Beacon July 2023

Page 6B THE BEACON July 2023
AURORA
By
Randy
Turner
Community
Correspondent
aurora@goBEACONnews.com
Hello Beacon Readers,
I love this time of year
when I get to enjoy the clover
and violets that are in my
front yard, even the dandelions
adding their color, and
the green of the grass before
the summer heat hits, it’s my
calming spot. My wife, Lisa,
does the mowing. As soon
as the neighbors fire up their
mowers, she says it’s time to
go cut grass. I do enjoy the
smell of cut grass. No sprays
to get all grass, as I like my
old-style yard.
This time of year offers so
much to do, and the biggest
event has been the dedication
ceremony of the Vietnam
Veterans Memorial at Lesko
Park. The memorial really
shows off in this spot, and a
crowd of two-hundred-fiftyplus
people was welcomed to
the event by Nick Ullrich and
PG Gentrup. PG shared with
the crowd that the memorial
was a three-year effort to pull
all of this together, extending
recognition to the many
people that helped make it
happen. Included was Mr.
Jonas whose monument
company did the memorial
stone. PG then introduced a
man he greatly admires as
the “Original Forest Gump”
Medal of Honor recipient,
Sammy Davis. A true soldier,
Sammy Davis talked about his
brothers that put the Memorial
together, extending his
O
ur
admiration. Also recognized
was 97-year-old George
Klopp, a WWII veteran, as
he walked up to the podium.
Pretty impressive! It was truly
a great day to see our “Southeastern
Indiana Vietnam
Veterans of America, Larry D
Fogle Chapter 71.” THANK
YOU All for your service, and
a wonderful memorial to your
brothers!
PG also reported that the
Huey rides were happening
from the marina. After first
landing in Kentucky due to
the river fog, they were also
booked solid up to 7 P.M. I
was standing next to Brett
Fehrman, and he was all
smiles as he told me about his
ride. One of the best things he
has done. Now if you know
Brett, he is not the easiest one
to get a dollar from, so for
him to be happy over the ride
cost of $100, the ride must
have been great.
Another great event that
day was the reopening of
“The Aurora History Depot.”
Director Leslie Sutherlin
made a fantastic choice of
handing that task to Olivia
Bowers. She hosted people to
address genealogy and local
history concerns. She will be
replacing two great people
who were instrumental in
the start of the Depot, Roy
Lambert and Kim Batchelor.
On my visit, she definitely
impressed me, and I hope we
can keep this bright, young
“Home Grown” talent for a
few years!
Speaking of young talent,
the freshman class at
South Dearborn High School
came to town on April 25 for
volunteer community service
work. These kids were pretty
impressive, as they did yard
DEARBORN COUNTY RECYCLING CENTER
RECYCLE THESE
MATERIALS
METAL CANS
Non-hazardous,
non-flammable
material only.
Remove lids
and tips of
aerosol cans.
Any color.
Remove metal
lids and place
both in bin.
Reattach lids.
Yogurt and
fruit cups OK.
parks
dearborn
county
the Dearborn County Parks Foundation.
A Gift For all Seasons!
www.dearborncountyPARKS.com
GLASS BOTTLES & JARS
sort separately
CARDBOARD
Paperboard and brown boxes. Remove food debris
and paper/bag liners.
MIXED PAPER
Office paper, newspaper, magazines, junk mail,
and envelopes.
commingle together
CUPS
Fast food beverage
cups, aluminum
cups, and paper
cups only. Remove
straws. No colored
party cups.
Remove
plastic
caps and
straws.
CARTONS
PLASTIC BOTTLES, JUGS, AND TUBS
Recycle these materials 24/7 at 14 drop-off
locations in Dearborn County. Recyclables
must be sorted by type for drop off.
www.dearborncountyrecycles.com
ALUMINUM
CANS &
BOTTLES
Remove caps
on aluminum
bottles.
BEER
Communities
work at Hillforest and River
View Cemetery, mulched city
flower beds, and painted curbs
in town. Thanks, guys and
gals! We hope you carry forward
the community service
idea!
Denise Rose, Aurora’s
Parks Director, reported that
fifty volunteers came to the
Ohio River Sweep. They
got a lot of areas covered!
THANKS to all of them.
A big worry on my mind,
what will happen to our
empty bank buildings, has
been addressed. The US Bank
building has been bought
and will be the new home of
a hardware store for woodworkers
and craftsmen. A
spin-off of Granger Products,
McFeely’s is the creator of
the original SQUARE DRIVE
SCREWS, which they offer
with other screws, glues, and
sandpapers. Currently doing
online sales, they do anticipate
having a walk-in service
in a year. Tim Grote gave
me, Kevin Gerke, and Tim
Miller a tour of what they are
doing. Right where I used to
do deposits and other business
there are now shelves
that they access by forklift.
Tim loves the building. He
says it is like Fort Knox with
the concrete floors, and he
even plans on keeping the big
walk-in safe, which contained
a smaller safe inside of it,
that he was told is the original.
Tim Grote, welcome to
Aurora. The American State
Bank by the railroad tracks
has been purchased by Todd
Thompson, a financial advisor
currently located on Third
Street. The building is currently
being remodeled and
will include other available
office space. I’m thrilled, as
they are a first-class group
that we are keeping in Aurora.
What will happen????
On Father’s Day weekend,
Hard Hat Hangout on June
17, from 9 A.M. to noon, in
the Lions parking lot. Bring
your kids to see and enjoy
trucks, tractors, and construction
equipment on display. A
totally free event with goodies
for the kids, as well as drinks
and hotdogs. Main Street
Aurora and Aurora Utility
sponsor this event with help
from Woody Bucher, Bill
Yelton, and other local companies
providing equipment.
The Aurora Fire Department
also provides a great show of
their trucks and activities for
the kids!
LIGHT UP AURORA will
be on July 1 from 6-10 P.M.
in Gabbard Park. Live music,
a cruise-in, a beer garden,
food vendors, and a kids’
area. The fireworks will be at
10 P.M. My nephew, Benny,
NEW ALSACE
By
Laura
Keller
Community
Correspondent
newalsace@goBEACONnews.com
As I’m writing this article,
the end of the school year has
ended or is coming to an end
for many students. Katelyn
Osman, daughter of Eddie
and Brenda Osman, recently
graduated from Mount St.
Joseph University where she
was awarded the Outstanding
Management Student in the
College of Business. Katelyn
completed her bachelor’s
degree in only three years.
Congratulations to Katelyn!
I was gifted a copy of
The History of New Alsace
Indiana by Anthony A. Fette,
which was published in 1951.
Capturing the history of New
Alsace began in 1948 when
Father Lawrence Weinzapfel
who was the pastor of St.
Paul’s Church (now part of
All Saints Parish) received
a request for a baptism
and First Communion date
Aurora
Events
Aurora Kids FREE
Summer Time
Dine-n-Dive
Aurora City Park
244 City Park Circle
Weekdays, Noon - 1pm
Through July 28th
Enter drawing for a free pass
to the pool for that day.
Main Street Aurora
& Aurora Utility
Hard Hat Hang Out
Saturday, June 17
9am - Noon
Aurora Lions Club Parking Lot
Main Street Aurora
Coffee & Walking Tour
of the Windows of Aurora
Saturday, June 24 10am
$10.00 RSVP
812.926.1100
Meet Plug’s Sweet Tooth
313 Second St.
Get it All at www.goBEACONnews.com
Jim Koons of Rising Sun
and Patti Shannon Viers of
Patriot took a helicopter ride.
(Photo by Debbie Acasio)
knows that I love fireworks.
If you know him, voice your
input. I think he doesn’t like
writing this check, but come
on Benny, it’s once a year!
As I said, I love this time of
year!
Katelyn Osman earned the
Outstanding Management
Student in the College of
Business from Mount St.
Joseph University. (Photo by
Brenda Osman)
from Anthony Fette. Father
Weinzapfel asked Mr. Fette
if he had any historical facts
about the parish that he could
share. This inquiry prompted
Mr. Fette to begin writing a
narrative of his experiences
living in New Alsace. He
obtained information from
publications such as History
of Dearborn and Ohio Counties,
History of Dearborn
County and The Dearborn
County Atlas of 1975, in addition
to interviewing many
New Alsace residents. I just
started reading The History of
New Alsace Indiana and as I
learn interesting facts, I will
share them in future columns.
If you have any history of
New Alsace you’d like to
share with me, please contact
me at the email address listed
at the end of the article.
The North Dearborn American
Legion is also hosting
their monthly euchre tournament
on July 16 and August
20. Doors open at noon and
games begin at 1 p.m. The
entry fee is $5 per person
with cash payouts to the four
highest scores. Refreshments
are available for purchase.
Call 812.623.3695 for more
information.
I would love to hear from
you! If you have news in the
New Alsace area you’d like
me to share, please contact me
at newalsace@goBEACON
news.com.
Aurora High School Museum
All Classes Alumni Dance
Saturday, June 24
7pm - 10pm
228 Second Street
Aurora Lions Club
Hoxworth Blood Drive
Wednesday, June 21
Noon - 6pm
228 Second Street
513.451.0910
Main Street Aurora
& City of Aurora
Light up Aurora
Saturday, July 1
6 - 10pm
Fireworks
10pm
Gabbard Riverfront Park
River City Classic Car Club
Cruise In
Wednesday, July 5
5:30pm - 8:30pm
200 block of Second St.
Judiciary to Main Sts.