
OHIO COUNTY
By
PG
Gentrup
Community
Correspondent
risingsun@goBEACONnews.com
June 16 is Father’s Day,
so be sure to get a nice card
for your dad or grandpa and
let them know how much
they are appreciated. June
15 is the Riversweep; try to
get downtown to the river
and help clean up some of
the debris that clutters the
riverbank.
The Fourth of July will
be here soon. Make plans to
attend the parade in Rising
Sun and come to the riverfront
to watch the outstanding
fireworks display.
We lost Omer Brown, a
past commander of American
Legion Post 59 in Rising Sun
and a very valuable member
O
ur
of our Color Guard. He was
a former mayor, having
served from 1983-87 and
was well respected. I gave a
speech at his funeral and was
honored to do so for such an
outstanding man. Omer loved
being a grandpa, or “PA.” His
grandson, Bodie, was the one
who could always put a smile
on Omer’s face. He will be
missed by so many and was
an honorable man.
I went out to Milan and
met with Bob White, the
retired history teacher from
Rising Sun High School. We
met with his brother, Gene,
a member of the 1954 Milan
State Championship team,
and Bob’s sister, Linda.
They had their Uncle Vernon
Wayne White’s memorabilia
and medals from when he
was killed on Christmas Eve
in 1944. He was on the SS
Leopoldville and I will do a
story about it later on.
A Rising Sun native,
Hospitalman Kean Babcock,
is a corpsman serving with the
Fleet Angels in the Navy. He
Communities
serves as a flight medic, flying
in the MH-60S Knighthawk
helicopter. Kean is carrying
on a family tradition as his
dad, grandpa, and uncle
served in the Navy. The USA
is proud to have fine young
men like Kean, serving our
nation today.
Sergeant Herman P.
Smith was killed in action
in Luxembourg on January
25, 1945 but his funeral was
seventy years ago in Rising
Sun on April 28, 1949. He
served with the 80th Infantry
Division under General
Patton. We need to remember
those who gave their life for
our country.
My grandson, Grady
Walter, helped his team, the
Cincinnati Future Stars, win
the Mother’s Day tournament
at Lawrenceburg. May 11
was the championship day,
and his twin sister, Carli,
was playing in a tournament
in Kentucky. She had played
in a national tournament
the week before under
some brutal conditions. The
tournament hosted fortyseven
teams from Texas,
Florida, California, Alabama,
Tennessee, and elsewhere.
They had to get the games in
even if it meant playing in
muddy conditions and cold,
rainy weather.
Alix DeDreu has had an
outstanding career at Thomas
More College and has set
many records for their fastpitch
softball team. I can
remember her playing on
the field I built on our land
on Cass Union Road when
she was only six years old.
You could tell then, with her
ability and determination,
she was going to be a good
player.
Hopefully, by the time you
read this, the Rising Sun Lady
Shiners Fast-Pitch Softball
Team will still be playing.
They have a strong team this
year under Coach Bryce
Kendrick who is dedicated
to making them better players
and a very competitive team.
Jenna Kendrick graduated
from Butler University on
May 11. Her Hooding Day
was on May 10 when she
officially graduated from
Pharmacy School. She is now
DR. JENNA KENDRICK,
and we are all so proud
of her. She’s had six very
dedicated years of Pharmacy
School and has worked so
hard to accomplish this.
Bryce, Jodi, Ryan, and
Emily have supported her
tremendously. Aunt Paula
and I attended the ceremony
with Aunt Margaret Curry
and Grandma Cheryl
Kendrick. Jenna will be
working at the VA Hospital
in Chillicothe, Ohio. They
are getting a good one. Her
boyfriend, Dr. Ben Roberts,
received his pharmacy
doctorate last year.
Congratulations to Carli
and Grady Walter for
being chosen for the Student
Council at Aurora Elementary
School. The twins are
involved in so much they
make my head spin. They will
be in the sixth grade next year.
Second grader and grandson,
Coleton Pettit, placed second
in the spelling bee and his
buddy, Leo Bressert, was the
winner.
Summer is a great time for
a lot of fun to be had, and it
always flies by. School will
start before you know it. I
hope to get some quality
fishing time in with the
kids and grandkids out at
the property we have in the
country.
Take care, be happy, and
try to make others happy.
Nobody’s perfect, so don’t
try to nit-pick others, but
try to help them have a
better life. We live in a great
country and it’s up to us to
help others. Many of us are
living the American Dream,
and that’s possible for all
people if they can only catch
a few breaks. God Bless you
and the USA.
Volunteers and members of Oldenburg’s planning committee
shown are Ellen Paul, Jeff Paul, Troy Ilderton,
Brian Sheehan, Dennis Moeller, Mary Beth Kerker, Paul
Selkirk, Sister Rose Marie Weckenmann, Gary Munchel,
Karen Munchel, Adam Bedel
OLDENBURG
By
Sue
Siefert
Community
Correspondent
oldenburg@goBEACONnews.com
Thinking outside the box …
In a past column, I mentioned
the ‘Burg’s Comprehensive
Plan efforts that
were launched with a town
hall meeting and community
survey. While the survey results
are being analyzed, this
month’s column highlights
some of the next steps taken
in the village planners’ quest.
In an interview with Gary
Munchel, Oldenburg Historian,
he shared that a contingency
of village planners
ventured to Rushville, at the
invitation of Brian Sheehan,
Rushville’s Director of
Special Projects to learn more
about how officials created
their comprehensive plan, and
the projects they have since
enacted.
Gary noted, “Rushville was
awarded an Indiana Stellar
Community Award and has
since been awarded numerous
grants for a variety of eightyseven
projects totaling $93
million since 2017!”
The Oldenburgers strolled
through downtown Rushville
to view current and
future projects. Brian shared
a high-level overview of the
plan and how it has helped
to drive the vision, goals
and action steps for a host of
significant enhancements to
the city – including the use
of green spaces, preservation
of historic buildings, creative
venues for community enjoyment,
and economic development.
At the conclusion of the
walking tour, Brian provided
a formal presentation of how
the city leaders were able to
“get the right people in the
right seat, so they were all
rowing in the right direction,”
with efforts beginning in
2011 with their “Downtown
Dreamwalk” to envision the
future of their city. Planning
efforts spanned a five-year
period and included:
• Economic Development
Strategic Plan
• ADA Transition Plan
• Library Feasibility Study
• Downtown Revitalization
Plan
• Blight Elimination Plan
• Parks Master Plan &
Trails Mapping
• Historic District Study
• Housing Market Study
And more …
Gary summarized, “We
all left inspired by their “big
thinking” projects as Oldenburg
is in the planning phase
of creating our comprehensive
plan.”
Sue’s commentary- I once
spoke with a gentleman,
who upon discovering that I
worked in Oldenburg commented,
“That’s where my
wife and I hope to retire!”
When I asked how they selected
Oldenburg, he quipped,
“Our son and daughter are OA
graduates, and through their
years in Oldenburg, we fell in
love with the ’Burg … and we
think it’s as close to heaven on
earth as one place could be.”
So readers… look for future
columns as I keep you posted
of how the village contingency
plans to improve upon
“heaven on earth!”
Das ist alles von der ’Burg!
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